Back in 1940, when MGM dropped its very first cartoon, the famous cat was called Jasper and the mouse Jinx. At that time, those names were still off the radar for the general public.
Everything flipped thanks to an internal contest: the crew was invited to pitch new names. It was ultimately animator John Carr who snagged the win by suggesting "Tom and Jerry," pocketing a cool 50 bucks.
Everything flipped thanks to an internal contest: the crew was invited to pitch new names. It was ultimately animator John Carr who snagged the win by suggesting "Tom and Jerry," pocketing a cool 50 bucks.