In an interview on Tom Snyder's The Tomorrow Show in 1974, Matthew Beard said of his time in the series that "I feel it was great. The group's original lineup reunited in 2012 for their first public performances in over 40 years with The Rascals: Once Upon a Dream, a combination concert/theatrical event that was produced and directed by Steven Van Zandt and Maureen Van Zandt with lighting/projection by Marc Brickman. In 2009, Warner Home Video released all 52 MGM Our Gang shorts in a compilation titled The Our Gang Collection: 19381942 (though it contains the 194344 shorts as well) for manufacture-on-demand (MOD) DVD and digital download. One notable exception was Jackie Cooper, who was later nominated for an Academy Award and had a career as an adult actor. For her third birthday they went to New York to seek fame and fortune in the arts. Sadly, though, that life was short-lived. He and his brother, Harold, became famous in their hometown for their musical talents. The Lee family traveled from Texas to Culver City, California. When I was a kid in the '70s (B.C.= Before Cable) they used to play THE LITTLE RASCALS on TV after school. Unlike other kids, he couldnt really go outside and play, and not because of his stardom, but rather because the neighborhood they lived in was so dangerous. Ward as Butch and Waldo. [36] The series was given a permanent setting in the fictitious town of Greenpoint, and the mayhem caused by the Our Gang kids was toned down significantly. A number of groups, companies, and entities have been inspired by or named after Our Gang. While she was busy organizing the 1980 Little Rascals reunion for the Los Angeles chapter of the Sons of the Desert, she underwent an appendectomy. I signed the contract in 1935 when I was three years old and did my first Our Gangfilm a year later.. Matthew Beard Jr. was born on January 1, 1925, in Los Angeles. Matthew Beard as Stymie left the cast soon after, and the Buckwheat character morphed subtly into a male. The franchise began in 1922 as a silent short subject series produced by the Roach studio and released by Path Exchange. At first appearing as the tag-along toddler of the group, and later finding an accomplice in Scotty Beckett in 1934, Spanky quickly became Our Gang's biggest child star. I wouldnt take a million dollars for the experience, and I wouldnt take a penny to do it again.. He was posthumously honored with a star on Hollywoods Walk of Fame in January 1994. The Little Rascals Save the Day (titled The Little Rascals 2: Rascals' Beginning in development) is a 2014 American direct-to-video comedy film released by Universal Pictures Home Entertainment.Succeeding the 1994 film, it is the second feature film adaptation of Hal Roach's Our Gang, a series of short films of the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s (many of which were broadcast on television as The . Her tenure, with the "Little Rascals" was from 1935 to 1941. In 1949, MGM sold Roach the back catalog of 19271938 Our Gang silent and talking shorts, while retaining the rights to the Our Gang name, the 52 Our Gang films it produced, and the feature General Spanky. [41] Allied Artists' television department, Interstate Television, syndicated the films to TV in 1954.[42][43][44]. In later years, many adults falsely claimed to have been members of Our Gang. Its hard for a child actor to start working again. In 1927, Roach ended his distribution arrangement with the Path company. The kids wer. [3][4][5], Even when there was no talent search, the studio was bombarded by requests from parents who were sure their children were perfect for the series. Meins's Our Gang shorts were less improvisational than McGowan's and featured a heavier reliance on dialogue. Even though it's been off the air for years, Our Gang or The Little Rascals holds a special place in many American's hearts. By all accounts available, none of the former child stars were ever paid a cent in residuals from this, despite the substantial profits netted. Initially, the music consisted of orchestral versions of then-popular tunes. [36] Tommy Bond, Darwood Kaye, and Alfalfa Switzer all left the series in 1940, and Billy "Froggy" Laughlin (with his Popeye-esque trick voice) and Janet Burston were added to the cast. Robert McGowan, burned out from the stress of working with the child actors, had as early as 1931 tried to resign as producer/director of Our Gang. This led to rumors of an Our Gang/Little Rascals "curse", rumors further popularized by a 2002 E! He had a stroke on Jan. 3, 1981, sustained head injuries from falling down a flight of stairs, and succumbed to pneumonia five days later. He was able to turn his life around, though, and after rehabilitating, he appeared as a guest star on Sanford and Son and The Jeffersons, and had a recurring role on Good Times as