Two Too Young

technical details:

Production K-2.

Release no. C-582.

Filmed September 8 to 12, 1936. See the 'miscellaneous' section below for details.

First previewed at the Ritz on September 23, 1936.

Negative shipped on September 30, 1936.

Title sheet prepared by Elmer Raguse on October 1, 1936.

Cutting continuity submitted October 2, 1936.

According to Maltin & Bann, this film was released on September 26, 1936, making it the 147th film in the series to be released. However, judging by the dates listed above, it seems likely that the film was released in October.

Copyrighted October 21, 1936, by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures Corporation. Registration no. LP6694. Renewed November 1, 1963, with registration no. R324744. This copyright is currently due to expire at the end of 2031.

All-talking one-reeler.

Opening title: 'Hal Roach presents Our Gang in "Two Too Young".'

King World Productions episode no. 34a, available in both colorized and original black-and-white versions.

the crew:

Produced by Hal Roach

Credited in the film as a presenter.

Directed by Gordon Douglas

This credit appears in the film. The production sheets verify his involvement on each date from Sep. 8th through Sep. 14th.

Assistant Directors: Barney Carr, Ryan and Brandenburg

The call sheets mention Carr for the 8th, 9th and 10th, and Ryan and Brandenburg for the 11th. I don't know which of the Brandenburg brothers this is, either Ed or Chet, and there were at least three assistant directors from this era whose last name was Ryan.

Photographed by Art Lloyd and Lundsen

Lloyd received sole credit in the film, and is verified by production documents for each of the shooting dates, plus the post-production dates of Sep. 13th and 14th. Lundsen's name is added to the call sheet for Sep. 11th.

Edited by William Ziegler

This credit appears in the film. His participation is verified by the daily film reports for Sep. 9th through 14th. He was probably present on the 8th as well, for which no cutter is listed.

Sound by W. B. Delaplain

This credit appears in the film.

Prop Men: Don Sandstrom and Bob Saunders

The call sheets verify Sandstrom on the 8th, 9th and 11th, and Saunders on the 11th.

Writers: Louis McManus and Tom Bell

These two worked in the story department and were the ones who came up with the idea of using "The Charge Of The Light Brigade."

Released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

Indicated in the opening title card.

Passed by the National Board of Review

As indicated in the film.

Western Electric System

As indicated in the film.

Approved by the Motion Picture Producers & Distributors of America

Certificate no. 2654.

studio personnel

general manager - David Loew until early to mid 1936. He was replaced by Mat O'Brien, who was also secretary and treasurer.

vice president in charge of production - S. S. Van Keuren

Roach's assistant on production activities - Lawrence Tarver

assistant secretary-treasurer, comptroller - Hugh Huber

film editor and sound department - Elmer Raguse

story department - Jack Jevne

casting - Joe Rivkin

publicity and advertising - Fred Purner

art department - Arthur I. Royce

construction department - C. E. Christensen

paint department - James Follette

property department - W. L. Stevens

electrical department - William Lewis

laboratory superintendent - Charles Levin

process department - Roy Seawright

still photographer - Bud "Stax" Graves

musical director - Marvin Hatley

men's wardrobe - Harry Black

women's wardrobe - Dorothy Callahan

makeup department - Jack Casey

hairdressing - Peggy Zardo

purchasing department - Russell Walker

cashier - Mrs. M. Van Keuren

paymaster - Mrs. Grace Cash

transportation director - Bob Davis

garage - Walter Johnson

commissary - W. M. Furlong

school teacher - Fern Carter

possible uncredited involvement

writing - Hal Yates, Carl Harbaugh, Hal Law, John Guedel, Felix Adler, Harry Langdon, Richard Flournoy and Gordon Douglas may have been among the gag writers.

property department - Charles Oelze was probably involved in this capacity.

animation - Probably the work of Roy Seawright.

the kids:

Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer as "Alfalfa"

Lead role. He recites while firecrackers go off in his back pocket.

George "Spanky" McFarland as "Spanky"

Lead role. He finds a way to get Buckwheat's firecrackers away from him.

Billie "Buckwheat" Thomas as "Buckwheat"

Supporting role. The older boys take his firecrackers.

Eugene "Porky" Lee as "Porky"

Supporting role. He uses a magnifying glass to set off the firecrackers in Alfalfa's pocket.

