Porky's Duck Hunt

Independent Films, Film Profiles

Porky's Duck Hunt (1937) is an animated short film produced by Leon Schlesinger Productions, directed by Tex Avery, and released on April 17, 1937 by Warner Bros. Pictures.This short, starring Porky Pig, is notable for being the first appearance of the character Daffy Duck. Also notable is that this is the first cartoon in which Mel Blanc voices both Porky and Daffy. Originally scheduled to voice the duck, Blanc won the part of Porky earlier that year. Joe Dougherty who was Porky's original voice, was fired following the cartoon Porky's Romance because he could not control his stutter.Porky's Duck Hunt was a very popular cartoon, well-known for popular gags and the debut of Daffy Duck, and met with very positive reviews. Only a year later, this cartoon was reworked by Avery as Daffy Duck and Egghead, which was in color (as opposed to this short, which was originally black-and-white, but has been colorized twice). In that cartoon, Porky's role was filled by another Avery-created character, Egghead (who evolved into Elmer Fudd), and Daffy is given his name.The cartoon begins with the camera showing duck-hunting weapons to help Porky Pig hunt a duck. Porky holds his rifle and points it at his dog (then called Jim) and Jim runs into a drawer. Porky tells him it is not loaded and gives him an example. However, the rifle is loaded and it fires into the ceiling. The man upstairs, hurt by the bullet, punishes Porky by punching his nose. At the duck lake, Porky spies a duck but lots of other duck hunters shoot at it for a long time but it is still alive. The duck hunters say "Aw, shucks!" when they fail to shoot the duck. A dog duck hunter tries to shoot the same duck (with a rifle whose barrels are twisted apart) but instead shoots tiny airplanes piloted by mice.Porky puts out duck decoys. Daffy appears among them and acts like a fake duck. Porky tries to shoot Daffy but he shoots out water instead of bullets. Daffy then flies into a barrel. Porky shoots the wine-filled barrel but Daffy escapes. Some fish get attracted to the leaking barrel, making them drunk of the wine and, later, sing on a boat while having the hiccups. Porky Pig sees that something is wrong with the fish. Porky then hears a quack from the grass. When he looks into the grass, Daffy bites his nose. Daffy then flies to the sky but Porky shoots him. Porky fetches Jim to get Daffy but instead, Daffy ties up Jim. Porky says that this scene was not in the script. Daffy yells out his first words, that he is just a crazy duck, and goes on his crazy dance in the lake. Porky tries to use a duck call but when he uses it, duck hunters shoot places near Porky. Porky throws it to the ground but it bounces and Jim accidentally swallows it. Jim gets the hiccups, making quacks and Porky and Jim are forced to flee from the duck lake. Porky and Jim walk home, disappointed with their failure to shoot a duck. When Porky gets home, he sees the ducks outside doing a dance in the sky at him. Porky tries to shoot them with his gun but thinks that it has no more bullets. Porky throws his rifle, but it bounces, causing it to shoot and hurting the same man from the beginning of the film. The cartoon ends with the man punching Porky's nose and going back to his room.