DVD #1 On DVD #1 of the Little Rascals Collection is 1923's Dogs of War, in which the Little Rascals meet the one and only Harold Lloyd after a vegetable-throwing war between rival kid gangs leads the rascals to a nearby m... more »ovie studio. Not only do the Rascals tear up the studios but that loveable gang tears up the laughs. From the same year comes another silent-era Our Gang comedy- Derby Day, in which the Little Rascals, after watching a real horse race, decide to try it for themselves and stage their own race using tricycles and neighborhood pets. DVD #2 When Our Gang is forced to put on a play at the local school in Stage Fright, mishaps and shenanigans arise when the rascals destroy not only their lines but the stage. From fireworks tied to a cow's tail to feuding lead actors, Stage Fright is one of the funniest Our Gang short films to date. In 1924, the Little Rascals starred in The Sundown Limited. This little gem was one of Our Gang's more elaborate films, in which Mickey and Joe, after causing all sorts of mischief on a real train, build their own railroad, the way only Our Gang can. In The Pirates, Our Gang attempts to set sail on the high seas in a pirate ship built from spare parts. But when the ship sinks on its maiden voyage, the gang accidentally find themselves on a real boat headed for a run-in with a Navy battleship in this comedic gem from 1923. DVD #3 This disc holds some of the funniest Little Rascal shorts ever made. In Mary Queen of Tots, another from the silent-era Our Gang shorts, little, rich girl Mary loses her $4 to the evil governess, and it's up to the gang to help her get it back. In The Fourth Alarm, the kids from Our Gang save the day by putting out a small kitchen fire, but when they decide to start their own Fire Department the pressure turns out to be more than they can handle when a four-alarm fire threatens the town. And from 1930 is School's Out. When Ms. Crabtree's brother comes into town, little Jackie Cooper and the gang, thinking he's come to ask their favorite teacher to get married, try to get rid of him at all costs, in what turns out to be a hilarious turn of events. DVD #4 When the gang decides to become Bear Shooters, they pack their bags and go camping in the one spot that they shouldn't have. But it's not a bear that causes the problems but criminals, when the Little Rascals stumble across their hideout in this comedy gem from 1930. The gang is putting on a show with Alfalfa billed as "King of the Crooners." But Alfalfa abandons the stage, saying his crooning days are over, and that opera is his true calling. But after taking a nap and dreaming of a successful future in popular music, he changes his mind and joins the rest of the gang for the closing number in Our Gang Follies of 1938. In Waldo's Last Stand, the gang decides to help Waldo when his lemonade stand gets into financial trouble. The Little Rascal's approach is to put on a show and sell the lemonade to its customers, but when their only patron is Froggy, who is not only broke but not thirsty, the gang has to come up with idea after idea to make some money. DVD #5 On DVD #5, see the Little Rascals as you've never seen them before- as adults! Twenty-five years after they tore up the silver screen, Our Gang returns to the small screen for a reunion on the 1950's television program 'You Asked For It.' They're all grown up and they're all here: Farina, Little Johnny, Jackie Condon, Fatty, and the rest of the Our Gang players in the Our Gang Reunion. Kid Stuff: Inside Hollywood's Child Stars is an affectionate and revealing look at some of the greatest child stars of the large and small screen. We'll hear about some of the dizzying highs and tragic lows of being a kid in Hollywood from former child stars such as Ron Howard ("The Andy Griffith Show"), Roddy McDowall ("How Green Was My Valley"), Margaret O'Brien ("Meet Me In St. Louis"), Tommy "Butch" Bond ("Our Gang"), and Johnny Whitaker ("Family Affair").« less
Actor:Little Rascals Collection Director:* Genres:Comedy, Television Sub-Genres:Comedy, Television Studio:PASSPORT VIDEO Format:DVD - Color DVD Release Date: 07/13/2004 Original Release Date: 01/01/1933 Theatrical Release Date: 01/01/1933 Release Year: 2004 Run Time: 5hr 0min Screens: Color Number of Discs: 5 SwapaDVD Credits: 5 Total Copies: 0 Members Wishing: 1 Edition: Box set MPAA Rating: G (General Audience) Languages:English
Matthew Wilson | Brockville, Ontario Canada | 07/20/2004
(1 out of 5 stars)
"Well, I wrote the review about this set, and boy was I disappointed when I got it. I see that the company who produced it must have paid very little in royalties as there are numerous silent episodes and ones with the lesser caracters. 1 disc has spanky and alfalfa and the fifth is a sad attempt at filling out this collection. The transfers are terrible and the sound is worse. Come on guys, at least try to put some effort into it!!! I got the set, watched it< and traded it in at the local hock shop for something i could use. What a waste of money!!!"
Very Disappointed
Derby Dude | 11/22/2004
(1 out of 5 stars)
"Like the reviewer before me, I too was very disappointed in this dvd. The clips that have sound are terrible. Most of the clips were from the silent film era, and the players were unfamiliar to me. There was one clip with Alfalfa and Spanky that was fun to watch, but the majority of these clips was awful. No effort was put into digitally re-mastering and transfering the picture and sound. I could have done just as good of a job transfering these clips using just a VCR and a DVR. Don't waste your money on buying this disc. It is a shame, because with a little effort these clips could of had much better quality and it would have been more fun to watch these vintage clips."
