Thanks for checking out this video on the history of Hal Roach's Our Gang! This video was generously sponsored by NordVPN who are offering an exclusive deal through my channel at nordvpn.com/hatsoff
.. You dont see many youtubers talking about this franchise, And so much content was lost after so many years concerning the little rascals that the only reason its not obscure is because of that VHS-company who brought it back to life in modern times..
It might be a cool idea to talk about the career of the guy who played Alfalfa. I think that story has the makings of a good video. It's just interesting to see him try the things that made him famous as a kid (singing off-key) as an adult and getting booed for it. You don't even really feel bad that he was mocked because, according to most people, he was incredibly arrogant and a jerk.
I would not say it that way - like the other comments, he just kept his youthful looks. [ Carl Switzer, also looked much the same at the time of his death, as he did as a child]. 📻🙂
What a wonderful tribute to those kids. When I was a grad student I knew Dorothy DeBorba, who was secretary to Dean Bayley at the School of Journalism at UC Berkeley, and she became a dear friend and confidant. The dean liked to call Dorothy our "den mother" at the J school. She sorta became the fall-back source for those students assigned to write a profile of a celebrity. There must have been hundreds written. I didn't learn she'd been a member of Our Gang until about a year after I'd met her. She was quite modest about it, but was happy to chat about her days filming at the studio. And, yes, you are right. She said that all the kids were great friends, they all attended school together and would take breaks from class to shoot the movies. I heard her say many times that none of them had the faintest idea that their lives were in any way different or unusual from that of other kids. Of course, she knew Stan and Ollie (Stan gave Stymie his derby!). And they all got to play with Petey. So there! Dorothy also used to go out on weekends to attend Our Gang reunions and fan meet-ups. It's still a thrill to watch my old friend, and yes, "den mother," running around screaming as a skinny little girl. Those shorts will always be very special to me. Good job!
When i was very young in the 70s, these shorts along with the Three Stooges would be on every day after school. The early version of the little Rascals was always my favorite. One of my favorite shorts was when the kids tried to create their own taxi service and they cause havoc all over the road!
Same here. They came on after the Stooges on channel 11 early Saturday morning, my brother would always come wake me up so we could watch them. Then around noon the old serials would start, this is where I watched Commando Cody! This was in the 80s.
Making things because they where depression kids made a huge impact on me. They made cars, machines, even stage sets and costumes which I use to do all the time. My sister's loved the brady bunch, I didn't because they didn't make anything cool
Something else I enjoyed about this era was how much of the shorts were shot outside and on location in California as opposed to soundstages like the later eras. They’re amazing time capsules of how LA and the surrounding areas looked nearly 100 years ago.
When I see signs on location in old film I enjoy Googling their name to see if they are still in business or find its history. And if I see a street sign I like going to maps online for a current street view to see how it's changed.
"Don't call me Norman. Call me chubsy-ubsy," is my favorite Our Gang line of all time. Just finished watching (almost) all of the silent-era shorts, and so I'm in the time period, working my way through (nearly) the entire series, in order. This is probably my favorite era, with Jackie's crush on Miss Crabtree being the cherry on top.
Watching this made my day. As a kid, i used to watch this series including the later LITTLE RASCALS. The sheer joy of watching these kids never fades. Nothing today compares.
Bobby Wheezer Hutchins died on May 17, 1945 while attempting to land his North American AT-6D Texan at Merced Army Air Field Base in California (Later renamed Castle AFB). He was very close to completing his advanced flight training at the time of the accident. Coincidentally, Joe Cobb worked for North American Aviation in Downey CA in the 1950's.
We have Our Gang to thank for The Little Rascals, The Goonies, The Sandlot, All That, Slappy & The Stinkers, Stranger Things, or any other iconic kid squad made in Hollywood over the past 80 years. It pioneered and enforced the idea that children can lead in the box office and entertain adults just as easily as we can entertain them.
I'm glad the MeTV+ channel has started running this group of shorts. Growing up in the 80s, I only remember the Alfalfa shorts on TV. I'm glad I'm getting introduced to these earlier shorts. It's sad that as young as these children were when the films were produced, only a small number of the young actors still survive, and so many of the different eras died young.
I'm happy you are talking about The Little Rascals again. My mom's favorite comedy series. Props to Cabin Fever for releasing these Shorts on VHS to new generations. I also got them on DVD.
At Last…someone who understands the gang at Our Gang! Thank you Joe and Hats Off for your always insightful, and thoughtful tributes to our greatest comedies. What well researched and articulate pieces you have produced…the tribute to Laurel and Hardy s still among my favorites…and that re- editing of Atoll K is something that I’m saving forever. The Our Gang Comedies are just so much fun to watch. Hal Roach made it seem so effortless, blending the silent film era into “ soundies”, he really understood kids, having been inspired by a bunch he observed fighting over a stick. When the company that released the majority of the two reelers for Roach, MGM, finally took over production, they taught the kids how to “act”, they destroyed the charm and natural personalities of Spanky, Darla Alfalfa and the rest of the gang…My hats off to Hats Off! Keep ‘em coming…
I loved these growing up. My grandparents had a vhs box set of all of them that I "borrowed" for most of my child hood. This and the three stooges are definitely up there with my favorite shows of all time.
I HAVE A PERSONAL MEDIA SERVER with all of the available "Our Gang" aka "Little Rascals from the years 1922-1944 (157 shorts in total). Silent films from 1922-1928. The first movie was called "Our Gang" 1922. The first Talkie was "Small Talk" 1929.
When I was younger, around 2000, somebody bought me the vhs box set of the our gang shorts. It had all of the best shorts from every era. One of the vhs tapes also has a history that talked about the different eras and the different actors and actresses that were involved. That’s where I first learned that the original Alfalfa had a small part in the It’s a Wonderful Life.
My parents got a dvd collection of all the shorts that I watched through growing up, so my initial impression of the rascals was the my gang cast. Our favorite and one we can still quote over a decade later was the love business episode where Jackie and Chubby compete for the love of Ms Crabtree
The Farina/Stymie/Miss Crabtree era are by far the best-most creative and funniest of Our Gang shorts. Don't forget the wonderful excellent music by LeRoy Shield
I grew up in the 2000s but these early sound shorts were a big part of my childhood. I always prefered this cast. I got into the series when i saw a marathon on TCM and quickly got the DVD set.
Few things bring me as much pleasure as The Rascals. Huge fan here. Love this era of The Gang! Some of the best episodes in the series! Not really anything I didn’t know here, but still a great video. My second favorite era of shorts next to “Baby Spanky” episodes. Stymie is my second favorite member next to Baby Spank. Thanks! Been watching these for nearly 50 years.
