| Little Sinner | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Gus Meins |
| Produced by | Hal Roach |
| Cinematography | Francis Corby |
| Edited by | Louis McManus |
| Music by | Leroy Shield |
| Distributed by | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
Release date |
|
Running time | 17' 15" |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Little Sinner is a 1935 Our Gang short comedy film directed by Gus Meins. It was the 139th Our Gang short to be released,[1] and the first appearance of two-year old Porky.
Anxious to go fishing, Spanky skips out of Sunday school, despite the admonitions of his pals Alfalfa, Mildred, Sidney, and Marianne that "Something's going to happen to you." Actually, everything happens to Spanky and his kid brother (Eugene "Porky" Lee) in the course of the morning. Chased out of a private estate by cantankerous caretaker, the two boys wander into a dark, mysterious woods just as an eclipse occurs and at the same time a large group of black worshippers are holding a mass baptism ceremony. Some view the baptism and background singing of the Negro spiritual "I Am Leaning on The Lord", which contains the words: "Why don't you come out of the wilderness" as a racist stereotype. However, as Spanky, Porky and Buckwheat are scared out of the woods, a wilderness, it could merely be a play on the song's words for their situation.
Inevitably, the kids scare the worshippers, and vice versa, culminating in a hectic chase.[2]
