Tom and Jerry began as MGM theatrical shorts in 1940, created by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera, and Tom's screams became one of the series' signature noises. Hanna himself voiced many of those yells, stretching a single shout into the panicked cry heard in countless cartoon chase scenes. The shorts later ran for decades on television and were clipped endlessly online, where this scream was isolated as 'grito tom' in Portuguese speaking communities. It survives because it instantly signals cartoon pain without needing any setup or dialogue.
About this sound
Tom's iconic scream from Tom and Jerry, the sharp cat yell used for pain, shock and cartoon fails in memes, edits and reaction videos and shorts.
This is Tom the cat's unmistakable scream from Tom and Jerry, a short, shrill yell that spikes instantly and cuts off after about two seconds. It is the sound Tom makes when he is hit, trapped, burned or drops something heavy on himself, with his mouth wide open and the pitch climbing in panic. Because it is so exaggerated, listeners read it as cartoon pain rather than real distress. Placed over a clumsy moment, it turns a small mistake into slapstick and gives the scene a sudden, funny jolt of shock.
