Porky's Party (Ain't N-N-No Party Like a P-P-P-Porky Pig Party, 'Cuz a P-P-Porky Pig Party Don't S-S-S-Doesn't End)

Director(s): Bob Clampett (credited as “Robert Clampett”)

Summary: Porky is having a birthday party, where he must deal with a Chinese silkworm that creates lingerie if you say “sew,” a penguin who swallowed a top hat that won’t stop popping up, and a drunk dog that’s been mistaken for rabid. Why can’t any of my birthday parties be this fun?!

Fun Facts:

• This short was originally titled, “Porky’s Birthday Surprise!”
• Chuck Jones’ work in this short (particularly the scene of Porky’s pet dog, Black Fury, getting wasted on an alcohol-based hair tonic in the bathroom) was so good, he was granted a position as director later in 1938.
• The storyboards on the Looney Tunes Golden Collection, volume 3 special features originally showed that Gabby Goat (Porky’s comedy partner in such shorts as “Porky and Gabby,” “Porky’s Badtime Story,” and “Get Rich Quick Porky” -- all from 1937, with “Get Rich Quick Porky” as the only short that’s fallen into the public domain) and Petunia Pig were supposed to be in this short as the party guests, but, for whatever reason, were replaced with a goofy, prank-playing goose and an irritable penguin.

The Channel(s): Nickelodeon

Part(s) Edited: Here we go again, another batch of redrawn-colorized version edits. This time around, there are no issues with outdated racial stereotypes (unless you count the bucktoothed Chinese silkworm, whose appearance, surprisingly, was not a problem when this aired on Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, and, I’m going to assume, MeTV), but parts are missing (READER NOTE: These scenes weren’t edited when Nickelodeon aired the computer-colorized version of this short).

Cut #1: The scene of Goosey helping the penguin flatten the top hat that keeps growing from his head (including using the penguin as a battering ram and running him into the wall) was shortened.

Cut #2: When Porky freaks out over a rabid dog (not knowing that it’s Black Fury drunk and with shaving cream all over his mouth) and runs into the closet (with Black Fury close behind), Nickelodeon cut the short scene of Porky lighting a match to see that Black Fury is behind him in the closet.

What Grinds My Gears About the Edit: The first edit grinds my gears more than the second edit. With the second edit, I can chalk it up as “Nickelodeon doesn’t want kids lighting matches in small spaces, because that’s dangerous, imitable behavior.” The first edit is just slapstick and not all that violent (though some might argue that it is imitable, considering that it’s easy to pick someone up and use them as a battering ram. Even if it takes two or more people to hold the person up, it can be done if you’re drunk and/or you believe in yourself), so why would it be cut? Some theories include, “The redrawn-colorized version got rid of scenes that had lively and frenetic animation because the people doing the redrawing couldn’t copy Bob Clampett’s style at the time” and the ever-popular “The scene ate a lot of clock that could be better used for commercials, station ID interstitials, promos for other shows, some movie trailers, and other cartoons, so some of it had to be trimmed for pacing.”

Video Comparison: Once again, I found a redrawn-colorized version that actually aired on Nickelodeon. Please excuse the Filmora watermark; something happened that caused me to revert to the free version instead of the paid version. Until I can get it fixed (or I give up, whichever comes first), I will be using Da Vinci Resolve for all my videos on this blog and the A.I.-generated Snow White project (currently on hiatus due to outside obligations, but it will be back before the end of the year at the earliest and the start of 2026 at the latest):

Availability Uncut: The computer-colorized version was available on a 1992 VHS called “Porky Pig: Days of Swine and Roses.” The original black and white version can be seen on the Looney Tunes Golden Collection DVD set (volume 3), with the original storyboard available as a special feature and DVD commentary by John Kricfalusi (Bob Clampett’s fan and protégé; while he can be annoying about his love for the man, I do like that he picks up on how Clampett mixes in the childlike vibe with risqué humor in this short, as seen with the Chinese silkworm creating women’s lingerie or the dog getting drunk on hair tonic. Shame he didn’t include it more in his works, opting instead for weirdness and gross-out humor that feels inappropriate for kids) and Eddie Fitzgerald (who worked on Ren and Stimpy with John K and seems to me like he was influential too…at least when it came to the character design. The “What a Cartoon!” short “Tales of Worm Paranoia” really scream, “Hey, that’s Ren and Stimpy’s style…at least after John K was let go.”), as well as the Porky Pig 101 DVD.

Is/Was It Available on Streaming?: Sorry, no. No HBO Max/Max releases (not even in Latin America and Brazil, where a lot of the shorts that were too spicy for America ended up), no digital download availability, and definitely no appearance on Tubi.

‘Til next time…