Little Rascals Collection
Old School Mom | Chicago, IL USA | 12/29/2004
(1 out of 5 stars)
"I am a Little Rascals fan, I watched them all the time when I was growing up. They don't televise the re-runs any more and I wanted to introduce my children to some of the wonderful and funny shows I watched as a kid. I was so excited when I saw this DVD collection but was very disappointed after viewing it. I found the description of contents given on the box to be somewhat misleading. The movies on disc 1 and 2 are silent movies with characters I've never seen. Disc 3 has two silent movies and one that actually had sound with some of the characters I was used to seeing. Disc 4 had sound, contained more of the characters I grew up viewing and was actually pretty good, disc 5 was more about a reunion with the characters along with information on other child stars from back in the day. If a slightly broader description would have been given stating that the majority of the movies were silent films and that only approximatly 4 of the movies not discs, had the actors Alfalfa, Darla and Spanky in it, I would not have purchased them. During the time I was a child and watched the Little Rascals, it always had sound. I never knew that some of their films were silent, it would have made a big difference in my selecting this paticular collection. It would have been nice to have this information disclosed in the description on the packaging."
Feeble Homage
Samantha Kelley | USA | 11/29/2005
(2 out of 5 stars)
"The Little Rascals collection is a set of 5 DVDs with a few shorts on each DVD, the fifth disk with an extra from the 50s and a documentary about child stars. This set was poorly put together, the shorts included are quite random, and buying this set would be a waste of money.
Each disk opens with a montage of some of the characters. First there is Alfalfa, then Buckwheat, Spanky, Darla, Porky, Mickey, Stymie, then Fatty- oh wait, no that is Joe Cobb only they didn't know his real name, then Farina, and last Phil MacMahon- WHO you may be asking? Phil MacMahon, the kid who got bitten by the love bug in a song number in Our Gang Follies of 1938. Still don't know him? Maybe that is because he wasn't a regular cast member and should never have been featured like he was in this collection.
Disk One features the shorts Dogs of War and Derby Day. Dogs of War is a silent film featuring the gang running loose on the Hal Roach lot; it is one of my favorite shorts from the series. However, it seems that they ripped off the Cabin Fever print and added a worse score. Derby Day also seems to be lifted from the Cabin Fever series. It is a silent film about the gang visiting the horse races. The films themselves are very good.
Disk Two features a rarer silent film called Stage Fright. It is a film about a show put on about Marc Anthony by the kids in front of their parents. It is a total disaster. Just like in Reunion in Rhythm, one kid wants to go out on stage and recite poetry. The film has been seriously cut; there are no opening credits and the short is much shorter than the usual film length. The print is washed out and new title cards have been inserted. The music is much more childish than normal silent Rascals scores, but it works. There are sound effects too. Sundown Limited is a great short about the gang building their own train. It is a very cute film; Farina is especially funny in it. The train that the kids build would have been the envy of all the children in the neighborhood. The print is washed out and the music sounds just like Grapevine Video's soundtracks. The film titled The Pirates in this set is really called The Buccaneers. It is also a cute film about the kids trying to build their own ship. When it sinks, they find a real one to destroy. This short has also been cut; there is no opener for it either. It is a bad print and has kiddie music attached to it.
Disk Three opens with Mary Queen of Tots. It is a really enjoyable film where Mary receives toys that look like the gang. She dreams they come to life, and when she wakes up, she finds the gang and believes they are her dolls come to life. This print is really bad especially considering there is a better print available on another cheaply made DVD set. It is funny that the music is the same on this set as on that one though. The Fourth Alarm is a film about the kids becoming junior fire fighters. The print on this one is not bad at all. The last film is School's Out, a talkie featuring a different cast. It is a film featuring Miss Crabtree, the new teacher. The picture is good; it seems to be the one from Cabin Fever.
Disk Four begins with Bear Shooters. This is a less than great film. The print is great; it is the one from Cabin Fever. Our Gang Follies of 1938 is a great film, very funny, long, and exciting. It features the later talkie cast. Waldo's Last Stand is a film from the later MGM years, a lesser film that seems forced. It was also released in a 5 part Rascals set.
Disk Five is the extra features DVD. It starts out with a segment from the You Asked For It television show. On it, some of the silent gang are reunited. Joe Cobb, Jackie Condon, Farina Hoskins, Johnny Downs, and Mickey Daniels are featured. The documentary called Kid Stuff really doesn't have a whole lot of information about the gang although Jackie Cooper is mentioned and Butch Bond does an interview. Other child stars like Jackie Coogan, Judy Garland, Shirley Temple, Roddy McDowall, and Ron Howard are focused on as well.
The films in this collection are films that have lapsed into the public domain. Many of them have been available cheaply for years. The only reason a fan might want to see this collection, the same reason I bothered, was to see the rarer silent films. However, the rest of the set is trash."