Monty. In 1978, he appeared in The Buddy Holly Story as a member of the backstage crew at the Apollo Theatre, wearing his trademark bowler hat. [25] Lacking a replacement, Hal Roach persuaded him to stay on for another year. [16] Other minorities, including Asian Americans Sing Joy, Allen Tong (also known as Alan Dong), and Edward Soo Hoo; and Italian American actor Mickey Gubitosi (later known as Robert Blake), were depicted in the series with varying levels of stereotyping. watched it. " Groovin' " is a single released in 1967 by American rock band the Young Rascals that became a number-one hit and one of the group's signature songs. Overall, the Our Gang films produced by MGM were not as well-received as the Roach-produced shorts had been, largely due to MGM's inexperience with the brand of slapstick comedy that Our Gang was famous for, and to MGM's insistence on keeping Alfalfa, Spanky, and Buckwheat in the series as they became teens. Turner Entertainment acquired the classic MGM library in 1986, and the 193844 MGM-produced Our Gang shorts were shown on Turner's TBS and TNT cable networks for many years as early-morning programming filler, with a regular slot on Sundays at 6am ET on TNT. Here's what the cast, including Raven-Symon, the Olsen. Halcyon acquired these after absorbing Hal Roach Studios in 1988, and both Roach's estate and Cabin Fever Entertainment in the late 1990s. Jackie Cooper left Our Gang in early 1931 just before another wave of cast changes: Farina Hoskins, Chubby Chaney, and Mary Ann Jackson all departed a few months afterward. Mickey Daniels was born on October 11, 1914 in Rock Springs, Wyoming, USA. Carl's death. Inspired by Hal Roach's "Our Gang" series. This was a second film loosely based on the series and featuring interpretations of classic Our Gang shorts, including Helping Grandma, Mike Fright, and Birthday Blues. Is there a connection between the nightclub, a sinister religious group, and a dispersed bunch of radicals . The original Petey was an American Pit Bull Terriernamed Pal, the Wonder Dog. Thomas initially played Buckwheat speech impediment and all as a girl dressed as the stereotypical African-American pickaninny. He wore bowed pigtails, a large hand-me-down sweater, and oversized boots. Cabin Fever acquired the rights to use the original Our Gang title cards and MGM logos, and for the first time in over 50 years, the Roach sound Our Gang comedies could be commercially exhibited in their original formats. Hatley and Shield's jazz-influenced scores, first featured in Our Gang with 1930s Pups is Pups, became recognizable trademarks of Our Gang, Laurel and Hardy, and the other Roach series and films. The Little Rascals: Carl Alfalfa Switzer Was the Target of a Shooting a Year Before His Murder, The Little Rascals: By 1959, Much of Our Gang Was Running into Tough Sometimes Deadly Times, The Little Rascals: Norman Chaney, Who Preferred Chubsy-Ubsy, Had a Short and Sad Life. However, MGM did not want the series discontinued and agreed to take over production. 8.8K views, 33 likes, 2 loves, 6 comments, 59 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from Little Rascals History: Who Said "Otay"? [13], In their adult years, actors Morrison, Beard, and Thomas defended the series, arguing that the white characters in the series were similarly stereotyped: the "freckle-faced kid", the "fat kid", the "neighborhood bully", the "pretty blond girl", and the "mischievous toddler". During the making of what would be his final film,The Defiant Ones(1958), he told a newspaper, I look just like I did when I was a kid. He died on Aug. 31, 1948. We went to school together, played together, laughed together. Tommy Bond, an off-and-on member of the gang since 1932, returned to the series as Butch beginning with the 1937 short Glove Taps. Director Fred C. Newmeyer helmed the first pilot film, entitled Our Gang, but Roach scrapped Newmeyer's work and had former fireman Robert F. McGowan reshoot the short. Among them were the future child stars Mickey Rooney and Shirley Temple, neither of whom made it past the audition. Well, here's the answer. It was great.. All of us at DYR sincerely hope you enjoyed this walk down memory lane to check out the original cast of The Little Rascals! I just try to look at it as mostly a fun thing. The MGM limousine stops coming to your house, he recounted, and you wonder why the world has ceased loving you so suddenly at age seven. In school he was teased by other students, causing him to note, Kids can be mean. 9. Sadly, outside the studio gates, his life couldnt be more different. Two further Hallmark DVD collections featured ten shorts apiece and were released in 2003 and 2005, respectively. He did undergo surgery, after which he dropped down to 140 pounds and then 110, but the end result was disastrous. The company's