O Recital

Friz Freleng's 'I Haven't Got a Hat' is sort of an audition piece for new characters. With neither Bosko nor Buddy proving particularly inspiring, Warner cartoons needed a new star player and they hedged their bets by introducing a host of new creations based on the 'Our Gang' series. A range of young animals and their school teacher Miss Cud are introduced with captions at the beginning of 'I Haven't Got a Hat'. Not unreasonably, the studio assumed that the real winner was Beans the naughty little cat and they went on to make a handful of cartoons in which he was the lead. However, the character the audience found most interesting was Porky Pig who would go on to be the studio's first real star. In 'I Haven't Got a Hat', Porky performs a recital of 'The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere' but he is so nervous that he sweats profusely and stutters in the extreme. This stutter would ultimately become the character's defining feature, although it would later be portrayed as merely a speech impediment and not the result of extreme nerves. Porky's age was also altered from cartoon to cartoon at this stage. Often he would maintain the characteristics of a child while at other times he would assume the adult role which finally became the constant. As early as his second appearance in Tex Avery's 'Gold Diggers of '49', Porky was already playing a grown-up, the father of one of his classmates in this cartoon, no-less! All of which tells you very little about 'I Haven't Got a Hat', for which I apologise! A very early colour Merrie Melody, 'I Haven't Got a Hat' is cutesy but enjoyable. Set at a school talent show, we get to watch various acts starting with Porky's jumbled poetry. We hear Little Kitty (the most self-consciously cute character who is noticeably absent from the opening introductions) recite 'Mary Had a Little Lamb' with a little help from Miss Cud, then the twin dogs Ham and Ex (the weakest creations of this batch of new characters) perform the jaunty song that gives the cartoon its title. All of this is fairly enjoyable but the best antics come courtesy of Oliver Owl and Beans, who are engaged in an off-stage war over sweets which spills over into Oliver's act. I always enjoy 'I Haven't Got a Hat' despite its absence of big laughs. It's interesting to see Porky's debut but this amounts to barely a cameo really. What makes 'I Haven't Got a Hat' so enjoyable is its gentle warmth and bright, colourful animation. While my ribs remain largely untickled during these seven minutes, my lips remain in a upturned position and, every now and then, my foot taps to the tunes on offer. A small treat for cartoon enthusiasts.

Mr. Freling comes up with the ultimate classroom stutterer in this Merrie Melodies cartoon. It begins with an elementary age Porky reciting "The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere" in front of an audience. Other characters strut their stuff too, but I only recognise Porky.

'I Haven't Got a Hat' is significant for being the debut of Porky Pig, but that is not the only reason for watching. It is a decent cartoon in its own right, but Porky did go on to feature and star in better and funnier cartoons as he evolved.

While one is sympathetic towards Porky, this reviewer knows what it's like to be in Porky's position, and he is likable, he is rather underused in an appearance that is more a cameo than anything else and he's had a stronger personality elsewhere.

'I Haven't Got a Hat' is also somewhat light on plot, which is more an excuse to string along renditions of characters performing songs and a few other antics.

And while there are smiles throughout the whole duration of the cartoon, 'I Haven't Got a Hat' is short on humour that's consistent or hilarious, it's not that it's unfunny it's just that there's not enough and it's mildly amusing really.

However, this reviewer really loved the bright and colourful animation with lots of beautiful backgrounds and imaginative visual detail, and even better the music which is essentially the actual star of the show, the character, the energy, the enthusiasm and the lusciousness is seriously phenomenal.

Also appreciated the agreed warmth and gentility of the writing, and the vocals with all the voice actors sounding like they were having the time of their lives. The supporting characters do make more of an impression than Porky and are used more.

Oliver and Beans' antics this reviewer agrees steals the show, it was fun and didn't get repetitive. Kitty was adorable, and one cannot help smiling in the appearance of Ham and Ex.

In conclusion, a good if not great debut for Porky Pig, that's a very pleasant watch but doesn't see the best or funniest of him. 7/10 Bethany Cox

I Haven't Got a Hat (1935)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

A small school is having their recital day. Porky Pig, stuttering and all, must stand up and do The Midnight Ride of Paul revere while other students follow.

I HAVEN'T GOT A HAT isn't the greatest animated short ever made but it is somewhat historic as this here was the first appearance of Porky Pig. His look and vocal performance is a lot different than the Porky most people know and love but it's still rather interesting seeing this early version. For the most part this is an innocent enough of a short as it's basically introducing us to a bunch of new characters with of course Porky taking off. There really wasn't any major laughs but it was pleasant enough.

Although "I Haven't Got a Hat" just looks like a cute cartoon, it really seems to be focusing on the various kinds of things that can happen during a school recital, namely stage fright and resentment. Probably most famous as Porky Pig's debut (he sings about Paul Revere's ride), the cartoon culminates when an owl tries to play the piano but a cat messes with the piano.

So, this is a formidable part of cartoon history. The crowd behind the Looney Tunes cartoons would further develop the cartoons in later years, but this is a good reference point. Worth seeing.

The lamb's fleece was as white as corn flakes. Ha!