Because the hardware is dying (few modern collectors own a working Pioneer LD player with an AC-3 RF output), a secondary "digital archive" has emerged in the underground preservation community. Known to insiders as the "LD5.1 Project," dedicated fans have captured the analog video output of these discs using high-end broadcast converters (like the DVDO iScan HD+).
To understand why this LaserDisc is sacred, we must first understand the catastrophe of the 1970s and 80s. Unlike Disney, which meticulously preserved its animation cels and negatives, MGM viewed its back catalog of Hanna-Barbera Tom and Jerry shorts (1940–1958) as liabilities. For decades, the original Technicolor negatives were neglected. By the time Ted Turner bought the MGM library in 1986, the 114 original shorts had suffered immense degradation.
: 70 complete shorts, starting from the very first cartoon, Puss Gets the Boot (1940), and running through the early 1950s. the art of tom and jerry laserdisc archive
shorts presented in their original 2.35:1 widescreen ratio. It also features rare Spike and Tyke spin-offs and animated sequences from live-action MGM musicals like Anchors Aweigh Volume III: The Chuck Jones Cartoons (1963–1967)
In the 1980s, laserdisc technology emerged as a premium format for home video entertainment. Laserdiscs offered superior video and audio quality compared to VHS tapes, making them a favorite among collectors and enthusiasts. The Tom and Jerry Laserdisc Archive was released in the late 1980s, featuring a comprehensive collection of the original cartoons, including some rare and hard-to-find titles. Because the hardware is dying (few modern collectors
Most fans bought the disc for the cartoons on Sides 1-3—beautiful, un-cropped transfers of Yankee Doodle Mouse , The Night Before Christmas , and Johann Mouse . These were considered the best home video transfers until the DVD era.
For those who own a working laserdisc player (or the patient collectors who rip the digital streams for preservation projects), the experience is ritualistic. You must flip the disc halfway through a short. The analog tracking produces a soft, reassuring hum. The video has a softness—a natural grain—that DNR-heavy modern remasters scrub away. : 70 complete shorts, starting from the very
To the uninitiated, The Art of Tom and Jerry (released in the early 1990s by MGM/UA Home Video in Japan) looks like a standard premium release. But to those who understand the brutal history of animation preservation, this disc represents one of the most important "lost" color archives ever pressed into plastic.