One Ham's Family (1943) Online

This cartoon, which I think is one of Tex Avery's best, features as its protagonist a little pig who seems to be a take-off on Red SKelton's Mean Widdle KId character-the voice, mannerisms and even on or two of SKelton's catch-phrases are present in this cartoon. The Wolf doesn't stand a chance! Junior isn't very well-behaved and is down-right dangerous. He makes Dennis the Menace look like Little Lord Fauntleroy! Typical Tex Avery sight-gags, but more verbal humor than usual for an Avery short. From downtown at the buzzer, he shoots, he scores! The Crowd goes wild! This is an excellent cartoon. Most highly Recommended!!!

Love animation, it was a big part of my life as a child, particularly Disney, Looney Tunes and Tom and Jerry, and still love it whether it's film, television or cartoons.

Also have much admiration for Tex Avery, an animation genius whose best cartoons are animated masterpieces and some of the best cartoons ever made by anybody. 'One Ham's Family' is one of the earlier cartoons from Avery's finest period (1940s at MGM), and has all the Avery trademarks. It is a very well made, very funny, very wild and very clever and inventive cartoon, even if other Avery cartoons did all that even better and took more risks. Which is the sole reason why 'One Ham's Family' comes so close to being one of my favourites from Avery but doesn't quite make it.

It is no surprise that, as with a vast majority of Avery's cartoons regardless of the period, the animation is excellent. Very rich in colour, the backgrounds have meticulously good detail and the character designs are distinctively Avery in style and are fluid in movement. The music, courtesy of Scott Bradley, is typically lushly and cleverly orchestrated, with lively and energetic rhythms and fits very well indeed, even enhancing the action.

Can't fault Avery, whose unmistakable and unlike-any-other style is all over, nor the dynamic voice acting and the very engaging characters, especially the hilarious wolf (a classic Avery character). The pig is fun enough and the nastiness is not that over-the-top.

Overall, yet another winner from Avery. 9/10 Bethany Cox

Even though I was born in the late '60s, I recognized the Jr. pig as the Mean Widdle Kid character of Red Skelton based on what I remember hearing of him on the radio as depicted in a late Our Gang short. This Jr. is the son of the Third Little Pig-the one who made a house of bricks-and his wife. Yes, the Wolf is here, too, in once again trying to terrorize them during the Christmas season. With the parents asleep, the kid is waiting for Santa but guess who arrives. This being a Tex Avery cartoon, I'm sure you won't be surprised to see the mayhem that ensues during most of the short. So on that note, One Ham's Family is highly recommended.

'One Ham's Family' is a twist on the Three Little Pigs story. Here the wolf attempts to catch the pigs on Christmas Eve by dressing up as Santa Claus. There are some funny bits here, I mean it is Tex Avery...you were expecting a tear-jerker? However, the little pig that does battle with the wolf is a thoroughly unlikeable character with a voice that is at times very difficult to understand. I guess I've always felt that Avery was more successful with characters who, though they did some nasty things, still had a sense of innocence to them...like Droopy. Here, the pig is just plain nasty.