The Case of the Stuttering Pig (1937)

User Rating:

6.9/10   

Director:

Frank Tashlin

Writer:

Melvin Millar (story)

Release Date:

30 October 1937 (USA)

Genre:

Family | Horror | Animation | Short | Comedy

Plot:

A dark and stormy night; a knock on the door of the pig family. It's lawyer Goodwill, with Uncle Solomon's will which leaves everything to the pigs...

Plot Keywords:

Breaking The Fourth Wall Via Audience | Breaking The Fourth Wall | Horror For Kids | Petunia Pig | Cartoon Pig

Cast

Mel Blanc	...	Porky Pig / Guy in the Third Row (voice) (uncredited)
Billy Bletcher	...	Lawyer Goodwill (voice) (uncredited)

Runtime:

8 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:Approved (MPPDA #3668)

Company:

Leon Schlesinger Studios

Quotes:

Lawyer Goodwill: I'll do away with all of you!
[Suddenly a chair flies in from the audience, hits Goodwill and knocks him into the stocks]
Pigs: Who did that?
Guy in the third row: Me!
Lawyer Goodwill: Who are you?
Guy in the third row: I'm the guy in the thoid row, you big sourpuss!

Movie Connections:

References The Cameraman (1928)

Soundtrack:

Puddin' Head Jones

they fired the wrong lawyers

The current news about the firing of the eight US attorneys might make people think of attorneys in generals. The early Porky Pig cartoon "The Case of the Stuttering Pig" portrays one of the most unctuous lawyers ever to grace the silver screen. In this case, Porky, Petunia, and their siblings - whose names all begin with P - are sitting in their house one dark and stormy night (apologies to Charles Schulz), when lawyer Goodwill arrives with some news. Their Uncle Solomon has left them several things. But if anything happens to the porkers, the lawyer gets everything (hmm...).

So, right after the lawyer leaves, he sneaks down into the basement, where he cooks up and drinks a potion a la Jekyll and Hyde. After he turns into the ugliest version of a pig that I've ever seen, he warns the audience - and in particular that guy in the third row - not to intervene.

Then begins the real action: the lawyer (or whatever he's now called) turns off the power and kidnaps the siblings one by one. But good old Porky, he isn't so easy to catch! And when all's said and done, that guy in the third row turns out not to be so passive!

So, it's an interesting look into the early days of the Looney Tunes, when Porky was their only star. For that matter, I wonder why they suddenly identified him as a stuttering pig here, as people should have already understood that he stuttered. But either way, it's worth seeing. And the next time that you're in a movie theater, keep an eye on anyone in the third row; it just might help you!

I wonder what ever became of Petunia. It seems like she only appeared in a few cartoons in the 1930s.