George "Spanky" McFarland Movies

An unofficial reworking of such silent Our Gang comedies as Tire Troubleand Boys Will Be Joys, as well as the 1936 two-reeler Second Childhood, the one-reel talkie Kiddie Kure is a tour de force for that marvelous character actor Thurston Hall. While playing baseball near the home of wealthy hypochondriac Mr. Morton (Hall), the Our Gang kids inadvertently break one of Morton's windows. This mishap coincides with a plan hatched by Morton's wife (Josephine Whitell) to get her husband's mind off his imaginary illnesses by adopting some children. Hoping to prove that he'd be an unsuitable parent, Morton pretends that he's crazy, the better to scare away the gang and to dissuade Mrs. Morton from her adoption scheme. Instead, the kids prove to Morton that he doesn't need all his pills and poultices, thereby giving the old man a new lease on life and a better appreciation of children. Originally released on November 23, 1940, Kiddie Kure marked the final Our Gang appearance of series stalwart Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Hoping to get an early start on a fishing trip to the East River, the Our Gang kids board a double-decker bus at the crack of dawn. Alas, the kids' bulky fishing equipment causes nothing but discomfort for the rest of the passengers, to say nothing of the irascible driver (Paul Hurst). Thanks to the gang's unintentional interference, the bus' regular pick-up and drop-off schedule is thoroughly disrupted, and even worse, it turns out that the kids are on the wrong bus. A simple but hilarious exercise in comic frustration, the one-reel Our Gang comedy Goin' Fishin' was originally released on October 26, 1940. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

While recklessly playing baseball in a busy street, Our Gang member Mickey (Robert Blake) is struck by a car. Though he fully recovers from his injuries, Mickey meets several other kids in the hospital who weren't so lucky. Instantly developing a sense of civic responsibility, the Gang members establish the "1-2-3 Go Safety Society," dedicated to lowering the number of auto injuries in their community. Playing more like a public service announcement than an Our Gang one-reeler, 1-2-3 Go was originally released on April 26, 1941. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Once again, the Our Gang kids stage an elaborate musical show in Spanky McFarland's backyard. Angered over the fact that Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer has been chosen as the show's singing star, bully Tommy "Butch" Bond sneaks backstage with the intention of sabotaging the production. But Butch is hoisted on his own petard, and the show goes on as scheduled. The highlight of this middling one-reel Our Gang effort is the gang's presentation of a rip-roaring "mellerdrammer," replete with hero (Alfalfa), heroine (Darla Hood), black-hearted villain (Spanky McFarland), and an ersatz horse race. Captain Spanky's Show Boat was originally released by MGM on September 9, 1939. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Reprimanded for his poor grades ("Gee, Dad, don't 'F' stand for 'Fabulous'?"), Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer is told that, unless he improves his academic standing, he'll never get to college. But Alfalfa laughs this off, informing his dad that he intends to sail through college on a football scholarship. Dreaming about his future gridiron triumphs, Alfie is brought down to earth when he envisions himself being disqualified from the inevitable "big game" due to his lousy grades. Awakening from this nightmare, our hero vows to put football on the back burner in favor of cracking the books. A typically heavy-handed MGM "Our Gang" entry, the one-reel morality play Time Out for Lessons was originally released on December 2, 1939. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Upset that his youthful sweetheart Darla Hood has once again thrown him over in favor of neighborhood bully Tommy "Butch" Bond, Our Gang member Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer tries to forget his troubles by watching a sidewalk performance by famed hypnotist Professor William Delmore (John Davidson). Chosen as a subject, Alfalfa is hypnotized into believing that he is the fearless D'Artagnan, of Three Musketeers fame. Armed with this bold new personality, Alfie not only sweeps Darla off her feet, but also challenges the dumbfounded Butch to a duel. The results, while not deadly, are devastating for both Alfalfa and Butch. The one-reel Our Gang comedy Duel Personalities was originally released March 11, 1939. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

