. . . gussied up as "Cousin Amelia," the Drag Queen, exactly 7:46 into this ahead-of-its-time "Our Gang" episode. As the title MAIL AND FEMALE explicitly forewarns, these "Little Rascals" bend over backwards to be LGBT-Q friendly. Some say that Alfalfa is Bi; others contend that he's Undeclared--but the consensus seems to be that the worst "crooner" ever is thoroughly confused. However, it's never been a crime to be Agnostic about sex, and even "Quasimodo" could have at least attracted the goat's gaze with a better chiropractor. During MAIL AND FEMALE "Spanky" might seem to be hung up on spanking, but what else could anyone expect? "Darla" gives her role as "Mata Hari, Jr." her best shot, while "Buckwheat" tackles the chore of being the Red Queen's messenger. MAIL AND FEMALE marks at least the second founding of "The He-Man Woman-Haters' Club," and this organization has certainly popped up gasping for air a third time in Today's DC "Oval Office."
4 Reviews
The first appearance of the He-Man Woman Hater's Club.
planktonrules3 February 2012
Warning: Spoilers
If you've seen the recent "Little Rascals" movie, you will no doubt remember the He-Man Woman Hater's Club to which all the boys belonged. Well, here in "Mail and Female" the whole club begins.
The film begins with Alfalfa writing a love not to Darla. What he doesn't know is that at that very moment he's just been elected to office in the club! Alfalfa is worried when he finds out, as he's worried that the boys will find his letter, so he rushes to Darla's to get it. The boys follow and Alfalfa dresses up in drag to fool them. When Alfalfa (as a girl) is able to vamp the boys, he returns only moments later to punish them for consorting with girls. But, in the end, the gang has the last laugh.
This is a decent short, though like their later ones, it's also quite short. It's cute seeing Alfalfa Switzer in drag, but this has been done before in at least one other short ("Rushin' Ballet") so the only real innovation is the club itself. Good but not great.
The film begins with Alfalfa writing a love not to Darla. What he doesn't know is that at that very moment he's just been elected to office in the club! Alfalfa is worried when he finds out, as he's worried that the boys will find his letter, so he rushes to Darla's to get it. The boys follow and Alfalfa dresses up in drag to fool them. When Alfalfa (as a girl) is able to vamp the boys, he returns only moments later to punish them for consorting with girls. But, in the end, the gang has the last laugh.
This is a decent short, though like their later ones, it's also quite short. It's cute seeing Alfalfa Switzer in drag, but this has been done before in at least one other short ("Rushin' Ballet") so the only real innovation is the club itself. Good but not great.
Flirtin' With The Little Rascals
Ron Oliver28 April 2000
An OUR GANG Comedy Short
Alfalfa, president of the newly formed He-Man Woman Haters Club, has MAIL AND FEMALE woes: he is frantic to retrieve a love letter he sent to Darla and if that means disguising himself as her Cousin Amelia, and flirting with Spanky & Spike, so be it...
A funny little film. Alfalfa in drag is a fearsome sight to behold.
Alfalfa, president of the newly formed He-Man Woman Haters Club, has MAIL AND FEMALE woes: he is frantic to retrieve a love letter he sent to Darla and if that means disguising himself as her Cousin Amelia, and flirting with Spanky & Spike, so be it...
A funny little film. Alfalfa in drag is a fearsome sight to behold.
Mail and Female was another hilarious Our Gang short
tavm29 December 2014
This Hal Roach comedy short, Mail and Female, is the one hundred sixty-first entry in the "Our Gang/Little Rascals" series and the seventy-third talkie. While Spanky elects Alfalfa the head of the He-Man Women Haters Club, Alf is outside writing a love letter to Darla. Buckwheat and Porky tells him he's elected but not of what. So when he arrives and finds out, well he now has to go to Darla's house to retrieve that note...This was yet another funny outing for the gang and wait till you see what Alfie does with his dilemma! So on that note, I highly recommend Mail and Female. P.S. This was the third and final short in the series directed by Fred Newmeyer. He had directed the first one called Our Gang back in 1922 but most of that was scrapped when it didn't test well and he was replaced by Robert F. McGowan. He's probably best known for many of the hit Harold Lloyd comedies. He'd only direct one more movie after this. He died on April 24, 1967.
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