licensing only lasted for a short period. The first cast of Our Gang was recruited primarily of children recommended to Roach by studio employees, with the exception of Ernie Morrison, under contract to Roach. [citation needed] Monogram Pictures and its successor, Allied Artists, reissued the films to theaters beginning in 1950. The scooter was given to Laughlin by his parents only two weeks prior to the accident. He died of a heart attack in his Los Angeles apartment on Oct. 10, 1980, 46 years to the day after his mother brought him to audition at Hal Roach Studios. She had fond memories of her days being a little rascal and died of a heart attack in 2003. [66] When the campaign did not meet its fundraising goal, other sources of financing were sought for the restorations. On May 29, 1936, when he was only 21, Norman died of myocarditis, which is an inflammation of the heart muscle. dga trainee Ronald Chong . Shield and Hatley's scores supported Our Gang's on-screen action regularly through 1934, after which series entries with background scores became less frequent. "Our Gang" shorts were in earlier years and a majority of them are silent. Chubby: [to the teacher he has a crush on] You can call me Chubsy-Ubsy if you want to. The folk-rock group Spanky and Our Gang was named for the troupe because lead singer Elaine "Spanky" McFarlane's last name was similar to that of George "Spanky" McFarland. For example, Norman Chaney ("Chubby"), Matthew Beard ("Stymie"), and Billie "Buckwheat" Thomas all won contests to become members of the gang: Chaney replaced Joe Cobb, Beard replaced Allen Hoskins ("Farina"), and Thomas replaced Beard. ClassicFlix, a company specializing in releasing classic films and TV series on home media, licensed the home video rights to Hal Roach's Our Gang sound shorts from their current owners, Sonar Entertainment. After video rights for the classic MGM library reverted to their new owners, Turner Entertainment/Warner Bros., in the late 1990s, four of the MGM Our Gang shorts appeared as bonus features on Warner Bros.-issued classic film DVD releases. Stymie enjoyed making the films and, more importantly, the sense of equality that Roach insisted on when it came to his productions. A cover of the song "Good Lovin '" was used in 1988 the film Salsa. Wikimedia Commons. "The Little Rascals" redirects here. The kids in the original Little Rascals were between 4 and 9 years old. As the shorts moved from silent films into the sound era, cast member Joe Cobb had aged out and Hal Roach, with director Robert F. McGowan, were looking for a heavy-set replacement. [40] The strips in The Dandy ended three years after the demise of the Our Gang shorts, in 1947. and "Okey-doke!"[27]. Halcyon Studios/Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment (formerly known as Sonar Entertainment, RHI Entertainment, Cabin Fever Entertainment and Hallmark Entertainment)[72] owns the copyrights of and held the theatrical and home video rights to the Roach-produced Our Gang shorts. Later that year, the first 10 Cabin Fever volumes were re-released on VHS with new packaging, and the first two volumes were released on DVD as The Little Rascals: Volumes 12. Most of the collection uses the 1994 restorations, while 16 shorts are presented with older Blackhawk Films transfers as their remastered copies were lost or misplaced during preparations.[63][64]. [56] Bracken's official biography was once altered[56] to state that he appeared in Our Gang instead of The Kiddie Troupers, although he himself had no knowledge of the change. [37] The children's performances were criticized as stilted and stiff, their dialogue being recited instead of spoken naturally. Here's a video from AOL talking about The Little Rascals reunion, looking at the cast then and now: . In January 1958, it was reported that while he was getting into his car in Studio City, someone fired a bullet at him, which crashed through the window and hit him in the right arm. Roach's distributor Path released One Terrible Day, the fourth short produced for the series, as the first Our Gang short on September 10, 1922; the pilot Our Gang was not released until November 5. 