Tom & Jerry

Tom and Jerry is a series of theatrical animated cartoon films created by William Hannaand Joseph Barbera for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, centering on a rivalry between a cat (Tom) and a mouse (Jerry) whose chases involved comic violence. Hanna and Barbera ultimately wrote, produced and directed 114 Tom and Jerry shorts at MGM cartoon studios inHollywood from 1940 to 1957. 

Tom
Tom" Cat is a fictional character and one of the two protagonists in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's series of Tom and Jerry theatrical cartoon short films. Created by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera, Tom is a blue/greyanthropomorphic domestic short-haired cat who first appeared in the 1940 animated short Puss Gets the Boot.^[1] Tom was originally known as "Jasper" during his debut in that short,^[2] however, beginning from his next appearance inThe Midnight Snack and onwards, he is known as "Tom" or "Thomas".^[3


Jerry Mouse
Jerry Mouse is a fictional character and one of the two main protagonists in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's series of Tom and Jerry theatrical cartoon short films. Created byWilliam Hanna and Joseph Barbera, Jerry is a brown house mouse, who first appeared as an unnamed mouse in the 1940 MGM animated short Puss Gets the Boot.^[1] Hanna gave the mouse's original name as "Jinx",^[2] while Barbera claimed the mouse went unnamed in his first appearance.^[1]


Spike and Tyke
In his attempts to catch Jerry, Tom often has to deal with Spike (known as "Killer" and "Butch" in some shorts), an angry, vicious but extremely unintelligent bulldog who tries to attack Tom for bothering his son Tyke while trying to get Jerry. Originally, Spike was unnamed and mute (aside from howls and biting noises) as well as attacking indiscriminately, not caring whether it was Tom or Jerry though usually attacking Tom. In later cartoons, Spike spoke often, using a voice and expressions (performed by Billy Bletcher and later Daws Butler) modeled after comedian Jimmy Durante. Spike's coat has altered throughout the years between grey and creamy tan. The addition of Spike's son Tyke in the late 1940s led to both a slight softening of Spike's character and a short-lived spin-off theatrical series (Spike and Tyke).