Harold Switzer

Small part. He sits behind Buckwheat, and is also seen bumping into the G-man.

Sidney Kibrick

Extra. He sits behind Porky.

John Collum

Extra. He sits in the back of Porky's row.

Dickie DeNeut

Extra. He sits behind Harold.

Rex Downing

Extra. He sits behind Dickie.

Donald Proffitt

Extra. He sits behind Spanky.

Jerry Tucker

Extra. He sits in the second desk on the left side, but is barely noticeable until the last shot when the kids start laughing.

Barbara Goodrich

Extra. She sits two desks behind Donald.

Joe Strauch, Jr.

Extra. He isn't noticeable until the last shot of the film. It's likely that he served as a stand-in for Spanky in certain shots, since this was his main duty.

girl 147

Extra. She sits behind Sidney.

Paul Hilton

Extra. Looking at the longshot of the kids exiting the classroom, it appears that he's the boy sitting in front of Porky.

Darla Hood

She's not in the film itself, but her photo is shown during the opening titles.

Baby Patsy May

She's not in the film itself, but her photo is shown during the opening titles.

other kids

Extras. There are five additional kids in the class. All twenty of the children in this film were present from the 8th through the 11th.

the animals:

Leo

Bit part. The MGM lion appears at the opening of the film.

Pete the Pup IV

He's not actually in the film, but his photo is shown during the opening titles.

the adults:

Rosina Lawrence as the teacher

Supporting role. She's given onscreen credit. The cutting continuity refers to her as "Rosina." She's seen frequently throughout the film. She was present on the 8th, 10th and 11th.

Ivan Atcher

Production sheets indicate that he performed stunts in this film. I'm assuming this was an adult. It's virtually certain that he was the one carrying Spanky on his shoulders. He was present on the 8th, 9th and 10th.

George Washington

The Unfinished Portrait is hanging on the classroom wall.

the music:

"Good Old Days" by Leroy Shield

Copyrighted Jan. 10, 1931.

(A15.) A portion of this piece is played over the opening titles. The last verse is played as the kids laugh at Alfalfa and the end title appears.

locations:

Hal E. Roach Studios

This entire film was shot at the studio, no doubt on Stage 4.

miscellaneous:

Alfalfa recites "The Charge Of The Light Brigade" by Alfred, Lord Tennyson. Written in 1854.

The pressbook for this film mistakenly states that Gus Meins was the director.

