Free Eats

Producer Hal Roach was constantly looking for fresh faces while overseeing his "Our Gang" series. On his tenth year with the little ones, Roach saw the series losing childhood actors Jackie Cooper, Allen Hoskins (Farina) and Mary Ann Jackson. A three-year-older suddenly came to the rescue from Dallas, Texas, who eventually gave the Little Rascals a refreshingly new look. His real name was George McFarland, but everyone knows him as Spanky. His first appearance on the screen was February 1932's "Free Eats," a spirited two-reeler where he joins the gang taking part in an all-you-can-eat buffet in the back yard of a high-society woman's mansion for the benefit of the city's poor kids.

For a first-timer in his film debut, Spanky had quite a bit of screen time. Before his arrival in Hollywood, young McFarland was a famous face to Dallas residents with his face slathered on highway billboards and in print ads hawking Wonder Bread. McFarland's aunt sent in photos of the cute kid to Hal Roach Studios after spotting a magazine ad stating a need for new child actors for his 'Our Gang' series. A screen test in the spring of 1931 impressed Roach so much he made McFarland the youngest ever to appear in his Rascals. According to McFarland, he received his stage name Spanky from the director of "Free Eats," Robert McGowan. "My first director hung that nickname on me," McFarland remembered. "He said I looked 'spankable.'" In another interview, however, McFarland claimed a newspaper reporter gave him the moniker. Wherever the name came from, McFarland would be forever known as 'Spanky.'

"Free Eats" was inspired by Tod Browning's 1925 "The Unholy Three," featuring a midget in the guise of a baby who steals from wealthy people. In the Our Gang short, two midgets dressed as babies are a front for their supposed parent, simply named 'common thief' (Billy Gilbert, who's a familiar face for Laurel and Hardy fans.). The older baby was played by "Tiny" Lawrence in his only film role. The other, with a deep dubbed voice, was Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus veteran Clarence Chesterfield Howerton, whose most famous role was as a Munchkin in 1939's "The Wizard of Oz." Coming across these crooks, Spanky, who is accompanied by his friends, delivers a long monologue telling a story to his buddies. Director McGowan let the cameras roll to capture the rookie actor's cute rambling tale. As he grew older, McFarland became the leader of the rascals, and retired from the "Our Gang" series ten years later.

I'm not a major fan of Hal Roach's "Our Gang" comedies -- the so-called Little Rascals -- and I usually avoid the Rascals in any movie that shows them eating. I have no desire to watch their table manners, and most of the "gags" are very predictable: close-up of white kid with dark food smeared on his face, followed by close-up of black kid with white food smeared on his face. So, the title "Free Eats" did not whet my appetite.

Fortunately, the Rascals are in good hands here: "Free Eats" is directed by Leo McCarey's unjustly-obscure brother Raymond, and the dialogue is by Roach stalwart H.M. "Beany" Walker.

An opening shot of a newspaper informs us that Mrs Stanford L Clark is throwing a free feed for the local kids, to help her husband's political campaign for the mayoralty.

Now, there are these four crooks who decide to crash the kids-only party. All four crooks are adult men, but two of them are midgets disguised as babies. The other two men pretend to be the "parents" of the babies, with Paul Fix in female disguise as the mama. Oh, mama! Over the decades of his long career, veteran character actor Paul Fix had a wide range of roles: he was Liz Taylor's father in 'Giant', and he was cast as chief medical officer aboard the Starship Enterprise until he got replaced by DeForest Kelley. I was very impressed with Fix's performance in the 1929 drama 'Lucky Star'. Here, disguised as a woman, he gives a much more plausible performance than I would have expected. Fix actually attempts a few gestures that are convincingly feminine rather than effeminate.

The two midgets (one of them twice the size of the other) aren't very plausible as babies. They keep showing off their adult teeth. (Harry Earles, another adult midget who was sometimes cast as a genuine baby, purposely avoided showing his teeth while in infant roles.) Both midgets are spectacularly ugly. At least one speaks in a dubbed voice, probably because most midget performers aren't very good actors. (They tend to get cast for reasons unrelated to acting ability.) The two midgets steal the jewellery of Mrs Clark and her society friends ... knowing that, if they're caught in the act, they'll be mistaken for innocent babies snatching pretty objects.