"Younger audiences might associate..." the 90s Little Rascals movie was nearly THIRTY years ago. The kids who grew up with that version are now raising their own kids.
It depends on how old are you regarding that statement. I'm nearly 60 years old and I remember first watching "The Little Rascals" and "Our Gang" on a local syndicated New York City TV station called WPIX channel 11 in the 1970s, so those who only remember the 1994 movie are the "younger audiences..."!🤣🤣
I've worked for a non profit for seniors running a senior center in my small home town for nearly the past 2 decades, and honestly only remember seeing The Little Rascals a here, and there growing up not thinking much of them, but over the years since I started my work I always got request from my clients to show them on movie day, and when we finally got internet about a decade ago, I found a batch of the shorts on TH-cam for them, and they honestly have become some of my favorite comedies of that era next to The Three Stooges for their charming, and good natured humor. 👍for another great retrospective.
I watched these here in Southern California on the KTLA Family Film Festival every weekend. These kids made my childhood pretty special. The episode with the cart is a favorite. Great job on this tribute.
In the 90s, I knew a W2 vet who had flown with Bobby Hutchins (Wheezer) and he talked sadly about seeing Hitchins' death when he had a mid-air collision with another airplane while ending pilot certification in the Army Air Forces, near the end of the war. A lot of these kids met sad ends...
I love knowing that Jackie Cooper became THE Jackie Cooper. I just found out that Stymie Beard was in the first season of Good Times! I was watching it and said out loud "OMG, is that Stymie?" And it was.
Somewhat tragic fact, the kid who played Wheezer ended up serving in World War II and was killed in action. He was only 20 years old. Rest in peace, Bobby Hutchins
The truly heartbreaking story was the one of the kid that played Froggy in the later episodes. When he was thirteen, he was delivering newspapers on a scooter when he was hit and killed by a truck. By the same token - "Alfalfa" Switzer was killed in 1959 after an argument over a reward for a lost hunting dog. The details have been sketchy over the years but during the argument, he pulled a pen knife on the other guy - who wrestled it away from Switzer and fatally stabbed him with it.
@@urbanurchin5930 Froggy died aged nineteen, not thirteen, and the scooter was a motorcycle type, not the type you push with your foot. So many of them fuelled the idea of an Our Gang curse...
For those that do not know, there is a "Little Rascals" channel on most free streaming services like Pluto or Visio Free TV. Just watched "Fly My Kite" this past weekend.
I had "School's Out" on VHS as a kid and watched it a million times. It was a gift from my grandma. Oh, and Stymie on the back of that car at the end of your video (18:27) is insane. I'm sure he was held there tight, but the fact that they had kids doing their own stunts is crazy.
@@deadpan80 I think it's rear projection, so it's almost like he's watching a movie of the train and they film him from behind reacting to the train on the screen in front of him. It looks very real though. (7:18) Oh, and after the train goes over, I do think it's a dummy on a board or something that pops up.
Everyone says kids are fat today, but those kids were FAT. and during a famine no less. I recall one Our Gang where... whichever fat kid it was... was just eating like a big chunk of soft cheese, and the other kid's like that's gross and he just says "naw, it's like _ice cream"_ like he emphasized both words. it was hilarious.
If you can get a look at "Small Talk", their first talking picture, the first words uttered by any Rascal is a prayer on the lips of Joe Cobb. Grace offered before a meal, and a prayer that Mary finds an adopted home. I also found pleasure in tracking the casting from the silent era to the sound era. The gradual add/drop development of the cast was smooth and thoughtful. It was simply smashing to see them do so well in talkies. But their age was showing, and they had to move on.
This brought nostalgia tears to my eyes. I grew up watching the re-runs of these wonderful characters that are a without a doubt the most talented kids I have ever seen on the screen (considering the era and ages of the children) and how clever to use children as vehicles for humor. They were (to me) literature characters come to life! Like Tom Sawyer or Huckleberry Finn. In the series, they were just a bunch of very clever kids either making due, getting into trouble with their ideas, doing everyday things (like going fishing) and rescuing their friends all wrapped up in the innocence that made this work for audiences. Unfortunately now long forgotten slap stick comedy. I cannot thank you enough for taking me back to remember these iconic kids that I grew up watching.
Weirdly, one of my favorites of yours. I've never cared to learn about film prior to the 80s or maybe 70s (give me an hour and I might come up with two handfuls of films I've seen from before then), but between this and your Laurel & Hardy stuff, it makes me feel good to learn about this stuff.
What a shame ! You are cutting yourself short ! There are so many good films that you are missing out on. Most movies made during and after the 80's are lacking in story and dialogue. Too many in the modern era rely on gimmicks and CGI to hold the short attention spans of todays' audiences. I was lucky, that when I was around 10 years old - I would stay up late during the summers and watch old monster movies on T.V. - that eventually led to interest in other films from the 30's and 40's. There are so many good ones that it would be impossible to even start a list here in the comments section.......
The funniest thing (to me) were the wood vehicles that the gang would make and drive......they all had the scissoring arm with a boxing glove attached to punch people........and the vehicles would always lose control going down hills........I was hysterical when the out of control vehicle would hit someone and they'd go flying up in the air yelling "whoa"........great stuff......I'm even laughing while I'm writing this.......
My brother and I watched the Our Gang shorts in syndication when we were kids in the 1970s. As primitive as those films were, they were still hilarious and highly entertaining, holding their own against the 1970s shows and usually being funnier than anything else on TV at the time. One of our friends was the spitting image of Alfalfa and would often give himself the pointy cowlick with hairspray. It’s mind-boggling to me that these shorts will be a century old in less than a decade.
Although I grew up on The Little Rascals movie and I love the Alfalfa, Spanky, Darla era of the shorts, I absolutely love the eras that came before it. Great video!
Man I really love these videos. I grew up watching a lot of this stuff. My Grandparents would sit us down and we’d watch all this stuff. I don’t suppose you could do a Shirley Temple retrospective? She was their favorite, hands down.
A million thank yous for this wonderful documentary on my favorite edition of Our Gang and I do believe that the one Jackie Cooper season is the height of the 23 years it was made. The Jackie-Chubby-Miss Crabree arch is something I can watch over and over and over again and I have since being first acquainted with the Gang in the '70s. The Spanky-Alfalpha years are nothing by comparison. One beautiful film that should be mentioned is Pups is Pups the centerpiece is Wheezer chasing his puppies all over town. It's so wonderfully directed with incredible expressionistic sets and lighting. And Wheezer's relationship with the dogs is ... not acting.
