Our Gang

Black and white photograph of Our Gang (as known as The Little Rascals) from the American short comedy films. Black text on white background.  The photograph includes Spanky, Buckwheat, Porky, Alfalfa and Darla.

Our Gang, or the Little Rascals, was an American comedy series and pop culture phenomenon in the early-to-mid 20th century. Created by the comedy producer Hal Roach in 1922, Our Gang was a series of comedy shorts that showed the daily 'misadventures' of a group of poor neighborhood kids. Roach's work was groundbreaking in several respects, however. Firstly, as film historian Leonard Malkin observed, Our Gang was one of the first pieces of American cinema to portray black and white characters in a group as equals. Furthermore, instead of having the child actors imitate adult acting styles, which was the preferred method at the time, director Robert McGowan successfully filmed the children in a way that captured the raw, natural nuances of regular childhood life.

The series was produced until 1944, and includes 220 shorts and one feature film.