Michael_Elliott 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.

phantom_tollbooth 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.

ProgShred It's an earlier version of Porky though. He still stutters, but not the way he stuttered when Mel Blanc started doing his voice later. In this cartoon, he still manages to get his words out after a few tries, unlike when Blanc did the voice, and Porky would choose different words in mid sentence that were easier for him to say.I liked the teacher. She even had her own bell.The poem by Little Kitty was cute. "Corn Flakes".The song, "I Haven't Got A Hat" by the twin dogs, Ham and Ex was done well with some good bass lines.The highlight of the cartoon was the piano recital by Oliver Owl. A brilliant bit of musicianship, thanks to assistance from Beans and a fighting cat and dog.

runar-4 This cartoon is noted as the first appearance of Porky Pig, but he definitely wasn't the star. The setting is a school's student recital, and he gives a painfully stuttered rendition of Longfellow's "The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere", which abruptly mashes into Tennyson's "Charge of the Light Brigade". It's not an auspicious start for Porky, who gets booed off the stage. It's significant to note that Mel Blanc did not start voicing him until two years later, in 1937's "Porky's Duck Hunt", taking over from Joe Dougherty.The stars turn out to be the twin pups Ham and Ex, who sing a creditable rendition of the title song and, in fact, end up with the only successful act of the recital. This is an example of Warner Brothers desperately in search of a strong character to put up against the likes of Mickey Mouse and Oswald Rabbit, and despite starring roles for members of the entire cast, only Porky showed enough staying power, even more so than Bugs Bunny, who didn't appear in his familiar form until 1940. (Versions of Bugs appeared as early as 1938, but are hardly recognizable as the same character. Porky maintained his basic personality, even though he starts out here as a child and becomes an adult in his next outing, Tex Avery's 1936 cartoon "Gold Diggers of '49", in which the rotund one offers to marry off his daughter to Beans.) Jerry Beck's commentary for "I Haven't Got A Hat" is in volume 3 of the Looney Tunes Golden Collection DVD set.