This is the first video I remember you being sponsored. Congratulations! You deserve it, I love these videos! If you post them, we will watch. (Yes, it's a Field of Dreams pun)
80s kid here who grew up watching Little Rascals with his parents and is still a fan to this day. My favorite "era" was between 1932 and 1934, after these films and before Spanky became the top dog. He was younger and more of a sidekick then, and characters like Wally and an older Stymie were more the leaders. So many of my favorite Rascals films came out at that time... "Mike Fright" "Hi Neighbor!" "The First Round Up" "Wild Poses" etc. I never actually cared much for the Spanky/Alfalfa/Darla/etc years. Too many musical performance episodes and the stories were too scripted.
Waaay back in the mid to late 70s, I used to come home after school and the Little Rascals would greet me for an hour or so. My brother and i would spend the afternoons watching and enjoying these Our Gang shorts. And, yes....we noticed the earlier era kids vs the later kids. Thanks for reminding me how fun they were and it's hard to believe, but these shorts are almost a hundred years old!
This is actually my favorite Our Gang era, with When the Wind Blows & Love Business being my favorites, with young-Spanky era shorts Birthday Blues & Mush and Milk close behind 😊
Thank a bunch, Joe - this is outstanding! And here's another vote for the Jackie vs Chubsy-Ubsy love rivalry over Miss Crabtree as being a favorite in this early series. I agree that the kids all looked like they were having a great time just being themselves. Not like stereotypical anxious "child actors" at all.
My favorite line from Chubby "Oh Miss Crabtree, there's something on my mind, " he's quoting some famous line from a popular movie at that time. I have a bad habit of quoting it myself, but no one gets the reference.
Nicely done! I grew up watching these in the 1960s but never understood the chronology of the episodes and cast. Thanks for such a great tribute and for keeping the memory of these young actors and actresses alive.
Thank you so much for this video. I do enjoy the content you put out for this channel so thank you. and on a sidenote, there’s so much tragedy with the Our Gang history.
"well ....just keep passin bye til you come to the river and THEN drop in " LMAO ..... one of the funniest lines ever delivered ...and several more from that same short ...my favorite .... WOW June Marlow was a total knockout ..... Sometimes I wish I had been born in that era like my dad .... I can only guess how many people's sanity was saved by the now CLASSIC comedy shorts of the depression era ....
I had a bunch of those Our Gang Cabin Fever VHS tapes too as a kid. I didn't understand why the casts would completely change between episodes, but I always loved when this group came on.
To me, the first five years of the sound era are the best of the series. I also really like the silent shorts, as well. Even as a kid watching the Little Rascals on TV in the early 80s I didn't think the shorts that came out after 1935 were as good.
The early shorts were much better, they had more adventure and crazy silliness to them. After 1936 the shows were all about putting the kids in singing and dancing numbers that mimicked the big musicals of MGM, all the adventure and zaniness was gone, and all the poor kids ever did was sing show tunes, it was pretty sad.
Great video! I think this set of Rascals peaked in the short "Bear Shooters", but there were many other good ones. My personal favorite Rascals era was the one between this one and the more familiar Spanky/Alfalfa/Buckwheat/Porky era, when Spanky was starting out as a toddler and Dickie Moore was around. I feel bad for anyone who's most familiar with the 1990s Little Rascals movie and knows nothing about the WEEEEE-WAAAAOOOW cake!
You are one of the best things on TH-cam, a great use of this platform is categorizing older media before its lost to time and the truth gets blurry. Thank you very much.
Thank you for making this you truly are on a mission by God making these videos. These nowadays are underappreciated masterpieces of family entertainment that should never be forgotten. I still need to pick up the complete Blu-ray collection that ClassicFlix released back in November.
Those twins reading the titles out loud somehow remind me of the twins that summon Mothra more than the "come play with us" girls from The Shining. Only instead of a giant moth monster, they summon a group of wacky kids.
Wonderful !! We grew up outside Detroit in the 60s... this was on every day after school into the 70s ! Along with the 3 stooges and Gilligan and lost in space....
I don’t care what you post, I watch it! I think this a very sweet production, and shows what a great fan you are of the Rascals! You make me wish I had paid more attention to this, back in my childhood!
8:37 Anyone interested in the Leroy Shields soundtrack music, be sure to check out the near-perfect reproduction albums by orchestral group “The Beau Hunks” released on two CDs in 1995. They also did recordings of the Laurel & Hardy film soundtracks, as well as others, as none of the original version masters still exist 😕
There was only a brief mention here about the original 'Our Gang' cast of the silent era. Mickey Daniels, Mary Kornman, Jackie Condon, and others blazed the trail for this series. When switching over to sound production, the kids had to be taught how to say lines in German, French, Spanish, etc as the only work-around at the time for the international audience.
Funny enough Robert Blake of Barrett’s and gene reynolds of mash all got their start from this Mildred kornman younger sister of leading lady Mary kornman became a famous model and was one of the last surviving stars of the silent era
I had my introduction to The Little Rascals on a Boston UHF station. Channel 56. As the years went by, there would be PC editing of the shorts. Mainly around Buckwheat. The two shorts that I remember that were heavy in editing wire Divot Diggers and Anniversary Troubles. The shorts to avoid watching IMO are the 1938-1944 shorts.
Watching them now seems like a history lesson, in the 70's when I was a kid and this show was on daily, it was like watching the childhood of my older aunts and uncles.
I found when he spoke of how in his early career, Schlitze the pinhead, from the 1932 movie freaks had a fascination with him that really made him uneasy.
I remember watching a documentary on Child Actors from this time and it was quite sad in a lot of ways how a lot of the "Our Gang" kids were basically supporting their own parents and never really saw dime of their own money. I think it may have been the little girl who played Darla as an old woman talking about when she was a kid her seeing other kids play outside and thinking to herself, "Why are these kids not at work don't they know we have to take care of the parents?" Thank Jesus child labor laws were changed in the movie industry due to Jackie Coogan who would later gained fame as Uncle Fester on The Addams Family. Jesus Christ Almighty God bless you all
@@deaconsmom2000 I'm aware of this but most people don't know who Jackie Coogan is unless you attach him to The Addams Family because most people are unaware that he was a child star decades before.
@@deaconsmom2000 I think 🤔 you have Jackie Cooper and Jackie Coogan confused 😕 Jackie Cooper was from Our Gang and Jackie Coogan was in the movie The Kid with Charlie Chaplin
Good summary. I always think the best episodes were the ones with Spanky and Stymie. The talkies before Spanky were also great. Early silents are fascinating to watch just for that fact they are so "ancient". The first few shorts are over 100 now! My favorite episode is "The Pooch" - great acting, writing, and direction. Perfect pathos.
