Dick Gilbert Movies

Working on the theory that the only thing funnier than Laurel and Hardy is two sets of Laurel and Hardys, Our Relations milks its central mistaken-identity situation for all it's worth. Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy are two solid citizens, happily married and highly respected in their community. One morning, Hardy receives a letter from his mother, containing an old photo of himself and Laurel with their twin brothers, Alf Laurel and Bert Hardy. Mamma also reveals that Alf and Bert turned out to be "bad lads" and ran off to sea, and that reportedly they'd been hanged for taking part in a mutiny. "Isn't that calamitous!" remarks Hardy, who conspires with Laurel to hide the facts about their no-good brothers from their wives. Meanwhile, in another part of town, the S.S. Periwinkle pulls into port. Among the crew members are the selfsame Alf and Bert, who have decided to entrust their pal Fin (James Finlayson) with their month's salary. Fin has promised to invest the dough so that the boys will become millionaires "before you can say Jack Robinson". Alf and Bert are then summoned to the cabin of their captain (Sidney Toler), who orders them to pick up a valuable package for him, then meet him later at Denker's Beer Garden. While waiting for the captain at Denker's, Alf and Bert are captivated by a pair of waterfront floozies, Alice (Iris Adrian) and Lily (Lona Andre). Talked into buying the girls a huge meal for which they haven't the necessary funds, Alf and Bert decide to go back to Fin and reclaim their money, leaving the contents of the captain's package-a valuable pearl ring-with tough waiter Joe Groagan (Alan Hale) as security. Later, Laurel and Hardy take their wives Betty (Betty Healy) and Daphne (Daphne Pollard) to lunch-and, inevitably, they end up at Denker's Beer Garden, where the equally inevitable mix-ups begin to occur. Things snowball from bad to worse before both sets of twins, an angry captain, a disgruntled Fin, the wives, the floozies, a genial drunk (Arthur Housman) and a brace of smooth gangsters (Ralf Harolde and Noel Madison) all converge at the upscale Pirate Club. Several slapstick complications later, Laurel and Hardy are captured by the gangsters, who threaten to dump the boys in the river with their feet encased in cement if they don't cough up the pearl ring. Alf and Bert come to the rescue, and all is well, at least until the film's boffo punchline. Based on W.W. Jacobs' short story The Money Box, Our Relations is perhaps the most plot-heavy of Laurel and Hardy's features for Hal Roach Studios. It is also one of their funniest, as well as their most lavishly produced. The film was officially listed as "A Stan Laurel Production"-as if Laurel hadn't been the prime creative force behind all of the team's previous films. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this classic "Our Gang" comedy, Dickie Moore, Spanky McFarland and Dorothy DeBorba play siblings who, through a misunderstanding, become convinced that the local carnival's "Wild Man of Borneo" is really their prodigal Uncle George. Though basically harmless, the Wild Man really goes wild when he's hungry for candy. Shouting "Yum, yum! Eat 'em up," the Wild Man sparks a hectic chase that doesn't let up until the "End" title. Best scene: little Spanky prodding the Wild Man into eating the entire contents of the family refrigerator. Originally released on April 15, 1933, "The Kid From Borneo" has been withdrawn from the "Little Rascals" TV package due to its allegedly offensive "racist" content; even so, it remains a favorite on the home-video market. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Based on an 1830 opera entitled "Fra Diavolo" by Daniel F. Auber, the parts of two bit bandits were built up for Laurel and Hardy, but this was still just a minor effort--a few good laughs but nothing spectacular that wasn't done better elsewhere. Released later as Bogus Bandits and The Virtuous Tramps, changing the title didn't improve the product. A classic impersonation film, it has the comic duo servants to a bandit who is impersonating a Marquis to get his hands on the jewels worn by the upper crust. Standard dual identity film is similar to The Scarlet Pimpernel. ~ Tana Hobart, Rovi

