Episode Commentary

Teacher's Beau

Released: April 27, 1935
Director: Gus Meins
Episode length: 18:10 (4/34)
Alfalfa's screen time: 7:04 (6/34) 39% (27/34)
Lines of dialogue spoken by Alfalfa: 23 (21/34)
Song: The "Ha-Ha" song ("Song X"; 4alfalfa.com has not been able to locate any information on this tune, even its title)
What does this data mean?

Skip episode synopsis and go directly to commentary

Miss Jones is the kids' beloved teacher. On the last day of school, she tells her crestfallen students that next semester, their teacher will be "Mrs. Wilson". She means that she is getting married to one Ralph Wilson, who she introduces to the class, but the kids don't put two and two together; they think the handsome Mr. Wilson is responsible for stealing their teacher. Before being dismissed for the day, Miss Jones reminds the kids that there is going to be a special dinner at school that night, celebrating her engagement, to which they are all invited.

Before dinner, they hatch a plan. First, Spanky (standing on Alfalfa's shoulders) disguises himself as Miss Jones' irate suitor. Predictably, the plan fails. But Spanky has another idea: The kids overhear Mr. Wilson telling his fiancee that if the pasta she is making for the dinner is not good, the wedding is off. He is only joking with her, but the kids think he is serious. So Spanky and Buckwheat mix in horseradish and other copious amounts of spices and condiments with the pasta while it is unattended. Alfalfa even sings a song as part of the plan to distract the adult guests (see Alfalfa's Greatest Hits, or visit later.) The plan backfires when the kids themselves are the only ones stuck eating the spicy noodles. To make matters worse, they find out that Miss Jones will in fact return next semester, just with a different name: Mrs. Wilson. At episode's end, the kids run out to the side of the school in search of a hose with which to quench the fire in their bellies caused by the pasta.

Commentary
"Teacher's Beau" was Alfalfa's second Little Rascals episode, and the first one in which he had substantive dialogue and played a major role-second banana, in fact, to Spanky, which isn't bad for one's second episode in a prominent, popular comedy series. This film is built around an ambitious, intricate plot involving the kids' attempts to get Miss Jones, played by reed-thin Arletta Duncan, to stay on as their teacher.

A sad footnote to "Teacher's Beau" is that it represents the final appearance of Matthew "Stymie" Beard, who is certainly among the most beloved Little Rascals character of any era.

But back to Alfalfa. He was required in this episode to really "act" on many different levels. He was asked to cry (although he is faking it even within the context of the story), use an altered voice after he is stricken with a sudden case of laryngitis, and, of course, to sing (Alfalfa sang, in some form, in ten of his first eleven Little Rascals episodes, the lone exception being "Little Sinner", in which he had a minor role throughout.) We also get to see the first-ever "Alfalfa-ism" (that is, unless you consider his getting poked in the eye during his first scene in "Beginner's Luck" as an Alfalfa-ism). When Spanky asks Alfalfa to rehearse the line "before you break all of our hearts" with more emotion, Alfalfa turns the line into "Before we break all of your hearts". This was left in the final film, and its inclusion only adds to the authenticity of the scene. "Teacher's Beau" is also, of course, the first Little Rascals film that paired Alfalfa and Spanky as a comedy team at any length, and the results were very impressive indeed. These two young actors seemed to click with each other from the very beginning. Spanky also gives a very clever, sophisticated performance in this outing. He is particularly good while trying to wrest the platter of spiked pasta from the "adults'" table while Alfalfa is singing.

Rounding out the episode is the performance of Edward Norris as Ralph Wilson, Miss Jones' fiancee. It is not hard to see why Miss Jones fell for Ralph. Even the kids, who ostensibly view Ralph as "the enemy" for stealing away their beloved Miss Jones, can't seem to generate any real dislike for the man. Besides being handsome, Ralph is calm, helpful, has a sense of humor, and genuinely seems to have a rapport with the kids. It is a shame that Norris did not appear in more Little Rascals films; it would have been interesting to see what else the "Ralph Wilson" character could have brought to the series in subsequent episodes.

4alfalfa.com gives "Teacher's Beau"

4 cowlicks (out of a possible 5)

Back to "Episode Commentary" main page

Home   •   Episode Commentary   •   An Alfalfa Appreciation
    Alfalfaddendum   •   Alfalfa's Greatest Hits
The Froggy Files   •   Alfography   •   Alfalfa Nation  •  Censored!!
Rascology   •  Dear Alfalfa   •   Alfalfalinks
News/Updates  •   Contact Us

Back to top