One Wild Ride

film no. 45

availability:

Kid Gangs And Juvenile Stars (DVD) from Looser Than Loose Publishing: Released 2007. This version includes most of the film, but is missing some of the earlier footage seen in the Video Classics version. The inter-titles are remade, but appear to retain the original wording. The picture is fairly poor, with the center portions of the picture being notably darker than the outer portions. The LTL company logo occasionally appears in the lower left hand corner. The print totals 14:23, with about 12:15 of it original.
Our Gang Silent Comedies Volume 2 (VHS) from Video Classics and
Our Gang Comedies II (VHS) from The Picture Palace: This is a home movie print by Laff-Movie Inc., in New York, entitled "Gimme A Ride." The inter-titles are remade, but the wording seems to be original. The print totals 13:00, with 10:29 of it original footage. Ignoring the inter-titles, roughly two-thirds of the original film is included. Most of what's missing is from the last part of the film.
Our Gang Silent Comedies Vol. 9 (VHS) from HenryButch: This film is mistakenly listed in the ad for this volume, but does not appear on the tape. Instead, "Tire Trouble" (no. 22) is included.

technical details:

Production K-3.

Filmed July 30, to August 4, 1925. It's likely that unused footage from "Your Own Back Yard" (no. 44) went into this film. See the 'miscellaneous' section below for details.

On July 30 and August 1, 1925, photographer Len Powers shot the live-action footage of the Pathé rooster shown at the end of the films released over the next couple of years.

Copyrighted November 6, 1925, by Pathé Exchange, Inc. Registration no. LU21978. Since the copyright was not renewed, this film is now in the public domain.

Released December 6, 1925. It was the 45th film in the series to be released.

Silent two-reeler.

Probable opening title: '"Our Gang" Comedies - Hal Roach presents His Rascals in "One Wild Ride".'

Released into TV syndication as Mischief Makers episode no. 1012, "Runaway Taxi," copyrighted Sep. 1, 1960, with registration number LP17317.

the crew:

Produced by Hal Roach: Probably credited in the film as a presenter.
Supervised by F. Richard Jones: Probably credited in the film as supervising director.
Directed by Robert F. McGowan: This credit probably appears in the film, but without his middle initial.
Edited by Richard Currier: This credit probably appears in the film.
Titles by H. M. Walker: This credit probably appears in the film.
Story by Hal E. Roach: This credit probably doesn't appear in the film.
Animal trainer: Tony Campanaro: He was Pal's trainer.
Released by Pathé Exchange, Inc.
Passed by the National Board of Review: Probably indicated in the film.
studio personnel
possible uncredited involvement

the kids:

Allen "Farina" Hoskins as "Farina": Lead role. He's essentially the star of the film. The gang leaves him out of their activities, so he ends up taking their taxi.
Mickey Daniels as "Mickey": Featured role. His mother makes him do chores, but he soons join the other boys for a ride.
Mary Kornman as "Mary": Featured role. Her situation is essentially repeated from "Mary, Queen Of Tots" (no. 41). She switches dresses with the other girl so she can ride along with the gang.
Joe Cobb as "Joe": Supporting role. He's left having to take care of his baby brother, but uses some ingenuity to get out of it and join the gang.
Johnny Downs as "Johnnie": Supporting role. He's the one with the taxi service.
Jackie Condon as "Jackie": Supporting role. He assists Johnny with his taxi service.
Jackie "Husky" Hanes as "Bellingham": Small part. Not listed by Maltin & Bann, but it looks like him. He's Joe's little brother.
other kids: Small part and extras.
(1.) The first girl to take a ride on the taxi, who then switches dresses with Mary.
(2.) At least twelve kids watching the monkey perform. About six or seven are boys.

the animals:

horse 014 as "Evangeline": Supporting role. This is the white horse that pushes the taxi. Presumably the same horse from "Dogs Of War!" (no. 14).
Pal: Small part. Not listed by Maltin & Bann. He's Mary's dog.
parrot 008: Small part. Presumably the same parrot seen previously, he rides along with Farina.
monkey 004: Small part. Presumably the same monkey seen previously, he rides along with Farina.
other animals: Bit parts.
(1.) The dog that fights with the bear cub.
(2.) The bear cub.
(3.) The horse pulling the watermelon cart.
(4.) Several chickens eat the seeds out of the ground while Mickey sleeps. Later, Farina drives through a whole bunch of chickens.

the adults:

Richard Daniels as the horse owner: Bit part. He appears briefly retrieving his horse from the kids.
Al Hallet as the man with the bird cage: Bit part. He almost gets run over, and also loses his parrot.
Ed Brandenberg as the sprinter: Bit part. He's shown running from the car from Farina's point of view.
other adults: Bit part and extras.
(1.) The driver of the truck that Farina hitches the taxi onto. He's barely seen getting out of his truck.
(2.) The man with the watermelon wagon.
(3.) The man with the monkey.
(4.) Two bike riders who almost get hit by the taxi.
(5.) Numerous other drivers.

the locations:

oil rigs: One of the areas Farina races through has a number of oil rigs, suggesting that perhaps it was the same area used for "The Smile Wins" (no. 66).
house: At one point, the taxi goes by a large house that was later seen in the bullfighting sequence in "Ten Years Old" (no. 58).

miscellaneous:

Reportedly, only four shooting dates went into the making of this film. The previous film, "Your Own Back Yard" (no. 44) used up more time than usual for an Our Gang film, and it seems likely that unused footage from that production served as the basis for "One Wild Ride." The day after the earlier film was completed, filming for "One Wild Ride" began on July 30th. It continued until Aug. 4th, when it was considered 'finished.' No shooting took place on Aug. 2nd, which was a Sunday, nor on July 31st. For this latter date, the 1925 datebook indicates that the Our Gang unit was involved with something called "Movie Parade." No production number or director is given, so this might not have been a film project. However, it's possible that it explains the existence of the mysterious little film known variously as "Our Gang At Home" and "More Mischief." After shooting finished for "One Wild Ride," four weeks passed before the Our Gang unit began shooting "Good Cheer" (no. 46). The studio was closed during two of these weeks.

It's possible that unused footage from "Mary, Queen Of Tots" (no. 41) may also have gone into this film, which would explain the brief appearance of the governess and the butler. New footage showing Mary switching dresses with another girl would then iron out the inconsistencies.

There were 35 copies of this film printed for its initial release.

©Feb. 16, 2005, by Robert Demoss.
2005 updates: 2/27, 3/16, 4/25.
2006 updates: 1/2, 1/9, 5/16, 6/12, 9/5, 10/25.
2007 updates: 4/1, 4/6, 10/22, 11/25.
2008 updates: 2/3, 2/21, 3/31, 7/6, 7/20.
2009 updates: 5/23, 6/2, 6/3, 6/19, 7/23.

Thanks to Robin Cook, Rob Stone and Joe Moore for assistance on this page.