Fish Hooky

To me, this is the greatest of all Little Rascals/Our Gang Films. Here, the 1920s Our Gang kids, Mickey Daniels, Mary Kornman, Joe Cobb, and Allen "Farina" Hoskins mix it up with their 1930s successors Stymie, Spanky, Wheezer, Dorothy, Dickie Moore, Uh-huh, and (of course) Pete.

In this tale, Truant officer Mickey and schoolteacher Mary Kornman (still sweethearts after all these years) try to foil teenaged Joe and Farina's plans to mislead the smaller fry into playing hookey. The would-be truants find out that Mary and Mickey are taking the kids that went to school to an amusement park (the old Santa Monica pier) and...well see it and figure it out.

There are lots of laughs in this film, particularly when toddler Spanky spills the beans to Mickey about his older friends skipping school (and smacking Mickey for doing his trademark Woody-woodpeckerish laugh). Mickey chasing Stymie through the amusement park is also very well-photographed (with panoramic views of the park) and laughs to boot. Farina and Joe's phony notes to Mary Kornman to excuse the kids (Deer Teecher-Pleese Esckuse Wheezer-he caught a skunk) are also real knee-slappers.

But overall, it's also great for Our Gang fans to see the rascals as they were (the 1920s group) and as they were to become (with Spanky and Stymie) along with a good story that ties them all together as an ensemble. This was done again in "Reunion in Rhythm" (1937), but not nearly as well. Long live the rascals!

Absolutely hilarious installment of the classic Little Rascals series.

The classic children's comedies that spanned 20 years from the early 20's all the way to world War II, had different kids appear as others became too mature for the roles. This episode was a novelty that assembled some of the cast who had appeared in early episodes, with the kids who had replaced them by the early 30's. Now teens and adults, the older kids play foils for the younger kids, and the results make this one of the three best episodes of the Rascals.

Chubby and Farina tempt the kids into playing hooky from school to go fishing. Part of the conspiracy is to write phony sick notes from their parents, but little do the fish hooky conspirators know that two former Rascals are now their teacher and truant officer, respectively. These two smell a rat when they read poorly spelled and barely legible excuse notes declaring illnesses such as "he has the flu and broke his arm to make it fancy." Also, the hooky-playing guys don't know their class was being taken on a surprise trip to an amusement park. The teacher and truant cop hatch a scheme to scare the wits out of the hooky players, which sets up the good-natured chaos this series was so well known for. The Alcatraz description of reform school is priceless, but it's only the beginning.

The mock pursuit throughout the amusement park was simply brilliant. The sight gags and one-liners are placed with precision, every joke works, and the actors play their parts to the hilt. The sped up footage of the truant officer chasing Stymie throughout the old Long Beach Pike is the funniest bit of all.

This is one of the best short-subject titles of all time.

This is one of my favorite Our Gang´s comedies. The children from the past,Mickey and Mary became now the truant officer and the teacher, and they have to show the new children a lesson. Not to hooky. Dickie, Stymie, Wheezer and the others chose a bad day to play fish hooky. The rest of the class has gone to the beach for a pic-nic. And every thing is free !!

Fish Hooky was a stellar illustration of how the Little Rascals felt about school. Several Our Gang shorts had the kids playing hooky, or attempting to do so. In this one, it was almost the end of the school year, and Our Gang alumna Mary Kornman portrayed their teacher, who sought to reward them by treating them to a picnic at the beach. Unfortunately, some of the kids were anxious for school to be out, so Farnia and Joe, more former Our Gang members, portraying children old enough not to be required to attend school, submitted false absence notes to Miss Kornman for Wheezer, Stymie, Dickie, and Uh-huh. Spanky told them of the picnic, so they changed their minds too late, missing the bus. Mickey Daniels (ANOTHER ex-Little Rascal) portrayed the truant officer, who warned them of possible sentence to reform school, describing it as more like STATE PEN! He drove them to the beach, revealing his badge, so they led him on chase. Finally, he brought them to Miss Kornman, begging that they NOT be sent to reform school. Mickey agreed to let them go this time, but warned NOT to let it happen again! So, they learned their lesson, missing out on part of the fun, which was appropriate punishment, but eventually being able to enjoy this lovely picnic. It shows how the kids were not fond of school, and that playing hooky can cause unexpected consequences.

This is a highly rated Our Gang comedy--one fans of the series MUST see. I say that because it's like a reunion episode and four of the old stars of the shorts are back for guest appearances. First, Joe Cobb (who has lost a few pounds and looks much better) and Farina Hoskins appear after a couple year absence from the films. They tell the kids that it's great that they don't have to go to school any more and encourage them to play hooky. Unfortunately, little Spanky tells their new teacher--who is played by Mary Kornman--and she used to be in the Our Gang films as a child. Standing there at the time is Mickey Daniels who is now the new Truant Officer.

What the truant boys don't know is that the entire class is taking the day off to go to the amusement park--and it's all free! She and Mickey decide to play a trick on the boys and Mickey spends much of their day chasing them. I particularly liked his description to the boys of what reform school is like--with little kids wearing balls and chains and chipping rocks with picks! It all ends well---with a great line by Spanky.

This is my vote for one of the best, if not the best, of the Our Gang comedies. It not only reunites some of the old grown up kids but it's so darn funny--with many great moments.