Darla, Spanky, Miss Jones, Porky, Alfalfa, Buckwheat
Production Notes[]
Length: One Reel
Producer: Hal Roach
Director: Gordon Douglas
Photography: Art Lloyd
Editor: Bert Jordan
Titles: None
Writer:
Released: April 3, 1937
Studio: M-G-M
Main Cast[]
- Carl Switzer
- Darla Jean Hood
- Darwood Kaye
- Eugene Lee
- George McFarland
- John Collum
- Shirley Coates
- William Thomas Jr.
Supporting Cast[]
- Beverly Lorraine Smith
- Gloria Brown
- Robert Winkler
- Rosina Lawrence - Miss Jones
- Yoko Kawachichi
- Yoshi Nistu
The Short[]
Plot: The boys at Adams Street Grammar School have no interest in observing Valentine's Day, and to prove it to the girls, they found the He-Man Woman-Haters' Club in order to serve as their united front against the holiday. However, Darla finds a chink in their armor by winking at Alfalfa and giving him an invitation to lunch to exchange Valentines. Spanky decides to teach his wayward buddy a lesson by tampering with their lunch as the two make googly eyes at each other on the playground. Spanky and Buckwheat put a slice of soap in Alfalfa's sandwich and substitute liquid soap for the cream in his cream puff. This makes for a very difficult lunch and hard to digest meal for the would-be Romeo. Meanwhile, Alfalfa tries to bear through lunch as pleasantly as possible without offending Darla. Back in class, she encourages him to sing as she plays the piano. After a drink of water, Alfalfa sings "Let Me Call You Sweet Heart" as soap bubbles flow from his lips to the stunned surprise of Darla and Miss Jones and the hysterical delight of the class. As Alfalfa runs from the room, the vindicated Spanky tears up the Valentine to Alfalfa.
Quotes:
- "We, the He-Man Woman-Haters Club, promise not to fall for this Valentine business, because girls are the bunk!" - The He-Man Woman Haters' Club
- "Pretty please?" - Darla to Alfalfa and again by Spanky to Alfalfa
Notes/Trivia:
- The lunch and bubble sequence of this short was recreated for The Little Rascals movie.
- The He-Man Woman-Haters' Club is possibly inspired by the 1934 Columbia Pictures short subject "Woman Haters." Silent Film star Fatty Arbuckle also released a short, "The Woman-haters," in 1913.
- Alfalfa's stunned reaction to Darla telling him he has "personality" harkens back to Sprucin' Up when Alfalfa tells Spanky the secret of his success with girls.
- As an adult, Darla Jean Hood confessed to having a bigger crush on George McFarland who played Spanky because she was often more terrified of Carl Switzer due to his backstage rants. She later adds that Carl's (Alfalfa's) real-life father possibly encouraged his son's unruly behavior.
- This and four other shorts were later remade by King World in clay animation form, using the original soundtracks from the films.
- A few seconds of this short was heard at the beginning of the REO Speedwagon song "Tough Guys", from the band's 1980 album "Hi Infidelity."
Sequence[]
- Previous Short: Glove Taps
- Next Short: Three Smart Boys