Absolutely fantastic video about the earlier members of Our Gang. Thanks for making it! Been a fan of Our Gang/TLR ever since I was little; it was the first thing to come on after the Star Spangled banner on my local TV station when they started their programming day.
Everything here is accurate, though, for me, anything featuring Breezy/Brisbane (Kendall McComas) marked the apex of the series. He was only in 8 shorts, but they were all comedy gold. A big part of his appeal was that he was such weird looking mini-man, and his delivery was akin to a sarcastic leprechaun. So great!
A great documentary and tribute! But I have a question. Weren't there a LOT of Our Gang shorts that were silent that weren't talked about? I remember watching them as "The Mischief Makers on a Canadian station from my grandparent's house in Vermont.
The Little Rascals/Our Gang comedy shorts were part of my childhood. They were so funny and the production designs were so original. And of course, the music. The song In The Summertime was the main theme. A Swedish band called The Beauhunks, released a re-recorded album version of all the music using every instrument featured in the shorts. They were pretty close in their renditions. AMC had a show about The Little Rascals/Our Gang shorts. It was hosted by Frankie Muniz. One interesting fact was that Farina was the highest paid. Or that when King Features went out of business, MGM bought the rights lock, stock and barrel and made the latest version of the Our Gang shorts. This was a wonderful tribute to the Little Rascals. Great presentation!
I'm really glad you made this video! It was wonderful to hear about these first generation of "talkie" rascals, and see so many clips from some very old favorites. THANK YOU!!!
Honestly, the silent era had me cracking up. The intro cards for each character had me laughing every time. "Mickey, a veteran engineer with over an hour's experience." "Joe: Too long for short pants, too short for long pants." "Mary: She left home, along with her mother's lipstick" "Jackie: Commander of the Periscope Forces, consisting only of himself."
The silent era has a satirical feel that couldn’t continue into talkies, at the fault of nobody, but it is what makes it stand out to me. A favourite: “Jackie: Superintendent of Exploitation” Or maybe: “Mary - unanimously elected cashier. She did the voting…” I agree they are the funniest. Jackie Condon is the man.
It's nice to see this era touched upon. The silent era featured Joe Cobb and Micky Daniels. The ones that would carry over into the sound era were Wheezer and Farjna. I'm not too familiar with the silent era but they're very innovative for their time. The 1st of the sound era cartoons was Small Talk. That era seemed to end with 1931's Fly My Kite. A lot of gang members left after that one film. The Gang seemed a little sparse up until George "Spanky" McFarland came along in 1932.
I had that same VHS collection growing up. These early Little Rascals were some of my favorites, though I was puzzled as to why some parts didn't have sound.
Thanks for checking out this video on the history of Hal Roach's Our Gang! This video was generously sponsored by NordVPN who are offering an exclusive deal through my channel at nordvpn.com/hatsoff
My favorite Little Rascal was Stymie. Always had the best jokes in my opinion.
@@cesarhernandez6861 He's my favourite too!
The little rascals/our gang in 1922
.. You dont see many youtubers talking about this franchise, And so much content was lost after so many years concerning the little rascals that the only reason its not obscure is because of that VHS-company who brought it back to life in modern times..
It might be a cool idea to talk about the career of the guy who played Alfalfa. I think that story has the makings of a good video.
It's just interesting to see him try the things that made him famous as a kid (singing off-key) as an adult and getting booed for it. You don't even really feel bad that he was mocked because, according to most people, he was incredibly arrogant and a jerk.
It’s frightening how much Jackie already looks like the adult he would become. I keep expecting to hear him bellow “Kent!”
Yes!!! I think he had that thing that Ralph Macchio and Rob Lowe have. Aging doesn’t affect their looks. 😎
I thought he looked like a little kid when he was Perry White.
I thought he looked like a little kid when he was Perry White.
@@Bigbadwhitecracker That’s actually a more accurate description of Jackie Cooper!
I would not say it that way - like the other comments, he just kept his youthful looks.
[ Carl Switzer, also looked much the same at the time of his death, as he did as a child].
📻🙂
What a wonderful tribute to those kids. When I was a grad student I knew Dorothy DeBorba, who was secretary to Dean Bayley at the School of Journalism at UC Berkeley, and she became a dear friend and confidant. The dean liked to call Dorothy our "den mother" at the J school. She sorta became the fall-back source for those students assigned to write a profile of a celebrity. There must have been hundreds written. I didn't learn she'd been a member of Our Gang until about a year after I'd met her. She was quite modest about it, but was happy to chat about her days filming at the studio. And, yes, you are right. She said that all the kids were great friends, they all attended school together and would take breaks from class to shoot the movies. I heard her say many times that none of them had the faintest idea that their lives were in any way different or unusual from that of other kids. Of course, she knew Stan and Ollie (Stan gave Stymie his derby!). And they all got to play with Petey. So there! Dorothy also used to go out on weekends to attend Our Gang reunions and fan meet-ups. It's still a thrill to watch my old friend, and yes, "den mother," running around screaming as a skinny little girl. Those shorts will always be very special to me. Good job!
Thank you for sharing that wonderful story.
Worth the trip alone to find out Stymie got his derby from Stan. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for sharing.
Oh bullshit...
She grew up in a town I used to live in.
When i was very young in the 70s, these shorts along with the Three Stooges would be on every day after school. The early version of the little Rascals was always my favorite. One of my favorite shorts was when the kids tried to create their own taxi service and they cause havoc all over the road!
I remember them too. The situations from the earlier ones seemed so much more genuine.
Same here. They came on after the Stooges on channel 11 early Saturday morning, my brother would always come wake me up so we could watch them. Then around noon the old serials would start, this is where I watched Commando Cody! This was in the 80s.
I remember that one cuz the mule was in the rear lol
Making things because they where depression kids made a huge impact on me.
They made cars, machines, even stage sets and costumes which I use to do all the time.
My sister's loved the brady bunch, I didn't because they didn't make anything cool
Was that short entitled "Free Wheeling"?
Something else I enjoyed about this era was how much of the shorts were shot outside and on location in California as opposed to soundstages like the later eras. They’re amazing time capsules of how LA and the surrounding areas looked nearly 100 years ago.
I came to make this exact comment, but you beat me to it!
Sunlight is free when available.
So many vacant lots. Same in the Laurel and Hardy films.
@user-vy8wx1wj3r That’s what’s called an “entirely different topic of discussion”
When I see signs on location in old film I enjoy Googling their name to see if they are still in business or find its history. And if I see a street sign I like going to maps online for a current street view to see how it's changed.
"Don't call me Norman. Call me chubsy-ubsy," is my favorite Our Gang line of all time. Just finished watching (almost) all of the silent-era shorts, and so I'm in the time period, working my way through (nearly) the entire series, in order. This is probably my favorite era, with Jackie's crush on Miss Crabtree being the cherry on top.
