''Second Childhood'' is a 1936 ''

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, also the ...

short Short may refer to: Places * Short (crater), a lunar impact crater on the near side of the Moon * Short, Mississippi, an unincorporated community * Short, Oklahoma, a census-designated place People * Short (surname) * List of people known as ...

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

directed by

Gus Meins Gus Meins (March 6, 1893 – August 1, 1940), born Gustave Peter Ludwig Luley, was an American film director. He was born in Frankfurt, Germany. Career Meins started out in the 'teens as a cartoonist for the Los Angeles Evening Herald before ...

. It was the 144th ''Our Gang'' short that was released.

Plot

On the occasion of her 65th birthday, a crotchety

hypochondriac Hypochondriasis or hypochondria is a condition in which a person is excessively and unduly worried about having a serious illness. An old concept, the meaning of hypochondria has repeatedly changed. It has been claimed that this debilitating cond ...

(

Zeffie Tilbury Zeffie Agnes Lydia Tilbury (20 November 1863 – 24 July 1950) was an English-American actress.
profile at Cinemorgue

) goes through her daily rant as her snooty servants ply her with colorful but unnecessary pills. Her "celebration" is interrupted when a toy plane owned by the gang crashes through her dining room window and shatters a vase. Forced to do the old lady's yardwork to pay for the damage, the kids ever so gradually win her heart, mostly by refusing to mollycoddle her as her servants have done for so many years. Before long, the gang's new "Grandma" is singing along with Spanky and Alfalfa, demolishing her pill bottles with a slingshot, embarking upon a wild roller-skate ride through her drafty mansion—and having the time of her life in the process.

Production notes

Unbeknownst to the cast,

Zeffie Tilbury Zeffie Agnes Lydia Tilbury (20 November 1863 – 24 July 1950) was an English-American actress.
profile at Cinemorgue

was blind. In between takes, she was led around by her staff. This would be the last episode directed by

. ''Second Childhood'' was partially remade as ''

Kiddie Kure ''Kiddie Kure'' is a 1940 American short comedy film directed by Edward Cahn. It was the 194th ''Our Gang'' short (195th episode, 106th talking short, 107th talking episode, and 26th MGM produced episode) that was released. Plot While playing b ...

'', featuring much of the same cast.

Cast

The Gang

Darla Hood Darla Jean Hood (November 8, 1931 – June 13, 1979) was an American child actress, best known as the leading lady in the ''Our Gang'' series from 1935 to 1941. She was born in Leedey, Oklahoma, the only child of music teacher Elizabeth Dav ...

as Darla * Eugene Lee as Porky *

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

as Spanky *

Carl Switzer Carl may refer to: *Carl, Georgia, city in USA *Carl, West Virginia, an unincorporated community * Carl (name), includes info about the name, variations of the name, and a list of people with the name *Carl², a TV series * "Carl", an episode of te ...

as Alfalfa *

Billie Thomas Billie may refer to: People * Billie Allen (1925-2015), American actress * Billie Bird (1908-2002), American actress and comedian * Billie Burke (1884-1970), American actress * Billie Joe Armstrong (born 1972), American singer and guitarist for ...

as Buckwheat * Dickie De Nuet as Our Gang member

Additional cast

Sidney Bracey Sidney Bracey (born Sidney Bracy; 18 December 1877 – 5 August 1942) was an Australian-born American actor. After a stage career in Australia, on Broadway and in Britain, he performed in more than 320 films between 1909 and 1942. Early lif ...

as Hobson, the butler * Gretta Gould as Maid *

Zeffie Tilbury Zeffie Agnes Lydia Tilbury (20 November 1863 – 24 July 1950) was an English-American actress.
profile at Cinemorgue

as Grandma

References

External links

* 1936 films 1936 comedy films 1936 short films American black-and-white films Films directed by Gus Meins Hal Roach Studios short films Our Gang films 1930s American films Films about hypochondriasis Films about birthdays 1930s English-language films {{short-comedy-film-stub

Plot

Production notes

Cast

The Gang

Additional cast

See also

References

External links