There is Peace on Earth in the 1941 MGM cartoon short The Night Before Christmas. Well, if not on Earth, then at least in the world of Tom & Jerry. While the pair do their share of sparring in this Christmas-themed short, there is a moment of truce between the two, adding a break from the usual chaos and bringing an element of warmth to the proceedings.

After all, it is the holiday season, and of all the shorts that the famed cat and mouse pair made, The Night Before Christmas ranks as one of their sweetest outings. This year marks the 80th anniversary of The Night Before Christmas, an ideal time to celebrate this animated gem while we celebrate the season.

The short opens with lovely, traditional Christmas carols playing on the soundtrack, as snow falls on a cozy, cottage-like home, wreath on the front window, and warm light coming from within. We are taken inside to a beautifully decorated Christmas tree in front of a roaring fire.

This is the first example of just how gorgeous the backgrounds are. They are attributed to artist Joseph Smith, who created such lush detail with each one.

This is especially seen once Jerry the mouse comes into the short. The narrator provides the traditional opening line of Clement C. Moore’s poem A Visit from St. Nicholas. When he says,” … not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse,” Jerry makes his appearance from a nearby mouse hole.

He ignores a mousetrap featuring a piece of cheese with a bow on it and, instead, heads over to the Christmas tree. It’s here that we get to revel in the incredible details of the short, as Jerry spends time under the tree.

He sees his reflection in glass ornaments, slides down a candy cane, and spends time exploring the toys waiting under the tree. He then meets Tom.

Of course, Tom the cat (seen here in his original design) is none too happy to see Jerry, who quickly slaps a “Do Not Open ‘Til Christmas” sticker on Tom’s mouth.

The classic Tom and Jerry chase, fight, and cartoon violence follows, all of it here with a Christmas theme. The two run among the toys. Jerry hides in a Christmas light (which results in Tom being electrocuted) and they incorporate a model train into their antics.

Jerry eventually eases situations by presenting mistletoe, persuading Tom to kiss him. As Tom blushes, Jerry kicks Tom and runs out through the mail slot. Tom then blocks the letterbox, leaving poor Jerry out in the snowy, frigid evening.

Satisfied, Tom fluffs up pillows near a warm fire, but as a choir on the soundtrack sings “It Came Upon a Midnight Clear” and “Silent Night,” Tom’s consciousness seems to bother him as he thinks of poor Jerry outside. There is some beautiful personality animation here in The Night Before Christmas. Tom’s internal struggle, while Jerry is outside, brings emotion to the short.

Several legends of animation, including Bill Littlejohn and Irv Spence, just to name a few, contributed to The Night Before Christmas, so it’s no wonder that there is heart amidst the usual game of cat and mouse.

Finally, Tom can take no more and goes outside to rescue Jerry, who has now turned into a “mousesicle.” Tom brings Jerry to the fire to thaw out. After, Jerry rescues Tom from a mousetrap hidden in his milk bowl, and Jerry discovers that the trap in front of his mousehole is a music box that plays “Jingle Bells,” as the short concludes.

The Night Before Christmas was successful enough when released on December 6th, 1941, to be nominated for an Oscar (it lost to Disney’s Pluto short, Lend a Paw).

Since then, the short has been well remembered and included in several Tom & Jerry collections on DVD and Blu-Ray. It can also currently be found streaming on the Boomerang app.

In addition to being a perfect short subject to watch during this time of year and one that speaks to the season, The Night Before Christmas is also significant in the history of Tom & Jerry. As author Ted Sennett notes in his 1989 book, The Art of Hanna-Barbera: Fifty Years of Creativity, this is one of the shorts that established the relationship between the two characters. He wrote: “Despite the ongoing antagonism, the unstated regard that Tom and Jerry had for each other surely contributed to the series longevity. Viewers sensed that Tom was not interested in destroying little Jerry.”

Peace on Earth, indeed. Merry Christmas, Everyone!

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Michael Lyons

Michael Lyons is a freelance writer, specializing in film, television, and pop culture.He is the author of the book, Drawn to Greatness: Disney’s Animation Renaissance, which chronicles the amazing growth at the Disney animation studio in the 1990s.In addition to Animation Scoop and Cartoon Research, he has contributed to Remind Magazine, Cinefantastique, Animation World Network and Disney Magazine.He also writes a blog, Screen Saver: A Retro Review of TV Shows and Movies of Yesteryear and his interviews with a number of animation legends have been featured in several volumes of the books, Walt’s People. You can visit Michael’s web site Words From Lyons at: Words From Lyons at: www.wordsfromlyons.com

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