Series: Our Gang
Director: Robert F. McGowan
Producer: Hal Roach, Robert F. McGowan
Dialogue: H.M. Walker
Photography: Art Lloyd
Editor: Richard C. Currier
Sound: Elmer Raguse
Stars: Matthew Beard, Bobby Hutchins, Shirley Jean Rickert, Norman Chaney, Allen Hoskins, Jackie Williams, Jackie Cooper, Mary Ann Jackson, Dorothy DeBorba
Company: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Released: 02 May 1931
Length: 2 reels
Production No.: G-40
Filming dates: December 15-23, 1930;retakes January 26 - February 2, 1931
Rating: -/10
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Bargain Day
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Available on BLU-RAY & DVD:
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The kids are trying to get Chubby to buy a new hat. Salesman Harry Bernard slowly begins to lose patience with his young customer when Chubby refuses every hat on offer, before he finally settles on an undertaker's hat. The other gang members all disaprove of his choice and they are all chased out of the store by the disgruntled salesman. Elsewhere, Wheezer and Stymie are peddling their goods when they stop by the house of a policeman (Otto Fries). He warns them to get a license. Shirley is having no fun with a monkey who keeps popping her bubbles. She complains that she wishes she had someone better to play with. Her wish is granted when the peddlers arrive at her door - then begin to interrogate her as to where her parents are? They apparently went to "What Street". And so begins the dialogue between Stymie and Shirley with him asking what street she is talking about and her replying What Street as her answer. (It goes on a while!) The boys offer to sell Shirley a doorknob, some dice and a shovel but she is not interested, and when Stymie interferes Wheezer tells him to go sit on a tack - which he does! |
| Trivia • Copyrighted March 23, 1931, by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures Corporation. Registration no. LP2072. Renewed December 2, 1958, with registration no. R225696. This copyright is currently due to expire at the end of 2026. • Film #106 in the series. • Apparently, the retakes for this film were the result of the loaning out by Roach of Jackie Cooper to Paramount for the film "Skippy." It can be assumed that the footage with Jackie was shot in December, and that most of the footage at Shirley's house was shot in January and February. • This film was budgeted at $19,000, which was less than usual. However, the final negative cost came to $28,600, no doubt resulting from the extensive retakes. • It's likely that Our Gang's scene in "The Stolen Jools" was shot during January or February, around the time of the retakes for this film. This is contrary to Maltin & Bann's suggestion that it was shot after "Fly My Kite" (no. 107), which doesn't seem likely at all when one compares Shirley Jean Rickert's hair in the three films. • The 'Watt Street' routine derives from a turn-of-the-century vaudeville routine called "The Baker Scene." • Chubby tries on eight different hats in the store. • Harry Bernard's hat store is called "The Globe". • When the gang run out of Harry Bernard's store, some of their names (Jack, Farina, Chubby, Speck & Mary) are scratched on the wall behind them. Farina's is mis-spelled (it is missing the R). • At around 5:15 into the film - watch when Wheezer rings the doorbell on the second house (after he reprimands Stymie). His finger movement immitates Oliver Hardy's mannerisms. • When Shirley asks Stymie about his father, Stymie accidentally used a swear word during a take; "my daddy's just a crappin' fool!" The actual line, which had to be re-shot was; "my daddy's just a craps-shootin' fool!" • The term "What/Watt Street" is heard a total of 16 times during the mis-understanding dislogue between Stymie, Shirley and Wheezer. • Hollis Jewel and Curtis Baird appeared in the film as stand-ins for Jackie Cooper and Donald Hained in the last part of the film as the cops are rounding up the kids. It's fairly obvious that much of the footage shot in December was scrapped after Jackie Cooper was loaned out to Paramount. Publicity photos reveal the presence of Lyle Tayo in Shirley's house, and with Cooper present. Presumably, Tayo played Shirley's mother. Isabel Keith also worked on the same day, so perhaps she was a friend of the mother. The cops listed above were all present, with the exception of Mineford. In this early version, it appears that Bill Knight was originally one of these six men. Also present on the same shooting date was Jim Tugg in an unknown role. On a separate shooting date was N.L. Henterskee (or is it Hentershee?) in another unknown role. |
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Matthew Beard Stymie |
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Bobby Hutchins Wheezer |
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Shirley Jean Rickert Shirley |
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Matthew Beard Chubby |
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Allen Hoskins Farina |
Jackie Williams Bologna |
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Jackie Cooper Jack |
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Mary Ann Jackson Mary Ann |
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Dorothy DeBorba Dorothy |
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Donald Haines Speck |
Douglas Greer Boy |
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Jackie Williams Bologna |
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Harry Bernard Sales clerk |
Tiny Sandford Police captain |
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Otto Fries Policeman out of uniform |
Gill Edwards Policeman |
L.J. O'Connor Policeman |
Bob Minford Policeman |
Silas D. Wilcox Officer |
Russell Custer Policeman |
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Baldwin Cooke Socks customer |
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Mickey Daniels Voice of monkey |
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Pete Pete |
| CREDITS (click image to enlarge) |
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| Acknowledgements: The Little Rascals: The Life And Times Of Our Gang by Leonard Maltin & Richard W. Bann (book) http://theluckycorner.com/rmt/106.html (Robert Demoss/The Lucky Corner) This page was last updated on: 12 June 2023 |