The Big Game XXVI: Tom vs. Jerry (found Cartoon Network marathon special; 1998)

Title card as seen in The Big Game: A Look Back (2000).

Status: Found

Date found: 05 Apr 2021

Found by: Hampton Roads TV Fan

The Big Game XXVI: Tom vs. Jerry was the first in a series of four Super Bowl spoofs that aired yearly on Cartoon Network from 1998-2001. Although the special was numbered as being the twenty-sixth annual of its kind, this was only to give the illusion of it having been a longtime tradition like the event that inspired it.

There would be a "pre-game" marathon of cartoons featuring the characters being pitted against one another, interspersed with tongue-in-cheek studio coverage by Len Dawson, Nick Buoniconti, Cris Collinsworth, and Jerry Glanville.

The "games" themselves, held at Chuck Jones Stadium, consisted of cartoon clips with football sound effects and commentary by Pat Summerall and John Madden. There would even be an ersatz halftime show complete with fake commercials. Each Big Game's results would generally be what one would expect considering the track records of the characters involved (in the first one, Jerry was the winner). However, likely because the producers were conscious of how predictable each previous Big Game had been, the final special had a twist ending where Daffy won because Bugs failed to show up.

The last three Big Game specials (Sylvester vs. Tweety, Wile E. Coyote vs. Roadrunner, and Bugs vs. Daffy respectively) are all readily available on YouTube, but strangely, until 2021, the first one was nowhere to be found. Before being uploaded to YouTube, some clips could be seen in retrospectives during other Big Game.

Trivia

• Tom and Jerry's football helmets use logos based upon those of real National Football League teams. Tom's helmet logo was based on that of the Jacksonville Jaguars, while Jerry's is based on that of the Oakland Raiders (who were located in Los Angeles from 1982 to 1994, and relocated to Las Vegas in 2020; having been based in Oakland otherwise).

Availability

On April 5th, 2021, Internet Archive user Hampton Roads TV Fan uploaded files relating to Super Bowl XXXII, including The Big Game XXVI: Tom vs. Jerry.

Gallery

• 

  Tom and Jerry's football helmets.

See Also

Anthology Series

• Big Bag (partially found Cartoon Network live-action/animated/puppet series; 1996-1998)
• Cartoon Network "Cartoon Network Responds!" (partially lost interstitials from TV channel; 1997-1999)
• The Moxy Show (partially found Cartoon Network CGI animated anthology series; 1993-1995)
• Sunday Pants (partially lost Cartoon Network animated anthology series; 2005)
• ToonHeads (partially lost Cartoon Network animation anthology series; 1992-2003)
• ToonHeads "A Night of Independent Animation" (partially lost special of Cartoon Network animation anthology series; 1996)
• Villainous (partially found Cartoon Network Mexico online animated short series; 2012-2013)
• What a Cartoon! (found Cartoon Network animated anthology series; 1995-1997)
• Youri, the Spaceman (found Cartoon Network France CGI animated series; 2002)

Bumpers and Interstitials

• Cartoon Network (partially found "High Noon Toons" bumpers from TV channel block; 1994-1996)
• Cartoon Network (partially lost "Nood" bumpers from TV channel; 2008-2010)
• Cartoon Network NBA All-Star Slam (partially found interviews of marathon; 2003)
• Cartoon Planet (partially found bumpers of revival block of Cartoon Network animated variety series; 2012)
• Codename: Kids Next Door Mission Weekend (partially found marathon bumpers for Cartoon Network animated series; 2003)
• Fridays aka "Cartoon Cartoon Fridays" (partially found interstitials from Cartoon Network channel block; 1999–2007)
• Hotdog TV (partially found Cartoon Network interstitial series; 2010)
• JBVO, Toon FM & Viva Las Bravo (partially found interstitials from Cartoon Network channel blocks; early-mid 2000s)
• Tickle-U (partially found Cartoon Network preschool block; 2005-2006)

