A publicity still from "Yale Vs. Harvard", one of the handful of lost Our Gang films.
A publicity still from "Edison, Marconi & Co.
The Our Gang Comedies (better known today as The Little Rascals) were a series of short subjects released theatrically between 1922 and 1944. The series consisted of eighty-eight silent short films, one hundred and thirty-two sound short films, and one feature-length sound film.
To date, all of the "talkies" have survived and been released on home video in their original uncut form. However, many of the series' silent releases have not been as lucky. For years, the "silents" were released through home movie companies and on television, but often in severely edited forms. Others went missing entirely, with some of the negatives rumored to have been destroyed in the infamous 1967 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer vault fire.
Additionally, several of the last handful of silent entries were released with a soundtrack recorded on a separate disc. Only a few of these discs have survived.
Missing Material[]
| Production number | Release number | Title | Release date | Director | Plot | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | "Our Gang" | November 5, 1922 | Robert F. McGowan and Fred C. Newmeyer | The kids save a widowed woman's store from being taken away from her. |
Two versions were filmed. The first, directed by Fred C. Newmeyer, was previewed but never officially released. The second, a remake directed by Robert F. McGowan was the one shown in theaters. A nearly complete reel 1 and a good portion of reel 2 of the McGowan edit exists (through home movie fragments released in both the United States and the United Kingdom). It is unknown if the Newmeyer edit exists. |
| 43 | 44 | "Better Movies" | November 1, 1925 | Robert F. McGowan | The kids make their own movie. |
The only known existing footage is an edited television print and a few short home movie fragments. |
| 44 | 43 | "Your Own Back Yard" | September 27, 1925 | Robert F. McGowan | Farina finds himself getting into trouble whenever he leaves his backyard. |
Long thought lost, various elements were discovered in recent years. With this footage, a nearly complete print of the film has been put together and released on DVD by CW Films. |
| 62 | 66 | "Chicken Feed" | November 6, 1927 | Anthony Mack | Farina and the gang mistakenly think they've changed his sister into a monkey. | Only a heavily edited television print, and a short home movie fragment are known to exist. |
| 66 | 72 | "The Smile Wins" | February 26, 1928 | Robert F. McGowan | The other kids try to help Farina's poverty-stricken family. |
Long thought lost, a 35mm nitrate print was discovered in France (with French inter-titles) in 1991. Another European print of the film exists with a few original English intertitles. A few home movie fragments (with several of the original English inter-titles) also exist. |
| 67 | 64 | "Yale Vs. Harvard" | September 24, 1927 | Robert F. McGowan | The kids plays a game of football against a rival gang. |
No copies are known to exist. |
| 70 | 69 | "Heebee Jeebees" | November 19, 1927 | Anthony Mack | A hypnotist think that they have turned into animals. |
No copies are known to exist. |
| 74 | 74 | "Edison, Marconi & Co." | March 10, 1928 | Robert F. McGowan and Anthony Mack | The kids build their own submarine. |
No copies are known to exist. |
| 75 | 75 | "Fair And Muddy" | May 5, 1928 | Robert F. McGowan | In order to gain an inheritance, a child-hating spinster agrees to take the Gang on a trip. |
Long thought lost, a nearly complete print was discovered in England in 2008. However, the print's inter-titles do not contain their original wording. Using the film's cutting continuity information, a restoration of the film was created with English intertitles, but has not been released to the public |
| 76 | 76 | "Crazy House" | June 2, 1928 | Robert F. McGowan | Rich girl Jean invites the Gang to her house. There, the kids fall victim to a series of practical jokes. |
A complete print of the film exists, and has been released on home video. However, the film's original soundtrack is believed lost. |
| 77 | 77 | "Growing Pains" | September 28, 1928 | Anthony Mack | The other kids believe Wheezer has turned into a giant. |
No copies are known to exist. |
| 78 | 78 | "The Ol' Gray Hoss" | October 20, 1928 | Anthony Mack | The Gang tries to save an old man's taxi service. |
A complete print of the film exists, and has been released on home video. However, the film's original soundtrack is believed lost. |
| 79 | 79 | "School Begins" | November 17, 1928 | Anthony Mack | The kids reluctantly return to school after their summer vacation. |
Long thought lost, a 35mm nitrate print is said to be available at the Museum of Modern Art. However, the print contains non-English (possibly Czech) title cards. It is unknown if the film's soundtrack has survived. |
| 80 | 80 | "The Spanking Age" | December 15, 1928 | Robert F. McGowan | Wheezer and Mary Ann decide to throw a party. |
A complete print was discovered in the early 1990's, and has since been released on home video. However, it is unknown if the film's original soundtrack has survived. |
| 82 | 82 | "Noisy Noises" | February 9, 1929 | Robert F. McGowan | Joe tries to deal with a toothache. |
A complete print exists, and has been released on home video. However, the film's original soundtrack is believed to be lost. |
| 83 | 83 | "The Holy Terror" | March 9, 1929 | Anthony Mack | Joe tries to subdue problematic Mary Ann. |
No copies are known to exist. |
Foreign Language Prints[]
As a way to continue international film distribution during the 'sound era' of films, producer Hal Roach re-shot many of his 1930-31 releases in foreign languages (Spanish, French, German, Italian), with the actors reciting their dialogue from cue cards held off camera. During this brief period, four Our Gang 'talkies' were among the handful of Roach entries re-shot. While the original English-language prints have survived and been released on home video, most of the foreign releases are still lost.
| Production number | Original Title | Foreign Title | Director | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 96 | "The First Seven Years" | "Los pequeños papas" (Spanish) | Robert F. McGowan | The picture negative from the Spanish version of the film has survived, but the soundtrack has not. Reportedly, French and German versions were also produced. |
| 97 | "When The Wind Blows" | "Las fantasmas" (Spanish) | Robert F. McGowan | The picture negative from the Spanish version of the film has survived. The soundtrack may have also survived. Julian Rivero replaced Charles McAvoy in the role of "Henry", Jackie Cooper's father. |
| 98 | "Bear Shooters" | "Los cazadores de osos" (Spanish) | Robert F. McGowan | No material from the Spanish print is known to exist. |
| 99 | "A Tough Winter" | "Temps d'Hiver" (French) "Winter Wetter"' (German) |
Robert F. McGowan | No material from the Spanish print is known to exist. |