When the parents of little Eugene "Porky" Lee are threatened with eviction, the Our Gang kids decide to stage a circus to raise the rent money. Spanky McFarland doubles as ringmaster and acrobat, with Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer as a singing trapeze artist, Darla Hood as a lion tamer, Billy "Buckwheat Thomas as the "Wild Man of Borneo," and Porky himself as "The Head Without a Body." Things come to a spectacular climax when the circus' animal attraction, a cranky mule, is "energized" by a bee sting. The one-reel Clown Princes was originally released on April 15,1939. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The gang's beloved teacher Miss Pipps (Sara Haden) is fired by crabby old school board chairman Mr. Pratt (Clarence Wilson), who believes that the teacher is too "nice" for her job. With the help of friendly school custodian Mr. Swenson (Christian Rub), the kids stage a play for the local PTA, explaining why Miss Pipps should not be dismissed and simultaneously exposing Mr. Pratt as the nasty curmudgeon that he is. As a result, Miss Pipps is reinstated and Pratt is duly punished -- only to be forgiven by the surprisingly charitable children. One of the better MGM Our Gang comedies, the one-reel Come Back, Miss Pipps was originally released on October 25, 1941. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Marie Blake, the real-life sister of Jeanette MacDonald, played the title role in the one-reel comedy Alfalfa's Aunt. Hoping to launch a career as a mystery writer, Aunt Penelope composes a manuscript which leads her nephew Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer to conclude that Auntie plans to do away with him. With the help of the rest of the Our Gang kids, Alfalfa succeeds in scaring Aunt Penelope off the premises -- much to the delight of his long-suffering parents. Brimming with clever and inventive sight gags, Alfalfa's Aunt -- originally released on January 7, 1939 -- is one of the better MGM Our Gang entries. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Peck's Bad Boy and his gang of mischievous misfits (including Spanky McFarland) make all kinds of trouble around the circus. ~ All Movie Guide

Filmed on MGM's standing Dr. Kildare sets, the one-reel Our Gang comedy Men in Fright gets under way as Gang members Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer, Spanky McFarland, Billy "Buckwheat" Thomas, Eugene "Porky" Lee, and Leonard Landy pay a visit to their hospitalized friend Darla Hood. Thanks to a convenient plot device, Alfalfa is mistaken for a tonsillectomy patient and subjected to laughing gas. Once this complication has been straightened out, the kids burrow through a picnic basket full of such delicacies as pickles, ice cream, and hot dogs, with the expected results (conveyed via a clever bit of animation). Men in Fright was originally released on October 15, 1938. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Hoping to get even for all the practical jokes perpetrated by neighborhood troublemaker Tommy "Butch" Bond, the Our Gang kids plan to sabotage Butch's birthday party. The weapon of choice is a firecracker, which is substituted for one of the birthday candles. Unfortunately, the kids in general and Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer in particular are unable to escape from the party before the big (and tasty) explosion. Essentially a single-joke effort, the one-reel Our Gang comedy Practical Jokers was originally released on December 17, 1938. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Again concocting an elaborate hooky-playing scheme, Our Gang kid Spanky McFarland places a block of ice on the chest of his pal Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer. The strategy this time is to convince their mothers that Alfalfa has a bad cold, and that Spanky must remain by his side to nurse him back to help. In fact, the boys plan to go fishing the moment their mothers' backs are turned -- and the scheme might have worked, had not little Billy "Buckwheat" Thomas and Eugene "Porky" Lee spilled the beans to Spanky's mom. Vowing to teach the boys a lesson, she orders Spanky and Alfalfa to remain in the house all day and look after Spanky's kid brother Junior. This turns out to be a major mistake when, while trying to clean Junior's clothes, the boys end up locked in a steam cabinet, while poor Buckwheat finds himself stuck in the washing machine's rinse cycle. Though adhering strictly to formula, the "Our Gang" one-reeler Canned Fishing pleased the crowd when it was originally released on February 12, 1938. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide