The Little Rascals Restorations Vol. 1 Blu-ray
Back in September, I posted a news item about an Indiegogo campaign to restore and release all 80 Our Gang (a.k.a. The Little Rascals) shorts made at Hal Roach Studios from 1929 to 1938 (before the series moved to MGM and the shorts went downhill). Unfortunately, that crowdfunding project did not meet its funding goal.
The good news is that boutique video label ClassicFlix is moving forward with the restoration work anyway, and they have scheduled a Blu-ray release of the first eleven shorts (running 230 minutes) on April 13th. The Little Rascals – The ClassicFlix Restorations, Volume 1 (Blu-ray), will initially be sold exclusively at ClassicFlix.com.
Below is the full press release from ClassicFlix.com:
— Exclusive and only available at ClassicFlix.com —
Remastered, uncut and beautifully restored, now you can see The Little Rascals like never before! With restorations so glorious, it will be like watching these iconic shorts for the first time in The Little Rascals – The ClassicFlix Restorations, Volume 1 (Blu-ray).
Scheduled to street on April 13th, Volume 1 contains the first 11 Our Gang sound shorts produced by Hal Roach at the dawn of the “talkie era”: Small Talk to A Tough Winter—with each short newly scanned and resorted from original Hal Roach 35mm film elements. See below for full details.
Hal Roach’s Our Gang series is one of the longest running and most prolific in the field of short subjects with 220 one- and two-reel comedies released between 1922 and 1944. The secret to the longevity of the series, as well as its appeal to generations long after its conclusion, is mainly due to Roach’s choice to cast kids who came across as “natural” on the screen—scruffy underdogs that moviegoers could identify with or wish they could be—not glossy “showbiz professionals”.
After producing 88 silent Our Gang shorts, Roach transitioned to sound releasing 80 “talkies” in the series starting with Small Talk in 1929. It took time to fine-tune the adjustment from silent to sound, but soon the studio began firing on all cylinders producing classics like Shivering Shakespeare and The First Seven Years(both 1930).
The Little Rascals – The ClassicFlix Restorations, Volume 1 contains the first 11 Our Gang sound shorts produced by Roach at the dawn of the “talkie era”: Small Talk to A Tough Winter—with each short newly scanned and resorted from original Hal Roach 35mm film elements.
A must-have for any true Our Gang fan, Volume 1 features the talents of Jackie Cooper, Allen “Farina” Hoskins, Mary Ann Jackson, Bobby “Wheezer” Hutchins, Joe Cobb, Harry Spear and Norman “Chubby” Chaney.
SHORTS
1929:
- Small Talk
- Railroadin’
- Lazy Days
- Boxing Gloves
- Bouncing Babies
- Moan and Groan Inc
1930:
- Shivering Shakespeare
- The First Seven Years
- When the Wind Blows
- Bear Shooters
- A Tough Winter
** Please note that while this set may go wide retail at some point in the future, it is currently exclusive to and only available at ClassicFlix.com.
