| Free Eats | |
| Director: | Ray McCarey |
| Producer: | Robert F. McGowan Hal Roach |
| Music: | Leroy Shield Marvin Hatley |
| Cinematography: | Art Lloyd |
| Editing: | Richard C. Currier |
| Distributor: | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
| Runtime: | 19:03 |
| Country: | United States |
| Language: | English |
Free Eats is a 1932 Our Gang short comedy film directed by Ray McCarey.[1] It was the 112th Our Gang short to be released.[2]
The gang along with other poor children in the town are given a party with games and great food to eat. In addition, each child would be given a food basket to bring home to their parents. It's given by a wealthy woman whose husband is running for office. Meanwhile a couple of criminals have set up two midgets to come to the party as babies. They would steal expensive jewelry and planned on robbing a safe filled with money. Stymie caught the "fidgets" in the safe. After an altercation with Stymie, the rest of the gang come to Stymie's rescue as the midgets pull a gun. An alarm goes off and the police come to arrest the midgets. Episode concludes with the police sergeant spitting tobacco into a nearby waste can, from which the missing midget then rises, telling the "flatfoot" to call his shots.
Free Eats marked the debut appearance of George "Spanky" McFarland. He and his brother Tommy auditioned for Our Gang in the spring of 1931, with Spanky passing a screen test easily. Tommy also appeared in many Our Gang film in bit roles.
The Motion Picture Herald said that the short provided "innumerable laughs".[3]