Pilots

• Ben 10 (partially found unaired pilot of Cartoon Network animated series; early-mid 2000s)
• Billy and Mandy in Trepanation of the Skull and You (found prototype short of "The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy" Cartoon Network animated series; 1995)
• Camp Lazlo "Monkey See, Camping Doo" (lost unaired pilot of Cartoon Network animated series; 2004)
• Captain Sturdy (found Cartoon Network animated pilots; 2001)
• Cartoon Network Development Studio Europe (partially lost pitch pilots from British animation studio; 2008-2011)
• Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi (found unaired pilot of Cartoon Network animated series; 2003)
• Imp Inc. (found Cartoon Network animated pilot; 2001)
• Jeffrey Cat: Claw and Order "All Dogs Don't Go to Heaven" (found Cartoon Network animated pilot; 2002)
• A Kitty Bobo Show (found storyboard of cancelled second animated pilot for Cartoon Network; 2002)
• Major Flake in "Soggy Sales" (found Cartoon Network animated pilot; 2001)
• The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack (partially lost unaired "Wedgies" pilot and short of Cartoon Network animated series; 2007)
• Mess O' Blues (partially found prototype short of "Johnny Bravo" Cartoon Network animated series; 1993)
• My Gym Partner's a Monkey (lost unaired pilots of Cartoon Network animated series; 2003/2004)
• The Powerpuff Girls (lost unaired pilot of Cartoon Network animated series reboot; early-mid 2010s)
• Project Gilroy (lost Cartoon Network animated pilot; 2007)
• Regular Show (non-existent Flash pilot of Cartoon Network animated series; late 2000s-2010)
• Squirrel Boy "Kite Makes Right" (lost unaired pilot of Cartoon Network animated series; 2004)
• Uncle Gus (partially found original English audio of Cartoon Network animated pilots; 2000-2001)
• What's Wrong With Ruth? (found Cartoon Network animated pilot; 2007)

Live-Action

• Bobb'e Says (partially found Cartoon Network live-action clip series; 2009)
• BrainRush (partially lost Cartoon Network live-action game show; 2009)
• Track Rats (partially found Cartoon Network reality short series; 2010)
• The Othersiders (found Cartoon Network paranormal reality series; 2009)
• Out of Jimmy's Head (partially lost original English dub of Cartoon Network teen sitcom; 2007-2008)

Other Cartoon Network Series

• The Amazing World of Gumball "The Downer" (lost original draft of Cartoon Network animated series episode; existence unconfirmed; 2012-2014)
• The Amazing World of Gumball "The Rex" (partially found production material of cancelled Cartoon Network animated series episode; 2012)
• Ben 10 (partially found pop-up trivia version of Cartoon Network animated series episodes; 2008)
• Chowder (lost pop-up trivia version of Cartoon Network animated series episodes; 2010)
• Chowder (lost production material of cancelled Cartoon Network TV film; 2009)
• Class of 3000 (found original English dub of Cartoon Network animated musical series; 2006-2008)
• Codename: Kids Next Door (lost production material of cancelled Cartoon Network animated series episodes; 2002-2008)
• Dexter's Laboratory "Rude Removal" (found unaired Cartoon Network animated series episode; 1997)
• Droopy's Guide to the Cartoon Network (found launch preview of TV channel special; 1992)
• Ed, Edd n Eddy "Luck Be an Ed Tonight"/"A Room with an Ed" (rumored/lost unfinished Cartoon Network animated series episodes; existence unconfirmed; 2005)
• Ed, Edd n Eddy "Special Ed" (non-existent unproduced Cartoon Network animated series episode; late 1990s/early 2000s)
• The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy "Matinee Mandy" (lost original English audio of Cartoon Network animated short; 2007)
• I Heart Tuesdays (lost production material of cancelled Cartoon Network animated series; 2011-2012)
• I-10: The Ben 10 User Generated Experience (found Cartoon Network TV special; 2008)
• OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes "Crossover Nexus" (partially found original 22-minute version of Cartoon Network animated series episode; 2010s)
• Skatoony (found original British version of Cartoon Network quiz show; 2006-2008)
• Whatever Happened to... Robot Jones? (partially lost unreleased original voice audio and unfinished/unknown Cartoon Network animated series episodes; 2002-2003)