Movies: Jay R. Smith

The story of the short film from the beginning of the movies in the 1890s, when all movies were shorts, through the 1950s when short subjects virtually disappeared from theaters....

Chicken Feed is a 1927 American short silent comedy film directed by Robert A. McGowan. It was the 66th Our Gang short subject released. The kids go to a magic show and decides to try a little magic of their own....

Ten Years Old is a 1927 American short silent comedy film directed by Robert A. McGowan. It was the 58th Our Gang short subject released. It was remade as Birthday Blues in 1932. Nobody comes to Joe's birthday party so he goes to the rich kid's party...

As a joke, several members of the gang convince Farina, who is "brave but superstitious", that he's caused the demise of a young acquaintance and must therefore lay the body (actually still very alive) to rest in the old burying ground, under the wat...

While on a cross-country train trip, the Our Gang kids drive the rest of the passengers crazy with a never-ending game of cowboys and Indians. During a stopover in the sleepy town of Red Dog, the kids disembark in hopes of savoring a taste of genuine...

The gang goes digging for treasure in an old abandoned house against Kennedy the Cop's wishes....

The rascals once again, now as a plumbers....

An abused chimpanzee escapes from a zoo. On the run, he meets Farina, running away from home and his battling parents. The two become friends and inspire the rest of the gang to put on a show to make money from neighborhood kids. But the chimp has hi...

Farina Hoskins discovers a stray dog. Joe Cobb suggests that he and Farina take the dog to the gang's dog show. In the middle of the show, the dogcatchers crack down on picking up all unlicensed strays to control a hydrophobia epidemic; the injection...

Joe Cobb is a wealthy child who longs for a baby brother. His nursemaid takes him to the other side where he meets some kids his age (the rest of Our Gang) where Joe offers three dollars for a baby. Farina finds a fellow African-American neighbor wom...

On Christmas Eve, the Gang copes with hardships, helps capture a gang of thieves, and learns that Santa Claus really exists for those who wish fervently enough....

The gang decided to go into the movie-making business, using all kinds of sets and props. There were problems as those not involved are trying to ruin their business by playing pranks and even insisting the police to close them down....

Habitually mistreated at the deceptively named Happyland Home Orphanage, the Our Gang kids find a loyal and kindhearted friend in the form of a black grownup named Uncle Tom. Alas, Tom's own children -- including real-life siblings Allen "Farina" Hos...

The kids are playing baseball when a man dressed in Middle-Eastern clothing comes out and tells them to be quiet. They join Mary, Farina, and Scooter in the gang's hide-out while Mary is reading ghost stories. While on the other side of the wall, the...

Farina and Joe fib to the gang that they've beaten up the neighborhood bully. Later, they hear he's been murdered and think they'll get the blame....

The kids from Our Gang have to attend a wedding, and they bring along their flea collection--which gets loose....

Poor Pete the Pup. He wants to hang himself because his master, Joe, has given up playing with him and going fishing for the love of a girl. A dog friend of Pete's stops him in the nick of time, and in flashback Pete tells him of his sorrows; Pete be...

In this Our Gang film, James Finlayson plays the gang's schoolteacher who takes the kids to Europe after winning a local contest. He takes them on a tour of Naples, Pompeii, Rome, the Vatican, Venice, London, and finally Paris, where problems arise o...

This film revolves around Election Day, a day on which Jay R. and Joe are fighting to get votes. They warn the kids that they'll be socked in the jaw if they don't vote for them, but the kids are just trying to go about their business, namely Farina....

Living in an orphanage, the gang has to deal with Amanda, a child-hating spinster. To receive a bequest from a rich uncle, she must acquire a child. Thinking suspicion, the gang causes all kinds of havoc toward her including a mud battle....