The alleged 'father' of the midgets is veteran actor Billy Gilbert, giving a surprisingly subdued performance. Gilbert typically overacted and often played blustering idiots, but he was actually a highly intelligent man: I suspect that, finding himself here cast alongside two midgets and a female impersonator, he was smart enough to realise he should play it straight this time.

What really strained credulity for me is that we see Fix and the midgets ALREADY disguised as a woman and her two babies when Billy Gilbert finds out about the party. Do they live in these disguises full-time? Hmmm...

I was intrigued to see good performances here from a couple of kid actors whom I don't recognise from other 'Our Gang' movies. Dorothy DeBorba (looking a little bit like Carl 'Alfalfa' Switzler) is bright and pop-eyed as the head girl. Sherwood Bailey, nicknamed Spud and dressed as a jockey, is the leader of the kid gang. The climax of the movie is genuinely suspenseful, with Bailey getting into a knock-down fight with the nastier of the two midgets. Here we see an adult criminal (admittedly a midget in nappies) trying to beat up a child, and we recognise that Spud is in genuine peril. Bailey gives an excellent performance: why didn't he catch on as one of Our Gang?

I'm never amused when Matthew 'Stymie' Beard or some other black child is used as the butt of racial humour in these crude comedies. In 'Free Eats', intriguingly, young Stymie proves himself a brave and resourceful detective. He's the first to realise that the 'babies' are not what they seem, and he comes up with a clever method of unmasking them ... or maybe undiapering them. 'Free Eats' is one of the more original Our Gang comedies, and this non-fan happily rates it 8 out of 10.

This Hal Roach comedy short, Free Eats, is the one hundred twelfth in the "Our Gang/Little Rascals" series and the twenty-fourth talkie. A wealthy society woman is throwing a party for all the poor kids...in order to help her husband's political campaign. So Breezy, Wheezer, Dorothy, Stymie, and Spanky arrive for the treats. Also arriving are some "fidgits" (Stymie's word)-disguised as infants-and their "parents"-one of whom is Billy Gilbert who previously appeared in Shiver My Timbers and Dogs Is Dogs-who intend to steal some jewelry...As always in these early talkies, Stymie steals the show with most of his quips and how refreshing is seeing his character be the one who sees through the fake babies' facade compared to the way his race was often portrayed at the time. And how cute little Spanky-in his series debut-is with his rambling on various subjects and also when he's with a monkey! So on that note, Free Eats was another funny Our Gang short. P.S. Wheezer is noticeably reduced in screen time here. I'm guessing this is his status in the remaining eps in the series.

FREE EATS is yet another of the classic early 1930s Our Gang shorts. This is hands down hilarious.

Billy Gilbert and Paul Fix play the crooked mom and dad to two real-life midgets (one played by Mighty Mite, who eventually became one of the famous Munchkins in the WIZARD OF OZ). A wealthy woman decides to throw a party for the unfortunate kids in the neighborhood. The Rascals naturally stop by for the "free eats" along with Gilbert and Fix's midgets, dressed as babies!

The crooks in turn set out to rob the place blind, even pick-pocketing guests every time they give them a hug! Gotsta' see this! Lots of fun here with all the familiar faces. Del Henderson has a laugh out loud scene as he wrestles one of the midgets who stole his wallet! The midgets (and or Fidgets as they are called here) are the ones to watch and Mighty Mite (smoking a cigar!) has a neat closing line. A real camp classic from old Hollywood. Recommended for all of us big little kids who grew up on this kooky stuff. Get the dvd box set.

An OUR GANG Comedy Short

A wealthy matron is giving FREE EATS to the poor kiddies of the town at her mansion. A `family' of crooks thinks this would be an excellent opportunity for the `babies' - actually two midgets - to steal pocketbooks & jewelry. Fortunately Stymie and the Rascals are on hand...

A funny film, with good performances from all the little people. Film mavens will recognize Billy Gilbert & Paul Fix as `Papa' & "Mama" crook; that's Major Mite & Tiny Lawrence as the two `fidgets'. Incidentally, this was Spanky McFarland's film debut with the Gang. It was evident immediately that he had natural charm & enormous talent. Eventually he would be the most famous Rascal of them all.