Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats is a set of whimsical poems by T. S. Eliot about feline psychology and sociology. It was first published in 1939 with cover illustrations by the author, and subsequently in 1940 illustrated in full by Nicolas Bentley. An edition was published in 1982 that featured illustrations by Edward Gorey.

The work is most known for inspiring the story for the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical on Broadway Cats. This was the longest running Broadway musical until January 2006, when it was overtaken by The Phantom of the Opera, another Andrew Lloyd Webber production.

Cats from Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by T. S. Eliot, in order of appearance:

• The Old Gumbie Cat
• Growltiger
• Rum Tum Tugger
• Mungojerrie and Rumpelteazer
• Old Deuteronomy
• Mr. Mistoffelees
• Macavity: The Mystery Cat
• Gus: The Theatre Cat
• Bustopher Jones: The Cat about Town
• Skimbleshanks: The Railway Cat
• Cat Morgan Introduces Himself (added in the 1962 edition)

The musical Cats is based on Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats, but introduces several additional characters—most notably Grizabella.

References

American poems | British poems | 1939 poems