I still recall having seen one of the very old, first videos of Tom and Jerry, a few months back on cartoon network. There was nothing great attached to it's tail. It was grossly unimpressive, dull, just another carton show. Very unlike the famous Tom and Jerry pair that we now see, The one great lively pair, vibrant and hilarious Tom and Jerry that never fail to make me laugh. It was Chuck Jones, in the in the 60s who changed the whole thing. Since his entry, TJ became one great show.
It was the remodellingof the TJ pair by Chuck Jones that probably brought the first light of fame and glory to the cartoon. The TJ with Jones' magic touch never ceases to amuse me, no matter how many times I see that or that I am no longer a kid, though Hanna and Barbara made it much better in later days. I probably realize the importance of his contribution to TJ because I have seen how bad it was before he stepped in. Jones went on to work on more well known characters such as Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck. He also created the Road Runner and Coyote.
Chuck Jones is no more. He died yesterday of heart failure.
As I write this, I recall, it was only last Friday that I had bought a brand new set of 10 Tom and Jerry VCDs, and playing it, with people surrounding my PC, watching it, laughing out loud and having great fun! And I recall the evenings spent watching the Coyote chasing the road runner and trying to imitate the 'pee peenk' sound of the road runner while it has it's last laugh. The creator of those wonderful moments is no more, but his creations are bound to stay, giving us those pleasures for more years..
