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'If Universal decides to make a sequel, I'd enjoy working with my little actors again. It helped give them an idea of what we expected of them. 'We showed 40 tapes of the old films to the kids. 'The children in the film bonded beautifully, and all the little boys had a crush on Brittany Ashton Holmes (5) who played Darla. They cry.' Spheeris, mother of a 24-year-old daughter, said, 'I was the oldest of four children and practically raised by younger siblings. If you ask them to change a word or two it sometimes is impossible. But once lines are committed to memory you can't change them. 'Youngsters are great at memorizing lines. If you have more than one kid in a shot you can bet you have about five seconds to film before someone messes up. 'As a director, I found the attention span of the kids left a lot to be desired. Kids have too much today, which I downplayed in our story. 'Children spent far more time outdoors then. 'The fun was building a fort or clubhouse,' Spheeris said.
Their fun was building playthings interest waned when a toy was completed. Back in the Depression everyone was poor.' The gang may have been poor, but they were inventive, making their own carts and toys from discarded lumber, skate wheels and the like. The producers didn't want them to be too poor. Sometimes Porky was Spanky's brother and sometimes he wasn't. Sometimes Buckwheat was a girl and sometimes a boy. 'The one-reelers ran about 12 minutes and were inconsistent. 'I loved casting the kids as closely as I could to the old popular group. I often wonder how the kids in those days turned out.
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'I'm amazed a 'Little Rascals' movie wasn't made long ago. 'The original was a pit bull, a breed that has a bad reputation now. 'Easiest casting was for Petey, the dog,' she said, laughing.
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I was surprised how many of them had had professional experience.' Spheeris saw videos of thousands of youngsters in her search for talented kids who approximated the appearances of Spanky, Stymie, Alfalfa, Froggy, Darla and others of the '30s gang, which is most familiar to the public. I demanded a hug from each one of them every morning. Even though the kids were a handful and hard to keep focused, they were loving and sweet. 'When we completed shooting I understood why teachers do what they do. 'For this picture I spent three months working with about 35 little kids. 'I'm 48 years old and I have a very clear memory of them. 'I was a big fan of 'Our Gang,'' said Spheeris, who watched the early silent flicks in theaters when she herself was a kid.
Spheeris, who directed 'The Beverly Hillbillies' film last year and the hugely successful 'Wayne's World,' was a natural choice to direct the new version of 'The Little Rascals,' who range in age from four to seven. Over the years the circle was seen on alternate sides of the mutt's face. A constant was Pete the pup, a brindle and white pooch with a circle painted around one eye. There was always at least one black youngster in the cast, a minimum of one little girl.Īlso there was a fat kid and one with a speech problem. From the beginning the rascals were integrated. They comprised the first gang, but they never gained the fame of such later rascals as Spanky McFarland, Jackie Lynn Taylor, Darla Hood, Carl 'Alfalfa' Switzer, 'Froggy' McLaughlin, Dickey Moore, Jackie Cooper and 'Stymie' Beard. The first members were Johnny Downs, Jackie Condon, Mickey Daniels, Mary Kornman, Joe Cobb and Eugene Jackson. More than 300 children eventually appeared in 'Our Gang' movies. Those were innocent times and kids' activities were sweet, comical and honest. In the beginning Roach found a rag-tag group of youngsters and photographed them 'doing what comes naturally.' Children in those days didn't see movies, seldom had store-bought toys and could walk the streets safely.
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When director Penelope Spheeris was called on last year by Universal Pictures and Amblin Entertainment to revive the 65-year-old series for a feature film she opted to stay with 'The Little Rascals.' The word 'gang' is pejorative in the '90s.
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The title of the long-running movie series was changed to 'The Little Rascals' when it moved to TV in the '50s. The gaggle of mischievous neighborhood kids first hit the screen in 1921 under the aegis of producer Hal Roach's one-reel comedy shorts titled 'Our Gang.' They will be seen in their new movie beginning Aug. HOLLYWOOD - Yippee! 'The Little Rascals' are back in the movies and up to their endearing rascality for the first time in half a century.