Tom and Jerry

The phrase Tom and Jerry has several meanings:

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

• Tom and Jerry was originally a pairing of names from Pierce Egan's Life in London, or Days and Nights of Jerry Hawthorne and his elegant friend Corinthian Tom. Egan was a noted chronicler of London low life of the Regency Period (1810–1820), when the rich young bucks of London like Tom and Jerry were notorious for roistering in the streets, breaking windows, and assaulting passers-by.
• A Tom and Jerry shop was a low beer hall in the 19th century, a name derived both from Egan's work and from the older name Jerry shop that predated Egan.
• The verb to Tom and Jerry means "to engage in riotous behavior".
• A Tom and Jerry is a cocktail.
• Tom and Jerry was a series of early sound theatrical cartoons produced by Van Beuren Studios in the 1930s featuring a Mutt and Jeff-like pair.
• Tom and Jerry was a series of theatrical animated cartoons produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, featuring a hapless cat (Tom) endlessly chasing a clever mouse (Jerry).
• Tom and Jerry was the original stage name of the later folk duo Simon and Garfunkel.
• The "Tom and Jerries" is occasionally a nickname in Great Britain for the Transport and General Workers Union.
• "Toms and Jerries" were also nicknames for British(Toms) and German(Jerries) forces during World War II.