32. Life in London by Pierce Egan

The title may not seem to require much explanation until one looks at the subtitle: The Day and Night Scenes of Jerry Hawthorn, Esq. and his Elegant Friend, Corinthian Tom in their Rambles and Sprees through the Metropolis. This is the first entrance of Tom and Jerry, dated 1821. In this collection of scenes of London night- and day-life by the Regency writer Pierce Egan (1772–1849), Tom was a fashionable rake and Jerry his country cousin. ‘Corinthian’ was a reference to the biblical sins of Corinth, meaning profligate or debauched, and a Corinthian, in the Regency period, was simply a bit of a lad.

The journey from Regency England to MGM was a tortuous one. Life in London, now just called Tom and Jerry, transferred to the stage; ‘Tom and Jerrying’ became a slang term for raising hell; a ‘Tom and Jerry’ was the name for an eggnog cocktail; and several other cartoon pairings were named Tom and Jerry before the cat and mouse. And they say cartoons aren’t educational…

Consulted:
Reid, John Cowie: Bucks and Bruisers (1971)

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