The Big Show

This Hal Roach comedy short, The Big Show, is the seventh in the "Our Gang/Little Rascals" series. It's also notable as the debut of two more important members of the gang: chubby Joe Cobb and new leading lady Mary Kornman. The gang can't afford the county fair that's currently playing in town so they look through the peepholes at the gate but a cop shoos them away. They eventually have their own fair with various pets disguised as the wild animals. But the real attraction is a "movie" starring the big stars of the time impersonated by the gang. Among those imitated: Charlie Chaplin, Harold Lloyd, Douglas Fairbanks, and William S. Hart. I'll stop there and just say this was quite amusing if not completely hilarious. It probably helps if you've seen the films reenacted by the gang. So that's a recommendation of The Big Show.

When the story begins, there's a county fair and the gang cannot get inside because they don't have the money. So, instead, they put on their own fair for the kids in the neighborhood. The show consists of some wild animals (mostly dogs and cats and the like) and a live-action movie where they imitate the likes of Chaplin and Lloyd. In the end, a jerk from the fair arrives and begins throwing his weight around...and Pete the dog goes into action.

This is a mildly enjoyable film....nothing great but enjoyable. There are no big laughs but it's pleasant and entertaining.

Circus owner Roy Brooks mistreats the boy who exercises his animals, so Our Gang takes him on and goes into competition with Brooks.

It's one of those episodes of the long-running series in which the kids make their own imitation of some adult enterprise using strong, shoddy, poor spelling, and a menagerie. These are not, alas, my favorite entries into the series; the essence of the humor of this is that they're kids and they're doing it poorly. At that point it ceases to be humor, and becomes making fun of them.

Still, this sort of short was popular, and when you get down to it, it's well done for its type.

Our Gang is sneaking a peak at the county fair. There are crazy stunts. The boys are chased away. They find some donkeys and come up with an idea. They start up their own circus for the neighborhood kids. This is the ninth short in the series. I love the old county fair attraction with the crazy stunts. The flipping cart is legit. Then I love the kiddie circus idea although that boy is really whipping that donkey. I like the Chaplin impersonation attempt. I wish it went longer. My favorite has to be the animal zoo. A giraffe has never looked cuter. It's the funniest bit in this short. This is good clean fun.

This was the seventh in the silent 'Our Gang' series produced by Hal Roach.

That's it! I've had enough of these silent shorts. 'The Little Rascals' only does it for me with sound. Without sound it is like dry land swimming.