Porky's Poultry Plant

A remarkable cartoon for the period. First, it was Carl Stallings' debut as Termite Terrace's musical director, a position he would hold for twenty years, producing a remarkable body of work. Second, it was Frank Tashlin's second directorial credit -- his first was three years before for Van Beuren -- and his mastery of directing is already obvious. Notice the long panning shot that opens the movie, and the POV (Point Of View) shots from the chickenhawk's perspective. Or perhaps it is a vulture; species are not rigid in the cartoon universe.

This is not, I should add, a very funny cartoon. The situations are handled dramatically and the number of gags is not very high. But it is worth your time.

Frank Tashlin's 'Porky's Poultry Plant' is a case of historical importance exceeding enjoyment factor. 'Porky's Poultry Plant' was not only the directional debut of Tashlin, it was also the first Warner cartoon with music by the irreplaceable Carl Stalling. Tashlin and Stalling would both go on to produce an astonishing array of work for the Warner Bros. cartoon studio and their enormous talents are much in evidence here despite the weak material. The cartoon opens with a gorgeous pan across the farmyard which is typical of the live-action techniques Tashlin brought to his cartoons. However, we then have to sit through a series of cutesy gags about feeding chickens into which even Tashlin cannot inject any energy. Porky's voice is also excruciating here, provided as it was by Joe Dougherty, an actor with a real speech impediment who was unable to control his stutter as Mel Blanc later would. Some of Porky's sentences seem to go on forever! 'Porky's Poultry Plant' picks up towards the end as Porky becomes embroiled in an airborne battle with some vultures, resulting in a terrific battle which showcases Tashlin's instantly assured direction. It's too late to really save the cartoon though and it peters out with a cutesy gag that's more in keeping with the dull opening scenes. 'Porky's Poultry Plant' emerges as weak material brilliantly directed, probably of interest mainly to those who are interested in animation history but of little worth as the entertainment it was intended to be.

With some of the early Porky Pig cartoons, it seems that the people creating the cartoons often didn't go for outright humor (that may have started when Daffy Duck came along). For example, "Porky's Poultry Plant" has a rather simple plot line: Porky runs a chicken farm and has lost some hens to a pernicious hawk/buzzard; the hawk/buzzard kidnaps a chick, and Porky flies after the villainous bird, resulting in an aerial version of football.

Usually, I would expect Frank Tashlin's cartoons to contain a lot more in the way of sight gags, but this one sticks to its simple plot. Maybe it was sort of a place holder while they were creating some of the more famous cartoons (1936 also saw the release of "I Love to Singa"). Still, it is worth seeing as a look at the early days of the Looney Tunes. Just understand that they don't go for the really wacky stuff that would soon characterize their work.

Porky's Poultry Plant is interesting from a historical perspective for Frank Tashlin and Carl Stalling at the start of their Warner Brothers/Looney Tunes careers. But it does deserve to be known for more than just historical value. Tashlin and Porky have done much better since, but Porky's Poultry Plant is entertaining, sometimes cute and a decent enough start for Tashlin. There is the sense that he was finding his feet(which is normal really), the cartoon does lack energy sometimes and the ending is too cutesy and abrupt. It is unexceptional story-wise with a routine structure, and Joe Dougherty's voice work is very uncontrolled and not very dynamic(Mel Blanc is missed here). However the animation is great, detailed, crisp and beautifully shaded, plus there is evidence of directorial mastery with Tashlin in the camera angles, the opening shot is simply gorgeous. Stalling's music is similarly wonderful, it is lushly orchestrated and lively with Stalling's style all over it. The dialogue is witty and amusing, and while never hilarious the gags are also decent. The airborne chase is exciting and Porky's Pultry Plant's highlight, the snake charmer bit while a somewhat predictable gag is funny too. Porky despite the lack of Mel Blanc voicing him is a decent lead character, if not the most charismatic. The chickens are cute and the vultures are appropriately antagonistic. All in all, not great but fun and interesting. 7/10 Bethany Cox

Porky's Poultry Plant (1936)

*** (out of 4)

Porky is feeding the various animals on his farm including the ducks and chickens. Then his farm comes under attack by a hawk that has been stealing various chickens. Now it's up to Porky to try and protect what is his.

PORKY'S POULTRY PLANT is another winner for the series, which of course was still rather young here. What's so fun about this short is that there's a lot of imagination going on and especially during the finale where Porky gets into his airplane and goes after the hawk who has stolen a baby chicken. There's a lot of action going on and plenty of nice little laughs as this battle plays out. Another good thing about this is an earlier scene where Porky is trying to feed everyone but the same chicken keeps getting left out.