Fast Company
	24 November 1924
	Pathé Exchange
	silent short
	2-reels

Director	Producer/Story	Titles	Cinematography	Editor
Robert F. McGowan	Hal Roach	H.M. Walker	?	?

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Facts •Production A-16. •Filmed March 5 to 15, 1923, and June 13 to 21, 1924. •Copyrighted October 2, 1924, by Pathé Exchange, Inc. Registration no. LU20634. Since the copyright was not renewed, this film is now in the public domain. •Released November 16, 1924. It was the 32nd film in the series to be released. •18 days of shooting went into the making of this film. According to Maltin & Bann, director Bob McGowan fell from a camera platform and was not able to start this film. For the first day of shooting, Mar. 5th, the director in the 1923 datebook is listed as 'Parrott.' (In fact, this is the point when the datebooks start listing directors.) No director is listed for the remainder of the first week, but 'Parrott' is listed the following week, and specifically as 'C. Parrott' on Mar. 15th. This, of course, was Charles Parrott, soon to become famous as Charley Chase. It's probable that he directed on all of these March dates. Maltin & Bann continue to explain that Parrott was called away to a meeting in New York, which would explain why the Our Gang unit had a rare Friday off on Mar. 16th. The film was then left unfinished for over a year, as Tom McNamara began work on "Stage Fright" (no. 17) the very next day. It's interesting to note, however, that McGowan's injury may have occurred at a different time (especially if Maltin & Bann's source for this story was purely anecdotal). Filming for "Lodge Night" (no. 15) wrapped the Saturday before the Monday starting date for "Fast Company," a date on which Parrott is already at the helm. The company took their usual Sunday off on the 11th, but the datebook mysteriously includes the following for that date: 'McGowan working - A18 Tia Juana.' Production A-18 was "July Days," which would be McGowan's next directorial effort, but I can't help but think that this was a gag alluding to some vacation time for McGowan. •It isn't clear at all why so much time passed before production on "Fast Company" was resumed, but the studio managed to complete 16 Our Gang films in the interim. The day after filming ended for "Every Man For Himself" (no. 32), June 13, 1924, McGowan began 'retakes' for "Fast Company," and continued these until June 21st. To be specific, though, the words 'retakes' and 'retake' are omitted for the dates June 18th and 21st in the 1924 datebook. No work took place on the 15th or 22nd, which were Sundays. It should be noted, too, that McGowan DID suffer some sort of accident during the filming of "The Sun Down Limited" (no. 31), little over a month before these retakes, which may have led to the Maltin & Bann info. It's also interesting to note that Ernie Morrison and Jack Davis, both of whom were no longer members of Our Gang, were brought back to participate in these retakes, as evidenced by the studio payroll summaries. Another notable point: By this time, the Our Gang unit was routinely taking a break between productions, so shooting for "The Mysterious Mystery!" (no. 33) didn't begin until June 30th. •There were 40 copies of this film printed for its initial release. Did you notice? •The telegram in the film says January 4th, while the calendar on the wall is January 1924.

	Lassie Lou Ahern Little girl
	Charles A. Bachman Policeman
	Joe Cobb Joe
	Jackie Condon Jackie McChicken
	Mickey Daniels Mickey
	Jack Davis Jack McChicken
	Helen Gilmore Woman from Traveler's Aid Society
	Charlie Hall Bellboy carrying Farina
	Dell Henderson Man in lobby
	Allen 'Farina' Hoskins Farina
	Mary Kornman Mary
	Ernest Morrison Ernie
	Hal Roach, Jr. Kid who douses Farina with hose
	Lyle Tayo Woman whose hat blows up
	Walter Wilkinson Little Rondamere Von Swell
	Charley Young Man falling out of window

Acknowledgements: http://www.theluckycorner.com/rps/016.html (Robert Demoss/The Lucky Corner) The Little Rascals: The Life And Times Of Our Gang by Leonard Maltin & Richard W. Bann (book) This page was last updated on: 26 October 2017