Dickie De Nuet Movies
- 1937
While staging a "William Tell" exhibition in a vacant lot, junior marksman Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer accidentally incurs the wrath of neighborhood bully Butch (Tommy Bond) -- or, as he announces himself, "you're darn right it's Butch!" When Alfalfa faints, his pal Spanky McFarland tries to save face by insisting that, were Alfie still conscious, he'd knock Butch silly. The bully responds by threatening to bounce Alfalfa around "like a rubber ball" when he wakes up. To prevent this, Spanky cooks up a scheme to convince Butch that Alfalfa has suffered a broken leg while defending Butch's reputation. A large dead fish, previously caught by Billy "Buckwheat" Thomas, proves to be a suitable stand-in for Alfalfa's "damaged" leg -- until a couple of cats show up unannounced. The "Our Gang" one-reeler Fishy Tales made its theatrical debut on August 28, 1937. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George "Spanky" McFarland, Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer, (more)
- 1936
Hoping to win a 50-dollar prize, the Our Gang kids enter a radio talent contest. Despite the scene-stealing efforts of Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer, leader George "Spanky" McFarland selects four-year-old vocalist Darla Hood to represent the gang with her stirring rendition of "I'm in the Mood for Love." But come the day of the broadcast, Darla is nowhere to be found. While Spanky searches for the missing singer, a nervous Alfalfa walks up to the microphone in her place, and it is his squeaky, interminable rendition of "I'm in the Mood for Love" that miraculously saves the day. A genial spoof of the radio series Major Bowes' Original Amateur Hour, The Pinch Singer was originally released on January 4, 1936. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George "Spanky" McFarland, Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer, (more)
- 1936
Veteran character actress Zeffie Tilbury steals the show in this immensely satisfying "Our Gang" comedy. On the occasion of her 65th birthday, a crotchety hypochondric (Tilbury) goes through her daily rant as her snooty servants (Sidney Bracey and Greta Gould) ply her with colorful but uncessary pills. Her "celebration" is interrupted when a toy plane owned by the "Our Gang" kids crashes through her dining room window and shatters a vase. Forced to do the old lady's yardwork to pay for the damage, the kids ever so gradually win her heart, mostly by refusing to mollycoddle her as her servants have done for so many years. Before long, the Gang's new "Grandma" is singing along with Spanky McFarland and Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer, demolishing her pill bottles with a slingshot, embarking upon a wild roller-skate ride through her drafty mansion --- and having the time of her life in the process. "Second Childhood" was originally released on April 11, 1936. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George "Spanky" McFarland, Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer, (more)
- 1935
Anxious to go fishing, Spanky McFarland skips out of Sunday school, despite the admonitions of his pal Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer that "Something's going to happen to you." Actually, everything happens to Spanky and his kid brother (Eugene "Porky" Lee) in the course of the morning. Chased out of a private estate by cantankerous Clarence Wilson, the two boys wander into a dark, mysterious woods --- just as a group of black worshippers are holding a mass baptism ceremony. Inevitably, the kids scare the worshippers, and vice versa, culminating in a hectic chase (accompanied by the strains of LeRoy Shield's "Fastie", a nervous agitato orginally written for the 1935 Laurel and Hardy feature Bonnie Scotland. Originally released on October 26, 1935, "Little Sinner" has been withdrawn from most "Little Rascals" TV packages due to its racial content; those few stations that have run the film in recent years have been forced to rely upon prints so severely edited that they're hardly worth the bother. Fortunately for film historians and purists, the film is available in its entirety on home video. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George "Spanky" McFarland, Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer, (more)
- 1935
The first of "Our Gang"'s musical revues, this one gets under way as master of ceremonies Spanky McFarland entices the local kiddies to attend the Gang's "big show," staged in Spanky's basement. "There's dancing music, and hotcha too," Spanky sings, "It's only a penny --- it won't break you." Highlights include, in order of presentation, an opening chorus number (&"Hello, Hello, Hello"); The Bryan Sisters' rendition of "How You Gonna Keep Him Down on the Farm" (with the not inconsiberable assistance of Billy "Buckwheat" Thomas); Darla Hood, making her "Our Gang" debut with a zingy performance of "I'll Never Say 'Never Again' Again"; the spooky "Ghost Frolic" (a segment often cut to ribbons on TV); Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer's version of the Pinky Tomlin hit "The Object of My Affection"; and the grand finale, "The Florydory Girls", with Spanky and the male cast members pressed into service as "drag" performers. One of the best and most successful "Our Gang" entries of all, "Our Gang Follies of 1936" was originally released on November 30, 1935. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George "Spanky" McFarland, Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer, (more)
- 1935
Although Spanky McFarland would like to play football with the rest of the "Our Gang" kids, he is stuck at home taking care of his baby brother. Hoping to lull the kid to sleep, thereby allowing himself to sneak out of the house, Spanky tries all sorts of "sure-fire" beddie-bye methods. But neither he nor his co-conspirator Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer are able to coerce the little brat into drifting off dreamland --- though they do briefly fall asleep themselves. A none too successful reworking of the 1932 Laurel and Hardy two-reeler Their First Mistake, the "Our Gang" comedy "Little Papa" was originally released on September 21, 1935. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George "Spanky" McFarland, Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer, (more)