(Sobbing) "we...t-t-t-told him you had a wooden leg!"
"My darling, can't you hear the pleas in my whispers?"
"Yes, Chubby, I can hear the fleas in your whiskers." 🤣
Yum yum eat em up
It's my favorite line in cinema history.
Hey pals
Jackie,Farina,Mary,Stymie and Chubsie were all brilliant. Still can’t stop watching them to this day
And Weezer too.
Watching Chubsy-Ubsy smile really warms my heart, he and Farina were by far my favorites.
Wheezer was my favorite, a natural.
Watching this made my day. As a kid, i used to watch this series including the later LITTLE RASCALS. The sheer joy of watching these kids never fades. Nothing today compares.
Bobby Wheezer Hutchins died on May 17, 1945 while attempting to land his North American AT-6D Texan at Merced Army Air Field Base in California (Later renamed Castle AFB). He was very close to completing his advanced flight training at the time of the accident. Coincidentally, Joe Cobb worked for North American Aviation in Downey CA in the 1950's.
We have Our Gang to thank for The Little Rascals, The Goonies, The Sandlot, All That, Slappy & The Stinkers, Stranger Things, or any other iconic kid squad made in Hollywood over the past 80 years. It pioneered and enforced the idea that children can lead in the box office and entertain adults just as easily as we can entertain them.
I'm glad the MeTV+ channel has started running this group of shorts. Growing up in the 80s, I only remember the Alfalfa shorts on TV. I'm glad I'm getting introduced to these earlier shorts. It's sad that as young as these children were when the films were produced, only a small number of the young actors still survive, and so many of the different eras died young.
5:09 this gag only works because of Farina's impeccable comic delivery
What a beautiful tribute to these underrated rascals!
Not even underrated; they're largely unknown.
👍
LOL!! @ 12:00 Ever since the 70's, I could feel every nail he slid across!! 😳
I'm happy you are talking about The Little Rascals again. My mom's favorite comedy series. Props to Cabin Fever for releasing these Shorts on VHS to new generations. I also got them on DVD.
I watched the Our Gang shorts as a child in the 50s. Seeing that world of kids has charmed me all my life. They are brilliant pieces of art.
At Last…someone who understands the gang at Our Gang! Thank you Joe and Hats Off for your always insightful, and thoughtful tributes to our greatest comedies. What well researched and articulate pieces you have produced…the tribute to Laurel and Hardy s still among my favorites…and that re- editing of Atoll K is something that I’m saving forever. The Our Gang Comedies are just so much fun to watch. Hal Roach made it seem so effortless, blending the silent film era into “ soundies”, he really understood kids, having been inspired by a bunch he observed fighting over a stick. When the company that released the majority of the two reelers for Roach, MGM, finally took over production, they taught the kids how to “act”, they destroyed the charm and natural personalities of Spanky, Darla Alfalfa and the rest of the gang…My hats off to Hats Off! Keep ‘em coming…
I loved these growing up. My grandparents had a vhs box set of all of them that I "borrowed" for most of my child hood. This and the three stooges are definitely up there with my favorite shows of all time.
I HAVE A PERSONAL MEDIA SERVER with all of the available "Our Gang" aka "Little Rascals from the years 1922-1944 (157 shorts in total). Silent films from 1922-1928. The first movie was called "Our Gang" 1922. The first Talkie was "Small Talk" 1929.
Stymie was always so underrated. He’s so funny
Stymie was all time favorite.
@@cdjeeyore he's my favourite too.
He never changed either. The last thing I remember seeing him in was a :Sanford and Son". He just got talkler.
Stymie was a favorite. His famous hat was actually gifted to him by Stan Laurel himself because he liked the kid so much.
His hat was given to him by Oliver Hardy.
When I was younger, around 2000, somebody bought me the vhs box set of the our gang shorts. It had all of the best shorts from every era. One of the vhs tapes also has a history that talked about the different eras and the different actors and actresses that were involved.
That’s where I first learned that the original Alfalfa had a small part in the It’s a Wonderful Life.
In pool scene. He looked the same really only taller. Too bad what happened to him. Died way too young over money from what I understand.
He was also in White Christmas. His picture was used for Freckle Face Hanes The Dogface Boy.
My parents got a dvd collection of all the shorts that I watched through growing up, so my initial impression of the rascals was the my gang cast. Our favorite and one we can still quote over a decade later was the love business episode where Jackie and Chubby compete for the love of Ms Crabtree
Totally never would have guessed Jackie went on to be my favorite adaptation of Perry White. Seems obvious once it’s pointed out
@@jacktoma21 which perry white did he end up playing?
@@hunterprice3320 the one from the Christopher Reeves movies, it was shown in the video
@@jacktoma21 OK cool. I haven't watched the whole vid yet.
A classic!
The Farina/Stymie/Miss Crabtree era are by far the best-most creative and funniest of Our Gang shorts. Don't forget the wonderful excellent music by LeRoy Shield
I grew up in the 2000s but these early sound shorts were a big part of my childhood. I always prefered this cast. I got into the series when i saw a marathon on TCM and quickly got the DVD set.
I remember watching this "Our Gang" short on TNT when the re-ran the Little Rascals. It was rather odd not seeing the kids like Buckwheat and Alfalfa.
You are literally the only person other than me to remember our gang on TNT. In new York it was always on around 6 or 630am
I liked the late Our Gang shorts during WWII.
@@PatrickGOffical988wow this totally awakened a memory of watching these on TNT for me! Totally forgot about that.
Few things bring me as much pleasure as The Rascals. Huge fan here. Love this era of The Gang! Some of the best episodes in the series! Not really anything I didn’t know here, but still a great video. My second favorite era of shorts next to “Baby Spanky” episodes. Stymie is my second favorite member next to Baby Spank. Thanks! Been watching these for nearly 50 years.
"Younger audiences might associate..." the 90s Little Rascals movie was nearly THIRTY years ago. The kids who grew up with that version are now raising their own kids.
It depends on how old are you regarding that statement. I'm nearly 60 years old and I remember first watching "The Little Rascals" and "Our Gang" on a local syndicated New York City TV station called WPIX channel 11 in the 1970s, so those who only remember the 1994 movie are the "younger audiences..."!🤣🤣
I've worked for a non profit for seniors running a senior center in my small home town for nearly the past 2 decades, and honestly only remember seeing The Little Rascals a here, and there growing up not thinking much of them, but over the years since I started my work I always got request from my clients to show them on movie day, and when we finally got internet about a decade ago, I found a batch of the shorts on TH-cam for them, and they honestly have become some of my favorite comedies of that era next to The Three Stooges for their charming, and good natured humor. 👍for another great retrospective.