2:26. The Mack-directed shorts are considered among the lesser entries in the series. Meanwhile MGM's Our Gang series (1938-1944), is currently owned by Turner Entertainment and distributed by Warner Bros.. New productions based on the shorts have been made over the years, including a 1994 feature film, The Little Rascals, released by Universal Pictures. Additionally, theres her mischievous nature and her ability to mimic other characters lines in a humorous way, which gave her the nickname Echo.. He reportedly married and divorced, and had one daughter, but died alone in a hotel room in 1970 while working as a taxi driver. It regards a group of children who hang out at a club house with a strict rule against girls. [26] New faces included Bobby Hutchins as Wheezer, Harry Spear, Jean Darling and Mary Ann Jackson, while stalwart Farina served as the series' anchor. Joe Rivkin, a casting director for Hal Roach Studios, cast her in the role of Darla in the Our Gang shorts. Many series entries were trimmed by two to four minutes, while others (among them Spanky, Bargain Day, The Pinch Singer and Mush and Milk) were cut to nearly half of their original length. They are grouped by the era during which they joined the series. "[15], Despite the stereotyping and racial gags, Our Gang's integrated cast caused it to be disliked by certain theater owners in the southern United States. [3] Together with the Doors "Hello, I Love You", it's credited with changing the industry standard of singles. In 2011, Legend Films released black and white versions of Little Rascals DVDs. His final television performance was in 1993, playing himself in the opening of the Cheers episode Woody Gets An Election. He died shortly thereafter, in June of that year, of a heart attack. One of the saddest lives among all the members of Our Gang was undoubtedly Norman Chaney, who was better known as Chubsy-Ubsy. Like the television prints, Blackhawk's Little Rascals reissues featured custom title cards in place of the original Our Gang logos, per MGM's 1949 arrangement with Hal Roach not to distribute the series under its original title. Some time in late 1958 or early 1959, according to Film Daily, Switzer agreed to train a hunting dog for Moses Stiltz. All About ThemIncluding Farina", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Our_Gang&oldid=1151917965, This page was last edited on 27 April 2023, at 01:42. As the profit margins continued to decline owing to double features,[32] Roach could no longer afford to continue producing Our Gang. Scotty Beckett departed for a career in features (he returned in 1939 for two shorts, Cousin Wilbur and Dog Daze). By the end of 1941, Darla Hood had departed from the series, and Spanky McFarland followed her within a year. One of the many child stars of the se. Neither film was critically or financially successful, and Roach turned to re-releasing the original Our Gang comedies. When it was over, it was over. He was 64. Roach changed distributors from Path to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) in 1927, and the series entered its most popular period after converting to sound in 1929. [citation needed]. [48] The Little Rascals was a moderate success for Universal, bringing in $51,764,950 at the box office.[49]. In 1930, Pal was tragically poisoned and killed. After outgrowing Our Gang, Hood continued her education in high school, where she organized a vocal group called the Enchanters. With these releases, Cabin Fever made all 80 Roach sound shorts, and four silents, available for purchase unedited with digitally restored picture and sound. Im a guy who likes to eat and I found I couldnt do it without working. Adult situations often drove the action, with each film often incorporating a moral, a civics lesson, or a patriotic theme. Just "silent movies" accompanied with music and subtitles!) My wife knew of my background, otherwise I was happy to conceal the Porky tag until the last few years.. We can all sleep peacefully tonight. And as I said, that doesnt sound too outlandish.. 1 - ClassicFlix", "Little Rascals: The ClassicFlix Restorations Volume 1, The (Blu-ray Review)", "The Little Rascals: The ClassicFlix Restorations, Volume 4 (1933-1935)", "In the Heat of the Night hits 4K on 4/19, plus The Untouchables, The Sleeper Must Awaken, Peter Robbins RIP & more", "ClassicFlix: First Look at New Restoration of The Little Rascals Volume 6", "Qintex Entertainment to Sell Virtually All of Its Assets", "The Little Rascals - The Complete Collection (Centennial Edition) Blu-ray - ClassicFlix", "Warner Bros. to Run Most of Turner's Entertainment Units", "Our Gang. His trademark was a bald head, crowned by an oversized derby hat. His contract was not renewed in 1931, so he and his family moved back to Baltimore. Created by film producer Hal Roach, also the producer of the Laurel and Hardy films, Our Gang shorts were produced from 1922 to 1944, spanning the silent film and early sound film periods of American cinema. The biggest Our Gang stars then were Ernie Morrison as Sunshine Sammy, Mickey Daniels, Mary Kornman, and Allen Hoskins as little Farina, who eventually became the most popular member of the 1920s gang[21] and the most popular black child star of the 1920s. While out delivering newspapers on the back of his friends scooter near his home in La Puente, California Laughlin was fatally struck by a speeding truck. In 1971, because of controversy over some dated racial humor in the shorts and other content deemed to be in bad taste, King World made significant edits to Little Rascals TV prints. 