Lost Tom & Jerry title cards

Fellow animation historian David Gerstein is on a roll.

He’s followed up his discovery of the lost ending to the Bugs Bunny Hare-um Scare-um with an equally intriguing find. He’s just posted on his blog of the existence of several rare Tom & Jerry prints from the 1940s, featuring previously unseen main title art (click thumbnails above for a few samples). You’ll recall that I’ve posted before, on my MGM Cartoon Research page, that the original negatives to MGM cartoons prior to 1952 were destroyed in a studio fire. While duplicate film elements survive, these are from reissue prints. Unfortunately MGM refilmed the opening titles and sometimes removed or changed gags and animation for re-release. In other words, the original visuals for 1940s MGM cartoons only exist in rare nitrate prints. David has posted some choice shots from several of these on his blog. These are images never seen on DVD or Cartoon Network. Click here and enjoy.