I watched these here in Southern California on the KTLA Family Film Festival every weekend. These kids made my childhood pretty special. The episode with the cart is a favorite. Great job on this tribute.
They were an afternoon staple of my childhood in the 70s!
@@seanryan3020 same here on Channel 20 in the Washington DC area in the 1970s.
@@DWNicolo NY's Channel 11 when I was in Connecticut and Channel 4 in Denver for me.
@@seanryan3020 Here )Cleveland) in the late '50's -early '60's, as part of local afternoon kid's shows.
In the 90s, I knew a W2 vet who had flown with Bobby Hutchins (Wheezer) and he talked sadly about seeing Hitchins' death when he had a mid-air collision with another airplane while ending pilot certification in the Army Air Forces, near the end of the war. A lot of these kids met sad ends...
I love knowing that Jackie Cooper became THE Jackie Cooper. I just found out that Stymie Beard was in the first season of Good Times! I was watching it and said out loud "OMG, is that Stymie?" And it was.
A wonderful and sensitive documentary. It lends dignity and appreciation to each of these amazing early film industry participants. Thank you
Somewhat tragic fact, the kid who played Wheezer ended up serving in World War II and was killed in action. He was only 20 years old.
Rest in peace, Bobby Hutchins
So many of them died too soon.
Bobby Hutchins wasn't KIA, but died in a midair collision during a training exercise. Nevertheless he died serving his country.
The truly heartbreaking story was the one of the kid that played Froggy in the later episodes. When he was thirteen, he was delivering newspapers
on a scooter when he was hit and killed by a truck. By the same token - "Alfalfa" Switzer was killed in 1959 after an argument over a reward for a
lost hunting dog. The details have been sketchy over the years but during the argument, he pulled a pen knife on the other guy - who wrestled it away
from Switzer and fatally stabbed him with it.
@@urbanurchin5930 Froggy died aged nineteen, not thirteen, and the scooter was a motorcycle type, not the type you push with your foot.
So many of them fuelled the idea of an Our Gang curse...
@@LathropLdST 1932 - 1948, 16 years old.
Jackie Cooper was such a great actor. He had such a wonderful career. I loved all the rascals but Jackie was great.
To me his perennial kind was, 'Gee Miss Crabtree you're real pretty. You're as pretty as Mrs McGilacuddy.'
typo: kind, line
For those that do not know, there is a "Little Rascals" channel on most free streaming services like Pluto or Visio Free TV.
Just watched "Fly My Kite" this past weekend.
I had "School's Out" on VHS as a kid and watched it a million times. It was a gift from my grandma. Oh, and Stymie on the back of that car at the end of your video (18:27) is insane. I'm sure he was held there tight, but the fact that they had kids doing their own stunts is crazy.
I was wonder if that was Farina in that locomotive scene. The wide shot looks like a puppet but that close up extreme low angle looks very much alive.
@@deadpan80 I think it's rear projection, so it's almost like he's watching a movie of the train and they film him from behind reacting to the train on the screen in front of him. It looks very real though. (7:18) Oh, and after the train goes over, I do think it's a dummy on a board or something that pops up.
@@marklee81 I don’t know if rear projection was used that early, but it’s possible.
@@marklee81 That's exactly what it is.
The chubsy ubsy scene will go down as one of the greatest scenes ever
Everyone says kids are fat today, but those kids were FAT. and during a famine no less.
I recall one Our Gang where... whichever fat kid it was... was just eating like a big chunk of soft cheese, and the other kid's like that's gross and he just says "naw, it's like _ice cream"_ like he emphasized both words. it was hilarious.
If you can get a look at "Small Talk", their first talking picture, the first words uttered by any Rascal is a prayer on the lips of Joe Cobb. Grace offered before a meal, and a prayer that Mary finds an adopted home. I also found pleasure in tracking the casting from the silent era to the sound era. The gradual add/drop development of the cast was smooth and thoughtful. It was simply smashing to see them do so well in talkies. But their age was showing, and they had to move on.
So glad that this series is finally available to watch in its entirety on Blu-ray.
Hopefully they included all shorts including the so called "banned one"
This brought nostalgia tears to my eyes. I grew up watching the re-runs of these wonderful characters that are a without a doubt the most talented kids I have ever seen on the screen (considering the era and ages of the children) and how clever to use children as vehicles for humor. They were (to me) literature characters come to life! Like Tom Sawyer or Huckleberry Finn. In the series, they were just a bunch of very clever kids either making due, getting into trouble with their ideas, doing everyday things (like going fishing) and rescuing their friends all wrapped up in the innocence that made this work for audiences. Unfortunately now long forgotten slap stick comedy. I cannot thank you enough for taking me back to remember these iconic kids that I grew up watching.
Weirdly, one of my favorites of yours. I've never cared to learn about film prior to the 80s or maybe 70s (give me an hour and I might come up with two handfuls of films I've seen from before then), but between this and your Laurel & Hardy stuff, it makes me feel good to learn about this stuff.
What a shame ! You are cutting yourself short ! There are so many good films that you are missing out on. Most movies made during and after the 80's are
lacking in story and dialogue. Too many in the modern era rely on gimmicks and CGI to hold the short attention spans of todays' audiences. I was lucky, that
when I was around 10 years old - I would stay up late during the summers and watch old monster movies on T.V. - that eventually led to interest in other films
from the 30's and 40's. There are so many good ones that it would be impossible to even start a list here in the comments section.......
The funniest thing (to me) were the wood vehicles that the gang would make and drive......they all had the scissoring arm with a boxing glove attached to punch people........and the vehicles would always lose control going down hills........I was hysterical when the out of control vehicle would hit someone and they'd go flying up in the air yelling "whoa"........great stuff......I'm even laughing while I'm writing this.......
My brother and I watched the Our Gang shorts in syndication when we were kids in the 1970s. As primitive as those films were, they were still hilarious and highly entertaining, holding their own against the 1970s shows and usually being funnier than anything else on TV at the time. One of our friends was the spitting image of Alfalfa and would often give himself the pointy cowlick with hairspray. It’s mind-boggling to me that these shorts will be a century old in less than a decade.
Pssssst. They turned 100 in 2022. :)
@@windmillkid indeed they did! I guess I was thinking about the start date for their MGM silent films later in the 1920s.
I will always remember my favorite quote from my favorite episode:
"EEEEE
OOOOO
EEEEE
OOOOO"
Although I grew up on The Little Rascals movie and I love the Alfalfa, Spanky, Darla era of the shorts, I absolutely love the eras that came before it. Great video!