Cheerful vagrant Mathew "Stymie" Beard tries to get back in the good graces of the Gang after stealing their pies. Stymie's not a bad kid, just hungry, as proven when he cadges a meal from a friendly housewife -- a meal supposedly for his faithful pet Pete the Pup, but actually consumed by himself. When a mean dogcatcher (Budd Fine) tries to round up the Gang's dogs, Stymie comes to the rescue, earning the undying devotion of the kids and the animosity of the dogcatcher, who vengefully bundles Petey off to the pound, intending to consign the poor pooch to the gas chamber. Desperately, Stymie prays for the five dollars necessary to spring Petey, whereupon a five-spot blows out of the hands of a lady shopper and lands at Stymie's feet. For a while, it seems as if Stymie and the Gang are too late to save Petey from being destroyed, but the dog has a trick or two of his own up his. . .er. . .sleeve. A semi-remake of the 1927 "Our Gang" comedy "Love My Dog," "The Pooch" was originally released on June 11, 1932. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy have just returned from a whaling trek. They check into a run-down hotel, the Mariner's Rest, whose owner, Mugsy Long (the intimidating Walter Long), is forcing a girl (Jacqueline Wells) into marriage. The girl manages to reveal her dilemma to Stan and Ollie before being locked in a closet. They try to intervene, and when the justice of the peace (Bobby Burns) comes by to perform the ceremony, they refuse to act as witnesses. There is a fracas over the closet key, but Stan manages to get it and release the girl. The chase continues, however, until Long is dumped in the water. Stan and Ollie now have a dilemma of their own -- they left their money in their hotel room. They are saved when an old friend (Harry Bernard sees them and, as a boxing promoter, offers Ollie fifty dollars to fight that evening. Ollie accepts the money and the gig -- as Stan's manager. When they get to the ring, Stan is his usual inept self, but what's worse for him is that his opponent is Mugsy Long! Long grimly insists that his assistant add some weight to his glove. In the course of the fight, "Battling" Laurel somehow manages to get his hands on (or in) Long's loaded glove and when Long tries to get it back, he is knocked cold. Ollie tells Stan he had a bet going -- against him. Stan goes to punch Ollie, but knocks out a boxing official instead, and the boys are on the run again. ~ Janiss Garza, Rovi

The Our Gang kids spend so much time listening to the tall tales spun by a salty sea captain (Billy Gilbert) that they haven't any time to attend school. Their teacher Miss Crabtree (June Marlowe) angrily trails the kids to the docks, then gives the captain a piece of their mind. Apologizing, the captain suggests a drastic plan to cure the kids of their fondness for maritime stories, enlisting Miss Crabtree as co-conspirator. Inviting the youngsters to sign on as crew members, the captain orders them to board ship at midnight, whereupon he and his crew, disguised as buccaneers stage a mock pirate raid guaranteed to scare the kids out of his wits. But when the captain pretends to kidnap Miss Crabtree (who of course is in on the scheme), the kids vow to come to her rescue, turning the tables on the "pirates" in a most painful fashion. Originally released on October 10, 1931, "Shiver My Timbers" is a lesser but amusing "Our Gang" entry. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this especially amusing Laurel and Hardy short, the boys are planning a night on the town. Standing in their way is Mrs. Laurel (Anita Garvin). Ollie telephones Stan with a scheme: Stan will send himself a bogus telegram, calling him away on "business." Unfortunately for the duo, Mrs. Laurel hears all on the extension and upon learning that they intend to take the bottle she's been saving, comes up with a scheme of her own. She takes the bottle, pours out the liquor and replaces it with every disgusting thing she can find in her kitchen -- spices, hot pepper sauce, etc. Stan and Ollie take this concoction to the Rainbow Club and proceed to have a grand time, impressed by the fire of their brew. They find out the truth -- and suffer instant sobriety -- when Mrs. Laurel shows up to tell them the bottle's actual contents...and brandishes a shotgun. While Blotto was originally three reels long, several scenes have been lost, shortening its length by a few minutes. It was shortened even further in the late 1990s, as well as colorized, for the cable TV "Laurel & Hardy Show". This is also one of Laurel and Hardy's films that was made when foreign versions of Hollywood pictures were commonly shot. In Blotto's foreign versions, the night club scene is extended, with several added acts, including a balloon dancer, and showing the boys singing a drunken rendition of "The Curse of an Aching Heart". ~ Janiss Garza, Rovi

