You're Killin' Me, Smalls: The Origins Of Ham Porter's The Sandlot Quote

In 1993, David Mickey Evans' "The Sandlot" hit theaters as the kinder, gentler "The Bad News Bears" for nostalgic Baby Boomers and baseball-loving Millennials. Combining elements of Michael Ritchie's little league classic and Richard Donner's "The Goonies," the film recalls the magical summer when 11-year-old Scott Smalls (Tom Guiry) learned to play America's pastime in order to hang out with the neighborhood kids. The adventure element centers on the boys' attempts to retrieve the Babe Ruth-autographed baseball Scott unwisely "borrowed" from his step-father for use in a game, but the film is largely an anecdotal tale of early adolescents messing around all day long sans parental supervision.

The innocent freedom of "The Sandlot" is apparently forever (/Film called it one of the 20 best sports films of all time). Millennials are now sharing the film with their children, who can relate to the color-blind camaraderie of its San Fernando troublemakers like Benny (Mike Vitar), Squints (Chauncey Leopardi), The Heater (Brandon Quintin Adams), and Yeah-Yeah (Marty York). But if you ask "The Sandlot" fans of any age to name their favorite character in the film, the answer will almost certainly be Ham Porter, the cherubic, freckled red-head played by Patrick Renna.

You probably had a friend like Ham, a mouthy rascal who came off wise beyond his years by sheer moxie. His worldliness was a put-on, but you didn't think to see through it until a few dozen "Ham said" insights got shot down over the family dinner table.

The Hams of the world got away with their act because, in truth, they did actually know a thing or two. And in "The Sandlot," one of the most memorable life lessons imparted by Ham is prefaced by an expression of exasperation that must be one of the most quoted lines from 1990s movies. Don't know it right offhand? You're killin' me, Smalls!

The moment that made young Patrick Renna a kids movie icon arrives approximately 27 minutes into the movie. Smalls is late to a post-dinner meeting at the gang's clubhouse because his mother made him clean the dishes. After some razzing from the guys, he sits at a table with Ham, who has in front of him an array of graham crackers, marshmallows, and chocolate. This leads to the following exchange:

Ham: Hey, want a s'more?

Smalls: Some more what?

Ham: No, no, you want a s'more?

Smalls: I haven't had anything yet, so how can I have some more of nothing?

(Pause)

Ham: You're killin' me, Smalls.

At which point Ham delivers a master class in the art of crafting and enjoying a perfect s'more.

In 2018, The Hollywood Reporter got Evans and the cast together for a 25th anniversary interview, wherein they all shared their fondest memories of shooting the movie on location in Utah. Inevitably, the topic of "You're killin' me, Smalls" came up, which, according to Renna, was an in-the-moment invention of Evans'. Basically, to keep the scene feeling unrehearsed and friendly, Evans would bellow lines to the boys from a bullhorn. So, while credit must go to the writer-director for the inception of the quote, it wouldn't have become a legendary expression without Renna's note-perfect pause and subtly incredulous delivery. It kills the film's fans every time!

When "The Today Show" asked Patrick Renna to discuss his favorite scenes from "The Sandlot," he recalled the sequence where he trades juvenile barbs with a kid from a rival team (a contest he wins with such bon mots as "You bob for apples in the toilet, and you like it"), as well as Squints' elaborately staged stolen kiss from the city pool's lovely lifeguard Wendy Peffercorn (Marley Shelton). But number one on his list is, of course, "You're killin' me, Smalls."

Why? Simply because it's become everyone else's favorite line from the movie, one that they frequently quote back to him when they see him in public (and the freckly, frizz-haired Renna is still very easy to spot). Like the other members of the cast, Renna seems to dig the attention. Evidently, if you make good-natured films, you'll get good-natured encounters in the years to come. I wonder how this works for Robert De Niro.

Patrick Renna couldn't help but be a type, but that helps if you're the type of actor who likes steady work. Soon after "The Sandlot," Renna appeared in the Pauley Shore comedy "Son in Law," and achieved movie poster immortality/ignominy taking a soccer ball to the groin on the one-sheet for 1995's "The Big Green" (see above). Thereafter, he appeared on hit television series like "The X-Files," "ER," and "Arli$$," all while turning up in a string of movies that didn't quite have the longevity of "The Sandlot."

Renna made his producing debut in 2015 with the comedy "Bad Roomies" (in which he also co-starred), and has had a busy 2024 thanks to the family films "Monster Summer" (featuring Mel Gibson and Lorraine Bracco) and the little league-themed "You Gotta Believe" starring Greg Kinnear and Luke Wilson. You know what you're getting when you cast Renna, and filmmakers still value that je ne sais quoi!

"The Sandlot" is currently available to stream for free provided you've got a subscription to Disney+. If not, you can rent it from AppleTV, YouTube, Prime Video, or Fandango At Home. You can also buy the 25th anniversary Blu-ray from Amazon or the retailer of your choice.