Man I really love these videos. I grew up watching a lot of this stuff. My Grandparents would sit us down and we’d watch all this stuff. I don’t suppose you could do a Shirley Temple retrospective? She was their favorite, hands down.
A million thank yous for this wonderful documentary on my favorite edition of Our Gang and I do believe that the one Jackie Cooper season is the height of the 23 years it was made. The Jackie-Chubby-Miss Crabree arch is something I can watch over and over and over again and I have since being first acquainted with the Gang in the '70s. The Spanky-Alfalpha years are nothing by comparison. One beautiful film that should be mentioned is Pups is Pups the centerpiece is Wheezer chasing his puppies all over town. It's so wonderfully directed with incredible expressionistic sets and lighting. And Wheezer's relationship with the dogs is ... not acting.
I still think these are the funniest, "kid-friendly" shows ever. (I'm a young 40, and grew up with VHS versions of Our Gang, etc)
Don’t call me Norman-just call me Chubbsy Ubbsy. I watched The Little Rascals and saw both the originals and the later group. I loved them all!
The earliest reels always were my favorites. Just seemed more like kids having fun and not a script. Thanks.
I was literally just searching for a video on this recently, and I couldn't find one that went in-depth like this. Thanks for uploading!
This is the first video I remember you being sponsored. Congratulations! You deserve it, I love these videos! If you post them, we will watch. (Yes, it's a Field of Dreams pun)
Excellent work, as always.
I grew up watching a mix of these in “reruns” in the early 80’s.
80s kid here who grew up watching Little Rascals with his parents and is still a fan to this day.
My favorite "era" was between 1932 and 1934, after these films and before Spanky became the top dog. He was younger and more of a sidekick then, and characters like Wally and an older Stymie were more the leaders.
So many of my favorite Rascals films came out at that time... "Mike Fright" "Hi Neighbor!" "The First Round Up" "Wild Poses" etc.
I never actually cared much for the Spanky/Alfalfa/Darla/etc years. Too many musical performance episodes and the stories were too scripted.
Waaay back in the mid to late 70s, I used to come home after school and the Little Rascals would greet me for an hour or so. My brother and i would spend the afternoons watching and enjoying these Our Gang shorts. And, yes....we noticed the earlier era kids vs the later kids. Thanks for reminding me how fun they were and it's hard to believe, but these shorts are almost a hundred years old!
YES!!! Thank you! Among our gang connoisseurs, the early 30s casts remain supreme.
Absolutely.
9:16 "Well I ain't washing my neck and ears for no dame" you tell them King.
This is actually my favorite Our Gang era, with When the Wind Blows & Love Business being my favorites, with young-Spanky era shorts Birthday Blues & Mush and Milk close behind 😊
As a kid, my aunt nicknamed me and always called me Spanky, and by asking her what she meant I got introduced to the series.
Throwing that quick snippet from the "Shining" reacting to the ghostly twins was funny as hell!😳😆😂🤣🙃😉
Thank a bunch, Joe - this is outstanding! And here's another vote for the Jackie vs Chubsy-Ubsy love rivalry over Miss Crabtree as being a favorite in this early series. I agree that the kids all looked like they were having a great time just being themselves. Not like stereotypical anxious "child actors" at all.
My favorite line from Chubby "Oh Miss Crabtree, there's something on my mind, " he's quoting some famous line from a popular movie at that time. I have a bad habit of quoting it myself, but no one gets the reference.
Nicely done! I grew up watching these in the 1960s but never understood the chronology of the episodes and cast. Thanks for such a great tribute and for keeping the memory of these young actors and actresses alive.
Thank you so much for this video. I do enjoy the content you put out for this channel so thank you. and on a sidenote, there’s so much tragedy with the Our Gang history.
"well ....just keep passin bye til you come to the river and THEN drop in " LMAO ..... one of the funniest lines ever delivered ...and several more from that same short ...my favorite .... WOW June Marlow was a total knockout .....
Sometimes I wish I had been born in that era like my dad .... I can only guess how many people's sanity was saved by the now CLASSIC comedy shorts of the depression era ....
This show was so much a part of my childhood that when our mother called us, my brother and I always answered "here I is!".
I had a bunch of those Our Gang Cabin Fever VHS tapes too as a kid. I didn't understand why the casts would completely change between episodes, but I always loved when this group came on.
To me, the first five years of the sound era are the best of the series. I also really like the silent shorts, as well. Even as a kid watching the Little Rascals on TV in the early 80s I didn't think the shorts that came out after 1935 were as good.
The early shorts were much better, they had more adventure and crazy silliness to them. After 1936 the shows were all about putting the kids in singing and dancing numbers that mimicked the big musicals of MGM, all the adventure and zaniness was gone, and all the poor kids ever did was sing show tunes, it was pretty sad.
@@earlt.7573completely agree!
13:00 "It's hard to SPOT the difference between them." ayyyyy
Our gang is my all time favorite! No doubt! I will pull out one of these classic shorts when I'm really down! And it lifts my spirit up instantly!
Great video! I think this set of Rascals peaked in the short "Bear Shooters", but there were many other good ones. My personal favorite Rascals era was the one between this one and the more familiar Spanky/Alfalfa/Buckwheat/Porky era, when Spanky was starting out as a toddler and Dickie Moore was around. I feel bad for anyone who's most familiar with the 1990s Little Rascals movie and knows nothing about the WEEEEE-WAAAAOOOW cake!
You are one of the best things on TH-cam, a great use of this platform is categorizing older media before its lost to time and the truth gets blurry. Thank you very much.
Thank you for making this you truly are on a mission by God making these videos. These nowadays are underappreciated masterpieces of family entertainment that should never be forgotten. I still need to pick up the complete Blu-ray collection that ClassicFlix released back in November.
Those twins reading the titles out loud somehow remind me of the twins that summon Mothra more than the "come play with us" girls from The Shining. Only instead of a giant moth monster, they summon a group of wacky kids.
Wonderful !! We grew up outside Detroit in the 60s... this was on every day after school into the 70s ! Along with the 3 stooges and Gilligan and lost in space....
Thank you for showing these! - I LOVE the original cast! "A Windy Night" and "The First Seven Years" are two of my faves!
I don’t care what you post, I watch it! I think this a very sweet production, and shows what a great fan you are of the Rascals! You make me wish I had paid more attention to this, back in my childhood!
All of these were Saturday morning regular for me and my siblings in the 60s…… Thanks for the great memories.