This classic Laurel and Hardy comedy is famous for the pants-ripping scene at the end, but the other parts of it are just as funny. Laurel plays the clarinet, and Hardy plays the French horn in a band. During a concert, they destroy a musical performance and drive the conductor crazy. Fired from their job, they return to their boarding house for dinner where the landlady reminds them, "In the excitement of having a job, you have overlooked 14 weeks board bill," and she evicts them when she discovers that they are no longer employed. They have little success working as street musicians, and in frustration, they break each other's instruments, kick each other, and rip off each other's clothing. This grows into a huge street battle where many men are kicking each other and ripping each other's pants. The final pants-ripping scene is not funny just because so many men lose their pants, but because Laurel and Hardy come up with inventive ways to pull more innocent bystanders into the fray. ~ Bruce Calvert, Rovi

Imagining himself to be a master detective, Our Gang member Mickey Daniels -- also known as "Sherlock Hawkshaw" -- tries to solve the kidnapping of wealthy youngster Adelbert Wallingford (Jackie Condon). With the help of his friends, Mickey captures a likely suspect, who turns out to be one of the police detectives assigned to the case. The gang finally manages to round up the kidnappers and rescue Adelbert through the flukiest of flukes: Another crook pays them a dollar to deliver the ransom note. The hilarious slapstick climax finds little Mickey at the controls of a runaway airplane, with Joe Cobb and Allen "Farina" Hoskins nervously clinging to the wings. The silent, two-reel Our Gang comedy The Mysterious Mystery! was originally released on December 14, 1924. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The silent, two-reel Our Gang comedy The Buccaneers was originally released on March 9, 1924. As the film's title suggests, the gang decides to become pirates, but their jerry-built galleon sinks to the bottom of the harbor the moment it's christened with a ketchup bottle. Undaunted, the kids stow away on Captain Whelan's scow and before long find themselves on the high seas. Rescued by a passing Navy battleship, the kids are immediately put to work by the captain, who intends to discourage the youngsters from yearning for a life at sea. Although the kids manage to elude the captain and the crew, they're not so lucky when their parents catch up with them. A subplot involves the efforts by fat Joe Cobb to deliver a package of fish -- which mysteriously disappears thanks to a pack of hungry felines. An abbreviated version of The Buccaneers, retitled The Pirates, was included in theMischief Makers TV package in 1960. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The Our Gang kids stage their own version of a county fair, with the help of two trained horses that have been innocently "borrowed" from a local trained-animal show. With their usual ingenuity, the youngsters devise and construct all manner of sideshow attractions, from a shooting gallery to a dog-powered merry-go-round. But the big-money act is an impromptu "movie show," with Gang members impersonating such silent-screen luminaries as Charlie Chaplin, Harold Lloyd, William S. Hart, and Douglas Fairbanks Sr. A delightful two-reel time capsule, The Big Show was originally released on February 25, 1923. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The Our Gang kids volunteer to assist a ragtag vaudeville troupe in a performance of their traveling show, but despite their well-meaning efforts, the kids not only wreck the performance, but also release a collection of pesky insects upon the unsuspecting audience. Beyond the standard "theatrical" gags, including the familiar but sure-fire bit in which tiny Allen "Farina" Hoskins exposes a fraudulent Strong Man, the film's best bits are reserved for the lengthy opening sequence, in which the Gang operates its own incredible double-decker "tour bus." Incidentally, two of the adult vaudeville patrons in the climactic scene are played by the fathers of Our Gang stars Joe Cobb and Mickey Daniels. The silent, two-reel Back Stage was originally released on June 3, 1923. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi