Anniversary Trouble

Production Notes[]

Length: Two Reel
Producer: Hal Roach
Director: Gus Meins
Photography: Francis Corby
Editor: Bert Jordan
Titles: None
Writer:
Released: January 19, 1935
Studio: M-G-M

Main Cast[]

Supporting Cast[]

Claudia Dell - Spanky's Mother
Hattie McDaniel - Mandy/Buckwheat's Mother
Johnny Arthur - Spanky's Dad

The Short[]

Plot: Spanky's dad has a hard time remembering things, including his son's nickname. It turns out he has also forgotten his wedding anniversary, so after his son reminds him what day it is, he leaves an envelope of money for his wife to go buy whatever she would like. Unfortunately, he takes the very same envelope to use as a bookmark in his book, How To Improve Your Memory. Spanky, meanwhile, has an identical envelope containing the dues for his club, the Ancient And Honery Order Of Wood Chucks. When he hides this envelope, his mother notices him and thinks he's stealing her birthday present. She takes the envelope and reports the supposed theft to her husband. Meanwhile, the club has disbanded in favor of keeping their money, and when Spanky can't find it, he gets trapped in the house by the former club members waiting for him to come out with the cash. Even masquerading as Buckwheat, the son (daughter?) of their housekeeper doesn't work. Meanwhile, dad comes home to punish his son for the theft, but when he discovers the book with the money in it, he's mystified as to from where the other envelope of money came. Finally, Spanky's claims of the envelope being the dues of his club makes sense, but dad can't bring himself to confess how stupid he was to Spanky's mother. Mom, however, has been eavesdropping the whole time, and as Spanky pretends to accept his fake punishment, she sneaks in to give dad a real punishment!
Quotes:

"You can fool some of the people some of the time, but you can't fool Mom!" - Spanky

Notes/Trivia:

This is the first appearance of Johnny Arthur in the series; he'd return later as Darla's father in Night 'N' Gales and Feed 'Em And Weep.
Actress Hattie McDaniel makes a very rare appearance as Buckwheat's mother and the housekeeper for the McFarlands. She'd play the role again in Arbor Day. In 1939, she would win an Academy Award for her role in in "Gone With The Wind." Ironically, another Academy Award actress, Whoopi Goldberg, would play Buckwheat's mom in The Little Rascals movie.
Although William Thomas Jr. has been a part of Our Gang since For Pete's Sake, this is his first notable appearance as the character later known as Buckwheat. The name had been used previously by a number of young actresses, including Carlena Beard, the real-life sister of Matthew Beard, and Willie Mae Taylor, which could be why Buckwheat is considered a little girl, but once the name was trully "his," this gender confusion was quickly forgotten as Buckwheat turned into a major member of the Little Rascals.
The day is claimed to be Thursday, February 2, but that would make the year 1933 (or 1939) instead of 1935, when this short was filmed and released.

Sequence[]

Previous Short: Shrimps For A Day
Next Short: Beginner's Luck