Notes • July 14, 2025by johnataylor on TwosFun Fact: William Hanna was born on July 14, 1910. An American animator, voice actor, and musician. Hanna co-created Tom and Jerry and provided the vocal effects for the series's title characters. In 1937, while working at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Hanna met Joseph Barbera. In 1957, they co-founded Hanna-Barbera, which became a successful television animation studio, creating or producing programs such as The Flintstones, The Huckleberry Hound Show, The Jetsons, Scooby-Doo, The Smurfs, and Yogi Bear. Although Hanna-Barbera was sold to Taft Broadcasting in 1967 for $12 million (equivalent to about $113 million today), Hanna and Barbera remained heads of the company until 1991. Leonard Maltin says the Hanna–Barbera team "[may] hold a record for producing consistently superior cartoons using the same characters year after year—without a break or change in routine. Their characters are not only animated superstars, but also a very beloved part of American pop culture". Together, they are often considered Walt Disney's only rivals as cartoonists. Professionally, they balanced each other's strengths and weaknesses very well, but despite their long partnership and friendship, they rarely talked outside of work, since Hanna was interested in the outdoors and Barbera liked beaches, good food and drink. Privately, they traveled in completely different social circles, with Hanna preferring the company of his fellow animators, while Barbera preferred to socialize with Hollywood elites. Yet in their 60-plus year partnership, they rarely exchanged a cross word. Barbera once said: "We understood each other perfectly, and each of us had deep respect for the other's work." William Hanna died on March 22, 2001, at the age of 90. His lifelong friend and colleague, Joseph Barbera, died on December 18, 2006 aged 95. Their lives leave a legacy beyond the popularity of their cartoons. It has been noted that “most of the cartoons Hanna and Barbera created revolved around close friendship or partnership.” As a team, they reflected in their cartoons what they lived. Their ability to compliment and support one another, to maintain a partnership and friendship in spite of their very different personalities shows the truth of the old adage “two[s] is better than one!” ✌️