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General Spanky

  • 19361936
  • PassedPassed
  • 1h 11m
IMDb RATING
5.8/10
401
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
88,299
46,165
Phillips Holmes, Rosina Lawrence, and George 'Spanky' McFarland in General Spanky (1936)
ComedyFamilyWar
A small boy is instrumental in a famous Civil War victory.A small boy is instrumental in a famous Civil War victory.A small boy is instrumental in a famous Civil War victory.
IMDb RATING
5.8/10
401
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
88,299
46,165
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Directors
      • Gordon Douglas
      • Fred C. Newmeyer
    • Writers
      • Richard Flournoy(original story and screen play)
      • Hal Yates(original story and screen play)
      • John Guedel(original story and screen play)
    • Stars
      • George 'Spanky' McFarland
      • Phillips Holmes
      • Ralph Morgan
    Top credits
    • Directors
      • Gordon Douglas
      • Fred C. Newmeyer
    • Writers
      • Richard Flournoy(original story and screen play)
      • Hal Yates(original story and screen play)
      • John Guedel(original story and screen play)
    • Stars
      • George 'Spanky' McFarland
      • Phillips Holmes
      • Ralph Morgan
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 14User reviews
    • 8Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
    • Nominated for 1 Oscar
      • 1 nomination total

    Photos17

    Phillips Holmes, Rosina Lawrence, and George 'Spanky' McFarland in General Spanky (1936)
    John 'Uh huh' Collum, George 'Spanky' McFarland, Carl 'Alfalfa' Switzer, and Billie 'Buckwheat' Thomas in General Spanky (1936)
    Phillips Holmes, George 'Spanky' McFarland, and Von the Dog in General Spanky (1936)
    Phillips Holmes and Rosina Lawrence in General Spanky (1936)
    Phillips Holmes and Rosina Lawrence in General Spanky (1936)
    Phillips Holmes and George 'Spanky' McFarland in General Spanky (1936)
    Phillips Holmes and George 'Spanky' McFarland in General Spanky (1936)
    George 'Spanky' McFarland and Carl 'Alfalfa' Switzer in General Spanky (1936)
    Flaette Roberts in General Spanky (1936)
    Flaette Roberts in General Spanky (1936)
    Phillips Holmes in General Spanky (1936)
    George 'Spanky' McFarland and Von the Dog in General Spanky (1936)

    Top cast

    Edit
    George 'Spanky' McFarland
    George 'Spanky' McFarland
    • Spanky
    • (as Spanky McFarland)
    Phillips Holmes
    Phillips Holmes
    • Marshall Valient
    Ralph Morgan
    Ralph Morgan
    • Yankee General
    Irving Pichel
    Irving Pichel
    • Simmons
    Rosina Lawrence
    Rosina Lawrence
    • Louella
    Billie 'Buckwheat' Thomas
    Billie 'Buckwheat' Thomas
    • Buckwheat
    • (as Billie Thomas)
    Carl 'Alfalfa' Switzer
    Carl 'Alfalfa' Switzer
    • Alfalfa
    • (as Carl Switzer)
    Hobart Bosworth
    Hobart Bosworth
    • Col. Blanchard
    Robert Middlemass
    Robert Middlemass
    • Overseer
    James P. Burtis
    James P. Burtis
    • Boat Captain
    • (as James Burtis)
    Louise Beavers
    Louise Beavers
    • Cornelia
    Willie Best
    Willie Best
    • Henry
    • (as William Best)
    Ernie Alexander
    • Boat Passenger
    • (uncredited)
    Hooper Atchley
    Hooper Atchley
    • Slavemaster at Meeting
    • (uncredited)
    Harry Bernard
    Harry Bernard
    • Bit
    • (uncredited)
    John 'Uh huh' Collum
    • Kid Army Member
    • (uncredited)
    Jack Cooper
    • Bit
    • (uncredited)
    Richard DeNeut
    • Kid Army Member
    • (uncredited)
    • Directors
      • Gordon Douglas
      • Fred C. Newmeyer
    • Writers
      • Richard Flournoy(original story and screen play)
      • Hal Yates(original story and screen play)
      • John Guedel(original story and screen play)
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The initials of R. P. W. C. R. C. W. M. R. (Spanky's Confederate Army) stands for "The Royal Protection of Women and Children, Regiment Club of the World and Mississippi River".
    • Quotes

      Spanky Leonard: [Shortly after Spanky & Marshall Valiant go to a card playing room, for Spanky to complete his shoe shining mission, that he just started. Just as Spanky starts to continue his shoe-shining hobby that he had just started, Simmons dropped a Poker card, on purpose, to cheat] You dropped this card, mister.

      Simmons: That's not my card.

      Spanky Leonard: Oh, yes sir, I saw you drop it.

    • Connections
      Edited from Abraham Lincoln (1930)
    • Soundtracks
      Ezekiel's Wheel
      (uncredited)

      Traditional

    User reviews14

    Review
    Review
    Top review
    5/10
    Exceptionally well made but rather grotesque...
    Spanky and his friends all decide to play army as the country is embroiled in war. His friends designate him their general and he leads them on a rather funny encounter with real Union troops! In addition, they help a nice Southern officer escape a hanging--a hanging orchestrated by a total jerk.

    It's not hard to believe that Hal Roach Studios decided to give little Spanky from the Our Gang comedies his own feature film. After all, for his age, he was a dandy actor...and cute as a button. However, in hindsight, their choice of material was a bit on the grotesque side. It's not that setting the story in the South during the Civil War was necessarily a bad thing, but the whole slavery issue is very weird when you see it today. After all, in this film you see lots of black slaves standing about and singing for joy, as they apparently love their lot in life!! And, when Buckwheat (who is a runaway slave) begins to cry because he wants to have a master, too, it's just too much! If it weren't so evil, it would be comical. It's sad. Because without the racial insensitivity, the film is very good. The kids in the film are all good actors and Buckwheat really is quite adorable and effective in the film.

    Rather surreal...that's for sure.
    helpful•7
    8
    • planktonrules
    • Jan 25, 2011

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • December 11, 1936 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • スパンキイ将軍
    • Filming locations
      • Hal Roach Studios - 8822 Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA
    • Production company
      • Hal Roach Studios
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 11 minutes
    • Color
      • Black and White
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.37 : 1

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    Phillips Holmes, Rosina Lawrence, and George 'Spanky' McFarland in General Spanky (1936)
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