Our Gang Follies of 1938
| Our Gang Follies of 1938 | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Directed by | Gordon Douglas |
| Produced by | Hal Roach |
| Written by |
Hal Law Robert A. McGowan Norman Blackburn Charles Rogers |
| Starring |
Carl Switzer George McFarland Eugene Lee Darla Hood Billie Thomas Henry Brandon |
| Music by |
Marvin Hatley Gioacchino Rossini Arthur Johnston Sam Coslow |
| Cinematography | Art Lloyd |
| Edited by | William H. Ziegler |
|
Production
company |
|
| Distributed by | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
|
Release date
|
|
|
Running time
|
21' 16" |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $58,815 |
Our Gang Follies of 1938 (later reissued as simply Follies of 1938) is a 1937 American musical short subject, the 161st short subject entry in Hal Roach's Our Gang (Little Rascals) series. Directed by Gordon Douglas as a sequel to 1935's Our Gang Follies of 1936, the two-reel short was released to theaters on December 18, 1937 by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.
Deriving its title from the concurrent MGM feature film The Broadway Melody of 1938, Our Gang Follies of 1938 is a spoof of the Broadway Melody films and other movie musicals of the time. In the film, Alfalfa (Carl Switzer) decides to quit a pop music revue put on by Spanky (George McFarland) and become an opera singer, famously singing a pastiche song entitled "The Barber of Seville" several times throughout the film. The bulk of the film is made up of a dream sequence, in which Alfalfa imagines himself twenty years later failing as an opera singer, while Spanky owns a Broadway nightclub with a lavish floor show.
The gang is putting on another big show in Spanky's cellar, complete with an orchestra led by Buckwheat (Billie Thomas), and performances by Darla (Darla Hood) and many of the other neighborhood kids. However, "King of Crooners" Alfalfa (Carl Switzer), the star of the show, crashes the swing music based show with his off-key rendition of "The Barber of Seville", having secretly decided he's going to sing opera from now on. Spanky closes the curtain on Alfalfa and sends out another act to replace him, causing Alfalfa to walk out and take his voice "where it'll be appreciated!"
...
Wikipedia