''Birthday Blues'' is a 1932 ''

Our Gang ''Our Gang'' (also known as ''The Little Rascals'' or ''Hal Roach's Rascals'') is an American series of comedy short films chronicling a group of poor neighborhood children and their adventures. Created by film producer Hal Roach, who also pr ...

'' short

comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...

directed by

Robert F. McGowan Robert Francis McGowan (July 11, 1882 – January 27, 1955) was an American film director and producer, best known as the senior director of the ''Our Gang'' short subjects film series from 1922 until 1933. Career Before moving to Los Angeles, ...

. It was the 118th ''Our Gang'' short to be released.

Plot

When their pennypinching father refuses to buy a birthday gift for their long-suffering mother, brothers Dickie and Spanky decide to purchase a gift for Mom on their own. Unfortunately, the "late 1922 model" dress they have selected is beyond their price range at $1.98 (equivalent to $44.04 in 2023); thus, acting upon the advice of Stymie, Dickie and Spanky decide to bake a cake with hidden prizes, then auction off the cake at ten cents a slice. The party turns out to be a mess and Spanky's and Dickie's father returns to find it. He throws the gang and other kids out of the house and then gives Dickie a severe spanking. When Dad finds out that Dickie is using the money to buy Mom a dress, he abruptly changes his attitude. However, Dad feels the dress that Dickie bought is too fancy for Mom to wear to church on Sunday morning, but Mom proudly wears the one Dickie and Spanky picked out, to the crowd's amusement.

Cast

The Gang

* Dickie Moore as Dickie * Matthew Beard as Stymie *

Dorothy DeBorba Dorothy Adele DeBorba (March 28, 1925 – June 2, 2010) was an American Child actor, child actress of Portuguese people, Portuguese descent who was a regular in the ''Our Gang'' series of short subjects as the leading lady from 1930 to 1933. E ...

as Dorothy * Kendall McComas as Breezy Brisbane *

George McFarland George Robert Philips McFarland (October 2, 1928 – June 30, 1993) was an American actor most famous for starring as a child as Spanky in Hal Roach's ''Our Gang'' series of short-subject comedies of the 1930s and 1940s. The ''Our Gang'' short ...

as Spanky *

Bobbie Beard Bobbie Beard (August 2, 1930 – October 16, 1999) was an American child actor, best known for portraying "Cotton" in several ''Our Gang'' short films from 1932 to 1934. He was a native of Los Angeles, California. His older brother was Matth ...

as Cotton * Jackie Lyn Dufton as Jacquie *

Pete the Pup Pete the Pup (September 9, 1929 – January 28, 1946), also called the Mississippi Man Mauler, was an American dog actor known to portray "Pete, the dog with the ring around his eye" in Hal Roach's ''Our Gang'' comedies series (later known as '' ...

as himself

Additional cast

* Carlena Beard as Party guest with fake snake * Georgie Billings as Party guest with powder in mouth *

Edith Fellows Edith Marilyn Fellows (May 20, 1923 – June 26, 2011) was an American actress who became a child star in the 1930s. Best known for playing orphans and street urchins, Fellows was an expressive actress with a good singing voice. She made her ...

as Party guest with string in mouth *

Douglas Greer Charles Douglas "Turkey Egg" Greer (May 21, 1921-January 6, 2016) was an American child actor. Career and war service Greer was a semi-regular actor in ''Our Gang'' between 1930 and 1932 but also appeared in some feature films besides the gang. ...

as Party guest squirted by liquid *

Donald Haines Donald Haines (May 9, 1919 – February 20, 1943) was an American child actor who had recurring appearances in the '' Our Gang'' short subjects series from 1930 to 1933. He appeared in '' Our Gang'' during the early sound days along with ...

as Tough party guest * Dickie Jackson as Party guest with bubbles in mouth * Mildred Kornman as Party guest *

Marcia Mae Jones Marcia Mae Jones (August 1, 1924 – September 2, 2007) was an American film and television actress whose prolific career spanned 57 years. Early years Jones was the youngest of four children born to actress Freda Jones. All three of her ...

as Party guest with whistle *

Bobby Mallon Robert Howard Mallon (April 7, 1919—September 10, 2008) was an American child actor, known for appearing in Hal Roach Studios films, notably ''Our Gang'', as Bobby. Early life He was born in Greybull, Wyoming. His father was a fireman killed ...

as Party guest with liquid in mouth *

Hooper Atchley Lemuel Hooper Atchley (April 30, 1887 – November 17, 1943) was an American film actor. Atchley was the son of Mr. and Mrs. P. S. Atchley. He was a 1908 graduate of the Knoxville, Tennessee, school system. Atchley's first professional ac ...

as John, the father *

Harry Bernard Harry Bernard (January 13, 1878 – November 4, 1940) was an American actor and comedian. He is best remembered for his appearance in numerous comedy films by Mack Sennett and Hal Roach.https://m.imdb.com/name/nm0076236/bio/?ref_=nm_ov_bio_sm ...

as Store proprietor * Gordon Douglas as Delivery boy *

Lillian Rich Lillian Rose Rich (1 January 1900 – 5 January 1954) was an English-born actress of the silent film, silent era. She appeared in more than 60 films between 1919 and 1940. Biography Rich was born in Herne Hill, London, on 1 January 1900. I ...

as Lillian, the mother

Notes

The film was edited by about 5 minutes from the Little Rascals syndicated television package in 1971 due to perceived racism toward

African Americans African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa ...

. The episode was fully reinstated on

AMC AMC may refer to: Film and television * AMC Theatres, an American movie theater chain * AMC Networks, an American entertainment company ** AMC (TV channel) ** AMC+, streaming service ** AMC Networks International, an entertainment company *** ...

from 2001 to 2003.

Filming Locations

The final scene at the church was filmed at St. Brendan Catholic Church at 310 Van Ness Ave in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. This is the same location that appears at the end of the Our Gang/The Little Rascals film Pups Is Pups where Wheezer is reunited with his puppies.

References

External links

* * 1932 films American black-and-white films Films directed by Robert F. McGowan Hal Roach Studios short films 1932 comedy films Our Gang films 1932 short films 1930s American films Films scored by Marvin Hatley Films scored by Leroy Shield {{short-comedy-film-stub