Bouncing Babies Explained

Bouncing Babies
Director:Robert F. McGowan
Producer:Robert F. McGowan
Hal Roach
Starring:Bobby Hutchins
Mary Ann Jackson
Dora Dean
Allen Hoskins
Jean Darling
Harry Spear
Jackie Cooper
Norman Chaney
Pete the Pup
Bobby Mallon
Eddie Dunn
Lyle Tayo
Cinematography:F. E. Hershey
Art Lloyd
Editing:Richard C. Currier
Distributor:Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Runtime:[1]
Country:United States
Language:English

Bouncing Babies is a 1929 Our Gang short comedy film directed by Robert F. McGowan.[2] [3] Produced by Hal Roach and released to theaters by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, it was the 92nd Our Gang short to be released.[4]

Plot

Wheezer is jealous of his baby brother, who gets all the attention from his family while Wheezer is ignored and expected to behave like a "big boy". After a failed attempt at making his own breakfast (and being spanked for doing so), Wheezer attempts to run away from home with Pete the Pup. After he happens upon Farina, they both find themselves on the receiving end of Halloween pranks from the gang in their costumes.

Farina tells Wheezer a tall tale about trading in an unwanted baby sibling for a goat and inspires Wheezer to try the same. However, when Wheezer arrives at the hospital with the baby carriage (which unknown to him holds Mary Ann's doll rather than the baby) in order to "change the baby for a goat," a nurse plays along, but also calls Wheezer's mother and informs her of what he has done. Wheezer's mother and his sister Mary Ann pretend to be distraught over the baby's disappearance.

After seeing his mother crying, a remorseful Wheezer rushes back to the hospital to retrieve his brother, but the nurse informs him that it is too late. Wheezer returns home alone, and his mother tells him to pray for the baby to return. Wheezer then drops to his knees and begins praying, only for the baby to come out of hiding and knock him on the head.

Filming Locations

The park scenes were filmed at Media Park on the Culver City / Los Angeles border. [5] The park still exists today, though it's been reconfigured over the decades.

The scene where Wheezer is trying to cross the busy street and he keeps throwing light bulbs into the street to get the traffic to stop (the drivers hear the popping sound and think they have a flat tire!), is the intersection of Motor Avenue and Tabor Street in the Palms neighborhood on the west side of Los Angeles.[6]

Cast notes

Bouncing Babies marks the last Our Gang comedy for Jean Darling and Harry Spear. Some sources also list Joe Cobb as a cast member, but he does not appear onscreen.

Cast

The Gang

Additional cast

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. http://theluckycorner.com/vc/cf.html#part%2021 theluckycorner.com/
  2. Web site: Silent Era: Bouncing Babies . September 16, 2008. silentera.
  3. Web site: New York Times: Bouncing Babies . https://web.archive.org/web/20110520165033/http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/225645/Bouncing-Babies/overview . dead . May 20, 2011 . Movies & TV Dept. . . . Hal Erickson . Hal Erickson (author) . 2011 . September 16, 2008.
  4. Book: Maltin . Leonard . Bann . Richard W. . Our Gang: The Life and Times of the Little Rascals . 1977 . Crown Publishers . 106-107 . 3 March 2024.
  5. Web site: Now . Chris Bungo Studios Filming Locations Then and . Chris Bungo Studios Filming Locations Then and Now . 2024-08-17 . Chris Bungo Studios Filming Locations Then and Now . en-US.
  6. Web site: Now . Chris Bungo Studios Filming Locations Then and . Chris Bungo Studios Filming Locations Then and Now . 2024-08-17 . Chris Bungo Studios Filming Locations Then and Now . en-US.