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Bumbo and Spanky

Production Notes[]

Length: Two Reel
Producer: Robert F. McGowan
Director: Robert F. McGowan
Photography: Art Lloyd
Editor: Bert Jordan
Titles: None
Writer: Unrevealed
Released: April 13, 1933
Studio: M-G-M

Main Cast[]

Supporting Cast[]

The Short[]

Plot: Dickie, Spanky, and Dorothy have never met their Uncle George, but he has come to Greenpoint with a touring sideshow novelty act with its star attraction, Bumbo - The Kid From Borneo. Although mom loves her brother, dad isn't so crazy about him. Mom sends the kids down to meet their uncle, mistaking Bumbo as their uncle. He seems very docile until he sees Stymie with candy and then goes crazy trying to get it, chasing the Rascals back to the house to get some before Spanky renders him docile again after feeding him everything from the kitchen.
Quotes:

  • "Uh-uh, brother, I don't want any wild mans nibbling on me." - Stymie
  • "I don't think I'll taste so good. Mom says I'm spoiled." - Spanky
  • "I don't know what this is, but let's see you drink it!" - Spanky
  • "No wild man's going to eat me up!" - Spanky

Notes/Trivia:

  • This was one of the shorts that was removed from The Little Rascals' television syndication, due to its offensive racial stereotyping. This and other similar shorts were added back to the list after being banned for almost 50 years.
  • When Spanky is escaping from the scary man he thinks is Uncle George, he runs across an empty field where, in the distance, the north side of the Baldwin Hills is visible with the number "57" visible on its face. This was an enormous advertisement, made of cement, for the Heinz 57 brand of pickles and other products. The colossal advertisement can be seen in historic photographs as early as 1916 (Huntington Library, San Marino, California, collection) and is also visible in other Hal Roach productions, such as Laurel & Hardy's "Dirty Work" in 1933.
  • At the end of the film, we see Spanky's mother and father thrown out of a window of a house. The house was located at 3527 Motor Avenue in the Palms neighborhood of Los Angeles.[1]
  • This short was released the same month as the movie "King Kong."
  • This short has been censored from all television packages, possibly due to the portrayal of Bumbo as being insensitive.
  • The identity of John Lester Johnson who played Bumbo was not revealed until the second edition of Leonard Maltin's Our Gang book. As it turns out, he was a retired boxer who once shared a match with Jack Dempsey.
  • This is the only short in which Dorothy is depicted as being related to Dickie and Spanky.
  • Uncle George's real identity isn't revealed.
  • Blooper - When Spanky feeds Bumbo everything in the icebox, one of the items he pulls out is a portion of a roll of bologna which is cut in the middle with the last two large letters of the brand name "Luer" seen at the sliced end. When he hands it to Bumbo and he takes a bite, the bologna is longer, and now, only the letters UER are now visible. Apparently there may have been a few unused takes between takes where the bologna was cut down.
    • Luer's was a popular brand of hot dogs and luncheon meats beginning in 1885 in Los Angeles and continuing at least into the 1950s when Oscar Mayer started promoting its products.
  • Spanky gives Bumbo sardines, wieners, bologna, Tabasco, Tabasco, vinegar, mustard, a gallon of port wine and a whole bowl of raw eggs which he eats shell and all.
  • Blooper - In the scene when Bumbo drinks the stuff from the ice box without stopping, the camera cuts back to Spanky looking amazed which near the bowl of eggs full again. Apparently, the eating sequence was edited out of order.
  • This is Wheezer's last major role in the series as he'll make a brief cameo in the next episode.

Sequence[]



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