235236. Starting in 1928, Our Gang comedies were distributed with phonographic discs that contained synchronized music-and-sound-effect tracks for the shorts. Laughlin rose to fame at the age of 8, joining Our Gang in 1940. That same year, Darla Hood, Patsy May, and Eugene Lee as Porky joined the gang. Although Thomas was somewhat in demand for film and stage roles, he opted for a behind-the-scenes job as a film lab technician with Technicolor. (2003) Itinerant Filmmakers and Amateur Casts: A Homemade, Academy Award for Best Short Subject (One Reel), The Pac-Man/Little Rascals/Richie Rich Show, "Life & Times (Interview with Donald Bogle). The single was one of the earliest released in stereo, as 7-inch singles generally were in mono. When Roach sold Our Gang to MGM, he retained the option to buy the rights to the Our Gang trademark, provided he produced no more children's comedies in the Our Gang vein. The television rights to the silent Path Our Gang comedies were sold to National Telepix and other distributors, who distributed the films under titles such as The Mischief Makers and Those Lovable Scallawags with Their Gangs. [30] Directed by Gordon Douglas and Fred Newmeyer, General Spanky featured characters Spanky, Buckwheat, and Alfalfa in a sentimental, Shirley Temple-esque story set during the American Civil War. RHI Entertainment and Genius Products released an eight-disc DVD set, The Little Rascals the Complete Collection, on October 28, 2008. The shorts did well at the box office, and by the end of the decade the Our Gang children were pictured on numerous product endorsements. Darla is mostly remembered for her coquettishness, as she often was the object of affection for Alfalfa, Butch, and Waldo. He is one of the most memorable and recognizable Little Rascals. The attendees were very receptive, and the press clamored for "lots more of those 'Our Gang' comedies." Hopefully, this doesn't end wit. Beard reflected, I took to him from the start. But Buckwheat slowly morphed into a boy. Alfalfa is the Little Rascal who had his hair sticking up. The success of The Little Rascals paved the way for King's new company, King World Productions, to grow into one of the largest television syndicators in the world. Until its closure in 2018, the MGM Our Gangs were available for streaming via the subscription-based Warner Archive Instant streaming video service.[77]. Watch on. The Our Gang series was a success from the start, with the children's naturalism, the funny animal actors, and McGowan's direction making a successful combination. During the 1980s and 1990s, MGM released several non-comprehensive VHS tapes of its shorts, and a VHS of the feature General Spanky. She was also the voice of the mermaid in the "Chicken Of The Sea" TV commercials. Lee retired and became analternative school educator at Broomfield High School inColorado. While Harold would eventually be relegated to the role of a background player, Carl, nicknamed "Alfalfa," eventually replaced Scotty Beckett as Spanky's sidekick. It was during this time that he acquired the circled eye. He won parts in a number of outside features, appeared in many of the now-numerous Our Gang product endorsements and spin-off merchandise items, and popularized the expressions "Okey-dokey!" Producer/creator Hal Roach re-bundled 79 of the shorts to make The Little Rascals TV series, which is still broadcast today. The character was originally named Hercules until Our Gang director Robert McGowan renamed him Stymie, as he was always stymied by little Beards curious wanderings around the studio. When he was 31 years old he met a tragic death. The Little Rascals (1994) - Clubhouse Fire Scene (3/10) | Movieclips. [50] The Snopes.com website debunks the rumor of an Our Gang curse, stating that there was no pattern of unusual deaths when taking all of the major Our Gang stars into account, despite the deaths of a select few. In the early 2000s, the 71 films in the King World package were re-edited, reinstating many (though not all) edits made in 1971 and the original Our Gang title cards. There are many unofficial Our Gang and Little Rascals home video collections available from several other distributors, comprising shorts (both silent and sound) which have fallen into the public domain. The Little Rascals television show, which debuted in 1955, introduced a band of ragtag children to the world. Starting in 1942, MGM licensed Our Gang to Dell Comics for the publication of Our Gang Comics, featuring the gang, Barney Bear, and Tom and Jerry. Republic would release Little Rascals VHS volumes for retail purchase in non-comprehensive collections through the rest of the 1980s and early 1990s.
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