The Little Rascals (film) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids The Little Rascals |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Penelope Spheeris |
| Produced by | Bill Oakes Michael King Gerald R. Molen |
| Screenplay by | Paul Guay Stephen Mazur Penelope Spheeris |
| Story by | Paul Guay Stephen Mazur Penelope Spheeris Mike Scott Robert Wolterstorff |
| Starring |
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| Music by | William Ross |
| Cinematography | Richard Bowen |
| Editing by | Ross Albert Peter Teschner |
| Studio | Amblin Entertainment KingWorld Filmed Entertainment |
| Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
| Release date(s) | August 5, 1994 |
| Running time | 72 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Money made | $67.3 million |
The Little Rascals is a funny American family movie from 1994. It was made by Amblin Entertainment and released by Universal Pictures on August 5, 1994. This film is based on the classic "Our Gang" short films by Hal Roach, which were popular in the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s. Many people also know these old films as The Little Rascals because they were shown on TV.
The movie tells new stories about the famous "Our Gang" characters in a modern setting. It even brings back some of the funniest moments from the original shorts. The film was directed by Penelope Spheeris, who also helped write the script with Paul Guay and Stephen Mazur. Guay and Mazur later worked together on other comedies like Liar Liar.
Another movie based on Our Gang, called The Little Rascals Save the Day, came out in 2014.
Contents
What's the Movie About?
The story follows a group of neighborhood kids and their adventures.
The He-Man Woman Haters Club
Spanky McFarland is the leader of the "He-Man Woman Haters Club." This club is made up of many boys from the neighborhood. They have one main rule: no girls allowed!
The club's best go-kart, "The Blur," is ready for the big Soap Box Derby race. Alfalfa Switzer, Spanky's best friend, is supposed to be the driver. But Alfalfa is missing!
The boys find Alfalfa with Darla, his girlfriend. This is a big problem because dating a girl goes against the club's rules. Alfalfa invites Darla for a picnic inside the clubhouse to show her how much he likes her. What he doesn't know is that the other club members are secretly watching and planning to mess up their date.
During the picnic, the boys play silly pranks to ruin Alfalfa and Darla's romantic time. When the club members finally show themselves, Alfalfa tries to hide Darla. This makes Darla think Alfalfa is ashamed of her. In all the chaos, a candle flame gets out of control, and the clubhouse accidentally burns down!
Alfalfa's Troubles
Darla breaks up with Alfalfa and starts liking Waldo, a rich new kid in town. Because Alfalfa burned down the clubhouse and was with a girl, Stymie tells him he has to guard the go-kart until the race. He also tells Alfalfa to stop thinking about Darla.
Alfalfa tries many ways to win Darla back, even sending her a fake love note. When that doesn't work, Spanky goes with him to Darla's ballet show to help him officially break up with her. They sneak into the building and hide in a costume room. They end up dressing as ballerinas in pink tights and tutus!
They try to leave, but they walk into a room full of girls, including Darla. The boys nervously pretend to be part of the ballet show. Alfalfa almost gives them away when a frog he's holding croaks. Darla says she misses his singing voice. Soon, the ballet teacher makes them all go on stage.
During the show, Alfalfa has a frog in his tights, which makes him squirm and dance in a funny way. The audience and girls laugh. The teacher is furious and kicks them out. Outside, the bullies, Butch and Woim, chase them. Alfalfa ends up running home in his underwear, feeling very embarrassed when he sees Darla and Waldo laughing at him in a hot tub.
The Big Race!
The day before the race, the boys try to raise money to rebuild their clubhouse. Porky and Buckwheat accidentally get $500, but their teacher, Miss Crabtree, finds out it wasn't earned honestly. Spanky convinces her to let them use the money as the first prize for the go-kart derby.
Alfalfa realizes Spanky and the others ruined his picnic with Darla. He drives "The Blur" to a talent show to confront Spanky. But when he sees Darla singing with Waldo, he tries to win her back by singing. Waldo secretly puts soap in Alfalfa's water, making him burp bubbles during his song!
Because Alfalfa was careless, Butch and Woim steal "The Blur." Alfalfa and Spanky argue, but Stymie helps them make up. They decide to work together with the other boys to build a new go-kart called "Blur 2: The Sequel." Alfalfa and Spanky will ride in it together, hoping to win the prize money and the trophy.
