Edgar Allan Pooh . . . America's wild birds (not to mention several endangered small mammal populations), but the hapless feline protagonist of PORKY'S POOR FISH gets cut down to size by fish and rodent alike. Whether it's the "little shrimp with big mussels," the flying fish, or the electric sign eels, the denizens of the not-so-deep more than hold their own against their Fritz-like foe. (During WWII, cartoons often used cats as stand-ins for Nazis, while canines were drawn to bring to mind the Allied Cause, epitomized by the English bulldog.) The nameless cat featured here looks so fearsome with claws out in full-on attack mode that little kids may well have gone home to nightmares. However, it's the twice-stalked Incredible Hulking Mouse who elicits the last laugh here, as Mr. Cat shrinks inversely to the growth of this rodent-on-steroids (an obvious precursor to MIGHTY MOUSE of the 1950s). Reduced to a whimpering puddle, the animated cat comes to the end much of the American public wished for Hitler at this time.

phantom_tollbooth Bob Clampett's 'Porky's Poor Fish' is a so-so cartoon populated by appalling puns and one or two nice moments. Set in Porky's Fish Shoppe, 'Porky's Poor Fish' occupies an uncomfortable area between a standard black 'n' white Porky cartoon and one of the books-come-to-life Merrie Melodies that were popular at that time. Typically of many of the early Porky cartoons, Porky is far from the star, appearing only in a rather stilted opening musical number and the climax of the film. For the rest of the time the star is a scraggly cat who sees the fish shop as an opportunity for a free meal but gets more than he bargained for. Unfortunately, the audience gets far less than they bargained for. As was sometimes the case in the books-come-to-life series, the spotlight is thrown on punning signs which could have worked just as well in a non-animated medium. Laughs are scarce and, while the cartoon is just about saved by Clampett's energetic direction, there is very little at all to recommend 'Porky's Poor Fish' over any of the other below-par early Porky cartoons.

Lee Eisenberg If you've seen most of Porky Pig's early cartoons, you've probably observed that they mostly put him in a series of black and white Looney Tunes* portraying various walks of life: bullfighter, pilgrim, firefighter, etc. Most of these cartoons consisted of rather corny - but still really funny - spot gags and word jokes. Bob Clampett's "Porky's Poor Fish" is a prime example. The plot has a street cat sneaking into Porky's fish store with the aim of turning the piscine inhabitants into lunch, only to see them go all Rambo on him. But most of the cartoon has stuff like "Twenty Thousand Leaks Under the Ceiling" and "Tiny Shrimps with Giant Mussels".I probably speak for most Looney Tunes fans when I say that Clampett's best cartoons made heavy use of his penchant for contortionism. Examples include the iron lung in "The Daffy Doc", the garbage can in "A Corny Concerto", and any scene in "Porky in Wackyland" and "The Great Piggy Bank Robbery". I suspect that this one was a place holder. But still, it provided its fair share of laughs during its few minutes. Worth seeing.PS: the first time that Porky Pig had a run-in with fishes was in 1936's rare "Fish Tales", in which he goes fishing and dreams that the fishes try to cook him. In 1940, he also starred in "The Sour Puss", featuring a piscine who behaves like Daffy Duck.*At this time, the Looney Tunes were filmed in black and white and usually featured stars Porky and Daffy, while the Merrie Melodies were filmed in color and usually featured miscellaneous characters. After the Looney Tunes went color, the series became indistinguishable except for the opening songs.

Robert Reynolds This is a black and white Porky Pig short which doesn't really have a whole lot to do with Porky himself. As I want to talk a bit about the cartoon and some of the gags, this is a spoiler warning: This short has Porky Pig as the proprietor of a pet store which specializes in selling fish. It opens, though, with a cat following a mouse, with the intent of having lunch. Failing (rather unceremoniously) at accomplishing that, the camera then switches to the store and we see Porky break out in song while a bunch of rather marginal fish-related sight gags go by, the best of which involves some electric eels. Then the noon whistle blows and Porky goes out to lunch, placing a sign on the door. The cat, perhaps in the mood for some sushi, seizes the opportunity and goes into the store (turning around Porky's sign, which then reads, "in to lunch" instead.The bulk of the remainder of the short is the cat attempting to get a free meal and the efforts of the various fish to ruin his appetite for him. Again, the best bit involves the electric eels, though there are very nicely animated sequences involving an oyster, some flying fish and a mussel which figure prominently. While some of the bits are inventive and very funny, a lot of this is just a bit off the mark. The timing seems to be a bit off of a lot of the jokes here, or maybe I just didn't find it funny.The closing gag, where the cat sees the mouse again and goes after it when denied a fish dinner is fairly nice and a good way to close what is a very uneven short. This is available on the Looney Tunes Golden Collection, Volume 4 and the collection itself is marvelous. This short is certainly worth a look at least once. Worth watching.