The Little Rascals cartoon series

[rascalflats]

I remember reading a post by someone inquiring if there ever was an animated series based on The Little Rascals.

To answer his question: Yes, there was a cartoon series.  But it had a short run of two seasons, airing from 1982 to 1984.  After discovering and seeing several episodes online in recent weeks.  There were stunts recycled from the black-and-white shorts too.  One episode had a live spider landing on Alfalfa's nose and Alfalfa looked cross-eyed, just like his reaction to a moth in "Night N' Gales", and on a French dub that no longer exists on YouTube, I saw a toy airplane flying into a building like in "Second Childhood".  i was also quite amazed to learn that Buckwheat was transformed into a brainy science whiz in the cartoon, unlike in the original theatrical shorts.  And Darla's wardrobe seemed to draw comparison to the MGM era more than the Hal Roach era.

I must say, this cartoon version was a totally awesome spinoff.  If not for the lawsuit Porky filed in March 1984, we probably would have seen reruns on Cartoon Network or Boomerang in the U.S., and/or VHS or DVD releases.  If not for the earlier time slot, and competition against Smurfs, the show would have performed better in the ratings.

I believe shows that aired at 8:30 a.m. ET/7:30 a.m. PT (as per comic book ad) had a solid reputation of lasting two seasons max, as the target audience (young children) were likely still in bed when the Rascals cartoon aired, depending on the time zone.

Buppster, in case you didn't realize, the cartoon series aired on Cartoon Network UK and Ireland in the 1990s.

[Buppster]

I wasn't aware that the show was televised in the UK, probably because the Cartoon Network wasn't an ordinary terrestrial channel, which was all that I had access to back then. These days I don't watch any TV at all. I've never had much interest in cartoons. In the 90s I had little knowledge of, and no interest in, the Little Rascals, that's something that has only recently evolved.

[myhomeo]

If I remember correctly, it only ran one or two seasons and was partnered with Richie Rich, a cartoon adaption of the popular Harvey Comics character.

Never much cared for the show, I'm afraid. It struck me they were reluctant to take advantage of the fact it was, in fact, a cartoon and head into fantasy or surreallism. As it was, it just felt like a flat rehash of the old shorts.

[mtw12055]

For the first season, The Rascals and Richie were part of a 90-minute show, alongside a Pac-Man cartoon. The next year, the Rascals and Richie were compiled with The Monchhichis, a line of Japanese plush toys that Hanna-Barbera got the rights to in hopes of making another Smurfs. This second series was a shorter 60-minute one.

It's never really been confirmed if the lawsuit had anything to do with reruns not being shown. It honestly could have just been a lack of interest on the part of TV stations and/or cable networks like Cartoon Network. Rights issues between King World and Hanna-Barbera's various library owners (Turner, Warners, etc.) could have also been a reason. Not to say the lawsuit wasn't a cause, but there could have been other factors at play.

[tally]

Dec 14, 2018 9:21:43 GMT -5 rascalflats said:

I remember reading a post by someone inquiring if there ever was an animated series based on The Little Rascals.

To answer his question: Yes, there was a cartoon series.  But it had a short run of two seasons, airing from 1982 to 1984.  After discovering and seeing several episodes online in recent weeks.  There were stunts recycled from the black-and-white shorts too.  One episode had a live spider landing on Alfalfa's nose and Alfalfa looked cross-eyed, just like his reaction to a moth in "Night N' Gales", and on a French dub that no longer exists on YouTube, I saw a toy airplane flying into a building like in "Second Childhood".  i was also quite amazed to learn that Buckwheat was transformed into a brainy science whiz in the cartoon, unlike in the original theatrical shorts.  And Darla's wardrobe seemed to draw comparison to the MGM era more than the Hal Roach era.

I must say, this cartoon version was a totally awesome spinoff.  If not for the lawsuit Porky filed in March 1984, we probably would have seen reruns on Cartoon Network or Boomerang in the U.S., and/or VHS or DVD releases.  If not for the earlier time slot, and competition against Smurfs, the show would have performed better in the ratings.

I believe shows that aired at 8:30 a.m. ET/7:30 a.m. PT (as per comic book ad) had a solid reputation of lasting two seasons max, as the target audience (young children) were likely still in bed when the Rascals cartoon aired, depending on the time zone.

Buppster, in case you didn't realize, the cartoon series aired on Cartoon Network UK and Ireland in the 1990s.

It was created by Hanna-Barbera and featured the original character line-up, the most famous characters. Eugene Lee (Porky), George McFarland (Spanky), Tommy Bond (Butch) and Sidney Kilbrick sued Hanna-Barbera for using their likeness without permission. 

The real Darla, Buckwheat and Carl had long died so they didn't sue. 

It came out that in Hanna-Barbera's license it didn't give the company rights to use the original casts likeness, so they settled out of court. 

Three women were hired to play roles on the show, some also did multiple. B.J Ward played Butch and Waldo. Patty Maloney played Darla Hood, and Julie McWhirter played Alfalfa, Porky and The Woim. And they only needed one man by the name of Peter Cullen to play the roles of Pete the Pup and the officer. 

Only two of the cast were played by real children, Scott Menville played Spanky and Shavar Ross who played Gary Coleman's best friend on the TV sitcom Diff'rent Strokes played the role of Buckwheat.

[mtw12055]

Additional reading.
littlerascals.proboards.com/thread/1543/article-porky-suing-animated-series