In the race, Butch and Woim try to stop them. Waldo and Darla are also racing, but they get annoyed with each other. In a wild finish, "The Blur 2" crosses the finish line first by a tiny bit, thanks to Alfalfa's pointy hair! After the race, Butch and Woim try to fight Alfalfa, but he finally stands up for himself and punches Butch into a pool of pig slop. Woim jumps in too, scared.
Alfalfa wins back Darla, who reveals she kicked Waldo out of their car because he caused the bubbles at the talent show. Spanky is surprised when he meets the trophy presenter, A.J. Ferguson, who turns out to be a woman! Spanky tells Darla that he and the boys ruined her picnic. After the clubhouse is rebuilt, the boys decide to let Darla and her friends, and other girls, join their club.
Who's in the Movie?
- Travis Tedford as "Spanky" McFarland, the leader of the "He-Man Woman Hater's Club" and Alfalfa's best friend.
- Bug Hall as "Alfalfa" Switzer, Spanky's best friend and Darla's boyfriend.
- Brittany Ashton Holmes as Darla, Alfalfa's girlfriend.
- Kevin Jamal Woods as "Stymie", the club's vice-president.
- Jordan Warkol (voice dubbed by E. G. Daily) as "Froggy", a club member who croaks when he talks and loves frogs.
- Zachary Mabry as "Porky", one of the younger club members and Buckwheat's best friend.
- Ross Bagley as "Buckwheat", another young club member and Porky's best friend.
- Sam Saletta as "Butch", the neighborhood bully.
- Blake Jeremy Collins as "Woim", Butch's friend and helper.
- Blake McIver Ewing as Waldo Johnston III, a rich new kid who likes Darla.
- Courtland Mead as "Uh-huh" – the club's "typographer," who always says "uh-huh."
- Juliette Brewer as Mary Ann.
- Heather Karasek as Jane.
- Raven-Symoné as Stymie's girlfriend at the club.
- Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen as the twin girls at Darla's sleepover.
- Mel Brooks as Mr. Welling, the strict bank teller.
- Lea Thompson as Miss Roberts, Darla's ballet teacher.
- Daryl Hannah as Miss Crabtree, the gang's schoolteacher.
- Reba McEntire as A.J. Ferguson, "the best driver there is."
- Whoopi Goldberg as Buckwheat's mother.
- Donald Trump as Waldo Johnston II, Waldo's father.
- Eric Edwards as Spanky's father.
- Dan Carton as Alfalfa's father.
- George Wendt as the Lumber store guy.
- Alexandra Monroe King and Zoe Oakes as Darla's friends at Darla's sleepover.
Animal Friends
- Petey, an American Bulldog.
- Fifi, a Doberman Pinscher.
- Elmer, a white-throated white Capuchin monkey who is part of the Rascals' club.
Fun Facts: Old and New Rascals
Many of the funny moments and parts of the story in this movie were taken from the original Our Gang/Little Rascals short films. Here are some examples:
- The scene where Buckwheat and Porky get their fishing lines tangled comes from an old 1943 Our Gang short called Three Smart Guys.
- The "He-Man Woman Haters Club" first appeared in a 1937 Our Gang short called Hearts are Thumps. The idea of the boys ruining Alfalfa and Darla's picnic, and Alfalfa burping bubbles while singing, also came from Hearts are Thumps.
- The special "hi-sign" the kids use was first seen in a 1935 Our Gang short called Anniversary Trouble.
- Alfalfa pretending to have a toothache comes from the 1936 Our Gang short Bored of Education.
- The kids dressing up as firefighters and trying to put out a fire was a common theme in old Our Gang shorts like Fire Fighters (1922) and The Fourth Alarm (1926).
- The funny scene where Spanky and Alfalfa accidentally perform in a ballet show was inspired by the 1937 short Rushin' Ballet. The pink ballet costumes they wear are exactly like the ones the original Spanky and Alfalfa wore! The gag where Alfalfa has a frog in his clothes was from the 1937 short Framing Youth.
- Alfalfa singing "The Barber of Seville" was first done in Our Gang Follies of 1938.
- The idea of the children building their own vehicle from junk was used in several shorts, especially Hi'-Neighbor! (1934).
- Much of the go-kart race at the end, including Butch and Woim's car going backward, was borrowed from the 1939 short Auto Antics.
See also
In Spanish: The Little Rascals (película) para niños