Five shooting dates went into the making of this film. Studio paperwork seems to indicate that pre-production officially began on September 1st. Here's a breakdown of the activity as described on the call sheets, daily film reports and various memos. Keep in mind that the word 'scene' really means 'shot' in this case, as there were obviously not 100 scenes in the film:
Aug. 24 - A memo from this date indicates that a request was made to clear "The Charge Of The Light Brigade" for use in this film.
Sep. 3 - A memo from this date indicates that "The Charge Of The Light Brigade" was cleared for use in the film.
Sep. 4 - An item from this date mentions the name Barney Carr, who worked as an assistant director on this film. This was probably his starting date on the production.
Sep. 5 - Film costs for the previous week were $325.24.
Sep. 8 - This was the first day of shooting. Scheduled were Rosina Lawrence, Spanky, Buckwheat, Alfalfa, Porky, 16 extra kids, and stuntman Ivan Atcher. Footage was to be shot for the 'before recess' sequence, including the penmanship activity, using the interior schoolroom set. Later, footage was to be shot of scenes involving the firecrackers and Buckwheat ringing the bell, using the exterior school entrance set. After this, footage was to be shot showing Spanky and Alfalfa disguising themselves as a man, using the interior janitor's room set. This is all according to the call sheets, which were filled out prior to each day's filming. Ultimately, 19 'scenes' were shot. At this point, the film was known as "Our Gang Short." A memo from Rivkin on this date to Van Keuren, O'Brien, Huber and Cash, requests that the four main boys, plus Rosina Lawrence and Joe Strauch, Jr., be 'opened' for this production.
Sep. 9 - This was the second day of shooting. Scheduled were the four main boys, the 16 extra kids, and Ivan Atcher. Footage was to be shot showing Spanky and Alfalfa dressing up as a man, using the interior janitor's room set. Later, footage was to be shot of the 'man' wobbling down the stairs, using the exterior school entrance set. After this, teeter-totter footage was to be shot using the exterior schoolyard set. Still later, footage of Buckwheat and Porky on the teeter-totter was to be shot using the same set. Ultimately, 17 scenes were shot on this day.
Sep. 10 - This was the third day of shooting. Scheduled were Rosina Lawrence, the four main boys, the 16 extra kids, including Joe Strauch, Jr., and Ivan Atcher. Footage was to be reshot showing the 'man' wobbling down the stairs, using the exterior school entrance set. Later, more teeter-totter footage was to be shot, using the exterior schoolyard set. In the afternoon, with Lawrence's arrival, footage was to be shot for the 'after recess' sequence, including the recitation, using the interior schoolroom set. Ultimately, 28 scenes were shot. At this point, the film was still known as "Our Gang Short."
Sep. 11 - This was the fourth day of shooting. Scheduled were Rosina Lawrence, the four main boys, and the 16 extra kids. Footage was to be shot for the 'after recess' sequence, including the recitation, using the interior schoolroom set. Ultimately, 34 scenes were shot. The picture was considered 'closed' on this day. A memo from Joe Rivkin to the same four people as on Sep. 8th requested that the same six actors be 'closed' for this production.
Sep. 12 - This was the final day of shooting. Only 2 scenes were shot, neither of which apparently requiring the presence of the cast. A memo from this date indicates that the main titles for the film were set, including the eventual title of the film. Film costs for the previous week were $2530.65, bringing the total to $2855.89 so far.
Sep. 13 - A daily film report from this date lists Douglas, Lloyd and Ziegler, which presumably means post-production was taking place.
Sep. 14 - A daily film report from this date lists Douglas, Lloyd and Zieger.
Sep. 19 - Film costs for the previous week were $614.65, bringing the total to $3470.54 so far.
Sep. 26 - Film costs for the previous week were $344.22, bringing the total to $3814.76 so far.
Sep. 29 - A memo from this date indicates that the film had been shipped to W. D. Kelly in New York.
Sep. 30 - A memo from this date indicates that the negative had been delivered to the MGM lab.
Oct. 21 - A memo from this date indicates that the Canadian negative had been delivered.

As of January 11, 1937, the negative cost on this film was $18,196.78

The script submitted to MGM was given the catalog number B659.

This film was 911 feet in length.

availability:

The Little Rascals Remastered & Unedited Vol. 7 (VHS) from Cabin Fever and

The Little Rascals Remastered & Unedited Volume Two (4 LD set) from Cabin Fever

Released July 6, 1994. Also released as part of 12 VHS boxed set. This is a complete original print with excellent picture quality. The total footage lasts 9:55. This version has appeared on numerous bootlegs.

The Little Rascals Volume 7: Collector's Edition (VHS) from Hallmark Home Entertainment

Released Aug. 15, 2000. Also included as part of The Little Rascals Volumes 1-10: Collector's Edition (10 VHS set), released Aug. 15, 2000.

The Little Rascals Remastered & Unedited Vol. 7 & Vol. 8 (DVD) from Cabin Fever

Same contents as the Cabin Fever VHS releases. Also released as part of The Little Rascals Remastered & Unedited (6 DVD set).

The Little Rascals Colorized Collection (VHS) from Hallmark Home Entertainment

Released Apr. 19, 1999. One of six same-named VHS releases, each with three colorized films, deriving from the Cabin Fever versions.

The Little Rascals - The Complete Collection (8 DVD set) from Genius Products

Released late Oct. 2008. This is identical to the Cabin Fever version. There are also four clips from this film included in the documentary The Story Of Hal Roach And Our Gang.

The Little Rascals Book VIII (VHS) from Blackhawk Video

This is a home movie print from Blackhawk. The opening title and crew credits are remade, but the end title is original. The picture quality is very good. The original footage totals 9:29, but the original soundtrack lasts an additional 0:20.

The Little Rascals: Little Sinner/Two Too Young (VHS) from Republic Pictures Home Video

Released May 1991. This is the Blackhawk print.

Rascal Dazzle (VHS/LD) from Embassy Home Entertainment

Original film released 1981. Video released 1984. A clip lasting 0:29 is included, showing the kids practicing circles. This is followed by a clip lasting 2:11, showing Alfalfa's recitation.

© Robert Demoss.