General Spanky

General Spanky
Directed by	Fred Newmeyer Gordon Douglas
Written by	Richard Flournoy John Guedel Carl Harbaugh Hal Yates
Produced by	Hal Roach
Starring	George McFarland Phillips Holmes Rosina Lawrence Billie Thomas Carl Switzer
Cinematography	Art Lloyd Walter Lundin
Music by	Marvin Hatley
Production company	Hal Roach Studios
Distributed by	Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Release date	December 11, 1936(1936-12-11)
Running time	71 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

General Spankyis a 1936 Americancomedy filmproduced byHal Roach.A spin-off of Roach's popularOur Gangshort subjects,the film starsGeorge McFarland,Phillips Holmes,Rosina Lawrence,Billie ThomasandCarl Switzer.Directed byFred NewmeyerandGordon Douglas,it was originally released to theaters on December 11, 1936, byMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer(MGM).

This film, aCivil Warperiod piece, was intended as an experiment to determine if Roach could moveOur Ganginto features, as thedouble featureand block booking were slowly smothering his short subjects production. The film was abox-office disappointmentand, after another year of shorts production, Roach ended up selling theOur Gangunit to MGM in May 1938.

When Roach bought the rights to the back catalog ofOur Gangfilms he had produced from MGM in 1949, he did not buy back the rights toGeneral Spanky.The film was part of the pre-May 1986 MGM catalog acquired in 1986 byTurner Entertainment Co.,which holds the rights today as a subsidiary ofWarner Bros.General Spankywas released onVHSandLaserDiscin 1991. In 2016, it was released onDVDinRegion 1by Warner Bros. via theirWarner Archive Collection.

Plot

Spanky (George McFarland), Alfalfa (Carl Switzer), Buckwheat (Billie Thomas) and others form an army called "The Royal Protection of Women and Children Regiment Club of the World and Mississippi River". The group sees unexpected action when Union troops approach, engaging in battles more farcical than fierce. Using clowning tactics instead of military tactics, the kids stop the advance... and later save an adult friend from the firing squad.

Cast

Principal cast

• Spanky McFarlandas Spanfield George 'Spanky' Leonard
• Phillips Holmesas Marshall "Marsh" Valient
• Ralph Morganas Yankee General
• Irving Pichelas Capt. Simmons, The Gambler
• Rosina Lawrenceas Louella Blanchard
• Billie "Buckwheat" Thomasas Buckwheat
• Carl "Alfalfa" Switzeras Alfalfa
• Hobart Bosworthas Col. Blanchard
• Robert Middlemassas Overseer
• James Burtis as Boat Captain
• Louise Beaversas Cornelia
• William Bestas Henry, the lazy slave

Additional cast

• Harold Switzeras Harold
• Jerry Tuckeras Jerry
• Flayette Roberts as Flayette—Gang kid in Army
• John Collumas Our Gang member
• Rex Downingas Our Gang member
• Dickie De Nuet as Our Gang member
• Ernie Alexander as Friend of Marshall
• Hooper Atchleyas Slavemaster
• Harry Bernardas Man on the boat
• Jack Daugherty as General's Aid
• Walter Gregory as Capt. Haden
• Karl Hackett as First mate
• Henry Hall as Slavemaster
• Ham Kinsey as Man with paint on shoes
• Frank LaRue as Slavemaster
• Richard R. Neilas Col. Parrish
• Buddy Rooseveltas Lt. Johnson
• Jeffrey Sayre as Friend of Marshall
• Carl Voss as Second Lieutenant
• Jack Cooper as Bit role
• Alex Finlayson as Bit role
• Jack Hillas Bit role
• Portia Lanning as Bit role
• Harry Strang as Bit role
• Slim Whittaker as Bit role
• Von the Dog as Von

Awards

The film was nominated for anAcademy Awardin the categoryBest Sound Recording(Elmer A. Raguse).

See also

• List of films and television shows about the American Civil War

External links

• General Spankyat theAFI Catalog of Feature Films
• General SpankyatIMDb
• General Spankyat theTCM Movie Database
• General SpankyatAllMovie