8:37 Anyone interested in the Leroy Shields soundtrack music, be sure to check out the near-perfect reproduction albums by orchestral group “The Beau Hunks” released on two CDs in 1995. They also did recordings of the Laurel & Hardy film soundtracks, as well as others, as none of the original version masters still exist 😕
There was only a brief mention here about the original 'Our Gang' cast of the silent era. Mickey Daniels, Mary Kornman, Jackie Condon, and others blazed the trail for this series.
When switching over to sound production, the kids had to be taught how to say lines in German, French, Spanish, etc as the only work-around at the time for the international audience.
They definitely need an in depth bio
Funny enough Robert Blake of Barrett’s and gene reynolds of mash all got their start from this Mildred kornman younger sister of leading lady Mary kornman became a famous model and was one of the last surviving stars of the silent era
I had my introduction to The Little Rascals on a Boston UHF station. Channel 56. As the years went by, there would be PC editing of the shorts. Mainly around Buckwheat. The two shorts that I remember that were heavy in editing wire Divot Diggers and Anniversary Troubles. The shorts to avoid watching IMO are the 1938-1944 shorts.
I love that 1929 shorts you can tell that the crew was still figuring out how to use sound
Watching them now seems like a history lesson, in the 70's when I was a kid and this show was on daily, it was like watching the childhood of my older aunts and uncles.
I agree, loved the earlier Rascals, from 29 to 33. Stymie, Jackie, Farina, Wheezer, Mary Ann, Chubby, baby Spanky and of course Pete.
I had no idea Jackie Cooper was a child actor in the 1930's. Kinda cool seeing Perry White as a Rascal.
it's like seeing that one Alfred Hitchcock Presents episode with an extremely young Barry Gordon. He was a fantastic actor even back then.
I found when he spoke of how in his early career, Schlitze the pinhead, from the 1932 movie freaks had a fascination with him that really made him uneasy.
I remember watching a documentary on Child Actors from this time and it was quite sad in a lot of ways how a lot of the "Our Gang" kids were basically supporting their own parents and never really saw dime of their own money.
I think it may have been the little girl who played Darla as an old woman talking about when she was a kid her seeing other kids play outside and thinking to herself, "Why are these kids not at work don't they know we have to take care of the parents?"
Thank Jesus child labor laws were changed in the movie industry due to Jackie Coogan who would later gained fame as Uncle Fester on The Addams Family.
Jesus Christ Almighty God bless you all
Jackie Coogan earned his fame long before the Addams Family.
@@deaconsmom2000
I'm aware of this but most people don't know who Jackie Coogan is unless you attach him to The Addams Family because most people are unaware that he was a child star decades before.
@@HomicideHenry good point
@@HomicideHenry Amazing that Uncle Fester helped changed child labor laws
@@deaconsmom2000 I think 🤔 you have Jackie Cooper and Jackie Coogan confused 😕 Jackie Cooper was from Our Gang and Jackie Coogan was in the movie The Kid with Charlie Chaplin
It's amazing to watch Jackie Cooper as a young boy and fast forward to his role as Perry White in the Superman movies. That's a long career!
Where he basically looks pretty much the same except his voice sounding like Fred Willard
Good summary. I always think the best episodes were the ones with Spanky and Stymie. The talkies before Spanky were also great. Early silents are fascinating to watch just for that fact they are so "ancient". The first few shorts are over 100 now! My favorite episode is "The Pooch" - great acting, writing, and direction. Perfect pathos.
Absolutely fantastic video about the earlier members of Our Gang. Thanks for making it! Been a fan of Our Gang/TLR ever since I was little; it was the first thing to come on after the Star Spangled banner on my local TV station when they started their programming day.
Everything here is accurate, though, for me, anything featuring Breezy/Brisbane (Kendall McComas) marked the apex of the series. He was only in 8 shorts, but they were all comedy gold. A big part of his appeal was that he was such weird looking mini-man, and his delivery was akin to a sarcastic leprechaun. So great!
Yeah, Brisbane was pretty entertaining. It's just unfortunate that he was wasted in Birthday Blues, which marked his final appearance.
What a timely video. Just this past Thurs, the Shout TV streaming channel was doing an entire day of this era of Our Gang shorts.
A great documentary and tribute! But I have a question. Weren't there a LOT of Our Gang shorts that were silent that weren't talked about? I remember watching them as "The Mischief Makers on a Canadian station from my grandparent's house in Vermont.
Yes.
yes, indeed
The Little Rascals/Our Gang comedy shorts were part of my childhood. They were so funny and the production designs were so original. And of course, the music. The song In The Summertime was the main theme. A Swedish band called The Beauhunks, released a re-recorded album version of all the music using every instrument featured in the shorts. They were pretty close in their renditions.
AMC had a show about The Little Rascals/Our Gang shorts. It was hosted by Frankie Muniz. One interesting fact was that Farina was the highest paid. Or that when King Features went out of business, MGM bought the rights lock, stock and barrel and made the latest version of the Our Gang shorts.
This was a wonderful tribute to the Little Rascals.
Great presentation!
I'm really glad you made this video! It was wonderful to hear about these first generation of "talkie" rascals, and see so many clips from some very old favorites. THANK YOU!!!
That sword fight still kills me as much as it did when I first saw it as a kid back in the 70's.
Thanks so much...this was a wonderful tribute to these talented kids who have given us so much joy...Kudos to Hal Roach as well!
Honestly, the silent era had me cracking up. The intro cards for each character had me laughing every time.
"Mickey, a veteran engineer with over an hour's experience."
"Joe: Too long for short pants, too short for long pants."
"Mary: She left home, along with her mother's lipstick"
"Jackie: Commander of the Periscope Forces, consisting only of himself."
The silent era has a satirical feel that couldn’t continue into talkies, at the fault of nobody, but it is what makes it stand out to me.
A favourite:
“Jackie: Superintendent of Exploitation”
Or maybe:
“Mary - unanimously elected cashier. She did the voting…”
I agree they are the funniest. Jackie Condon is the man.
This series was truly an innovative part of cinema history. I appreciate your understanding the talent and significance they played.
It's nice to see this era touched upon. The silent era featured Joe Cobb and Micky Daniels. The ones that would carry over into the sound era were Wheezer and Farjna.
I'm not too familiar with the silent era but they're very innovative for their time.
The 1st of the sound era cartoons was Small Talk. That era seemed to end with 1931's Fly My Kite. A lot of gang members left after that one film. The Gang seemed a little sparse up until George "Spanky" McFarland came along in 1932.
There's really not enough pie throwing in today's films and shows
Nowadays it's all kids throwing avocado toast at each other.
@@suedenim Beyond Sausage
@@suedenim Nowadays it’s TH-cam commenters throwing tired memes at each other.
I had that same VHS collection growing up. These early Little Rascals were some of my favorites, though I was puzzled as to why some parts didn't have sound.