Gary Jasgur

full name: Melvyn Gary Jasgur
nicknames in series: Junior and Slapsie
nickname as adult: Mel
born Nov. 8, 1935, in Los Angeles, CA
died Aug. 22, 1994, in Los Angeles, CA

1937

According to The Southwest Wave of Los Angeles on May 24, 1940, Gary had been trained for his entry into movies by the Ethel Meglin school.
On June 22nd of this year, filming began for "Night 'N' Gales," Gary's first Our Gang film. According to FamilySearch.org, a Social Security application was filled out for him during this month.
On November 17th, Gary attended a luncheon at the Roach studio honoring Darla's 6th birthday.

157. Night 'N' Gales (supporting role: Junior): July 24, 1937 - Roach/MGM - 1 reel - prod. K-11 - Our Gang series; Filmed June 22 to 30, 1937. ©Aug. 18, 1937.
158. Fishy Tales (supporting role: Junior): Aug. 28, 1937 - Roach/MGM - 1 reel - prod. K-12 - Our Gang series; Filmed July 26 to Aug. 2, 1937. ©Sep. 8, 1937.
159. Framing Youth (small part): ©Sep. 21, 1937 - Roach/MGM - 1 reel - prod. K-13 - Our Gang series; Also listed for Sep. 11, 1937. Filmed Aug. 19 to 25, 1937.
160. The Pigskin Palooka (small part): Oct. 23, 1937 - Roach/MGM - 1 reel - prod. K-14 - Our Gang series; Filmed Sep. 18 to 25, 1937. ©Nov. 2, 1937.

1938

On June 4th, Gary's photo was published in a number of newspapers, along with those of other child performers, drinking milk through a straw. This was all tied in with the milk industry's National Dairy Month.
On June 20th, filming began for "The Little Ranger," the first of 52 Our Gang shorts produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Though Gary didn't appear in this film, he came along with the rest of the Gang to their new home.
On August 4th, the Toronto Daily Star reported the following: "It took a two-year-old to razz a director and get away with it. Director Gordon Douglas was interviewing youngsters to find a precocious heckler for a role in an Our Gang comedy, 'Aladdin's Lantern.' Coming to two-year-old Gary Jasquer(sic), he asked, 'And how are you, young man?' 'Aw, pooey!' the child replied. 'What?' 'Aw, pooey!' and a Bronx cheer, this time. 'Say, don't you wanna act in this comedy?' the director asked. Three successive 'Aw, pooeys!' were the only answer. 'You're hired,' Douglas yelled in desperation. Later the director said he liked the way the youngster 'pooeyed' so well he would have the line written into the script."
On August 26th, Edith Lindeman of the Richmond Times-Dispatch reported the following: "It's a good thing I don't have to go out this evening. I am utterly exhausted after an hour on the Our Gang set. Also, I'm a little overcome with admiration for a young man named George Sidney, who, at the great age of 23, is directing seven rambunctious youngsters in a mad short feature called 'Men With Fright.' When first I saw him, he was instructing 2½-year-old Garry in the art of pushing his baby figure under a hospital stretcher and pretending to walk along under it. Garry doesn't do any talking, and he does less listening. The only way that Mr. Sidney could get him to do as the script said was to go through the motions himself and make the affair so delightfully attractive that Garry just couldn't restrain himself from joining in. There's another difficulty about that sort of thing, though. Once Garry had become imbued with the beauty of climbing under hospital stretchers, he didn't want to do anything else. Consequently, he had to be taken home by his father, who is always on the set. Tomorrow, with the stretcher out of the way, they'll bring him back and George Sidney will show him how to do something else with an equal thrill for his baby mind."
On September 6th, The Detroit Free Press (MI) reported the following: "Our Gang has increased its membership to seven. Added to Spanky, Alfalfa, Darla, Porky and Buckwheat are Gary and Leonard. Gary Jasquer, thirty-three-month-old dead-pan comic, and three-year-old Leonard Landy have been seen in eight previous gang shorts as atmosphere. In the gang's latest film, 'Men With Fright,' the two finally blossom out with important speaking roles."

163. Canned Fishing (featured role: Junior): Feb. 12, 1938 - Roach/MGM - 1 reel - prod. K-16 - Our Gang series; Filmed Jan. 10 to 25, 1938. ©Feb. 16, 1938.
165. Three Men In A Tub (small part): Mar. 26, 1938 - Roach/MGM - 1 reel - prod. K-18 - Our Gang series; Filmed Feb. 9 to 18, 1938. ©Apr. 1, 1938.
166. Came The Brawn (undetermined role): Apr. 16, 1938 - Roach/MGM - 1 reel - prod. K-19 - Our Gang series; Filmed Feb. 21 to 25, 1938. ©Apr. 12, 1938. Gary worked on one of the shooting dates, but didn't wind up in the film.
167. Feed 'Em And Weep (supporting role: Junior): May 7, 1938 - Roach/MGM - 1 reel - prod. K-20 - Our Gang series; Filmed Apr. 4 to 7, 1938. ©May 11, 1938.
168. The Awful Tooth (use of photo): May 28, 1938 - Roach/MGM - 1 reel - prod. K-21 - Our Gang series; Filmed Apr. 12 to 16, 1938. ©May 26, 1938. Gary's photo was used in the opening titles of this film, as well as in "Feed 'Em And Weep" and "Hide And Shriek."
169. Hide And Shriek (small part): June 18, 1938 - Roach/MGM - 1 reel - prod. K-22 - Our Gang series; Filmed May 11 to 14, 1938. ©June 16, 1938.
172. Aladdin's Lantern (small part): Sep. 17, 1938 - MGM - 1 reel - prod. 2573 - Our Gang series; Filmed July 20 to 26, 1938. ©Sep. 14, 1938.
173. Men In Fright (supporting role): Oct. 15, 1938 - MGM - 1 reel - prod. 2580 - Our Gang series; Filmed Aug. 15 to 20, 1938. ©Oct. 21, 1938.
174. Football Romeo (supporting role: Gary): Nov. 12, 1938 - MGM - 1 reel - prod. 2589 - Our Gang series; Filmed Sep. 19 to 24, 1938. ©Nov. 16, 1938.
175. Practical Jokers (small part): Dec. 17, 1938 - MGM - 1 reel - prod. 2595 - Our Gang series; Filmed Oct. 24 to 27, 1938. ©Dec. 20, 1938.

1939

On March 17th of this year, shooting finished for "Cousin Wilbur," which was the last Our Gang film to include Gary in the cast. However, he wasn't out of the Gang just yet. On March 28th, his character was included in a script for the next film, "Joy Scouts." The film was shot from April 17th to 21st, but Gary had been replaced by Mickey Gubitosi (later known as Bobby Blake). However, the cutting continuity for the film, which was dated August 16th, referred to Mickey's character as "Slapsie," the nickname given to Gary some months earlier by MGM. It appears that Gary retired from the movie business when he left the Gang. He was only three and a half years old at this point.

176. Alfalfa's Aunt (supporting role): Jan. 7, 1939 - MGM - 1 reel - prod. 2600 - Our Gang series; Filmed Nov. 14 to 17, 1938. ©Dec. 31, 1938.
179. Clown Princes (small part): Apr. 15, 1939 - MGM - 1 reel - prod. 2613 - Our Gang series; Filmed Feb. 13 to 17, 1939. ©Apr. 12, 1939.
180. Cousin Wilbur (extra): Apr. 29, 1939 - MGM - 1 reel - prod. 2618 - Our Gang series; Filmed Mar. 13 to 17, 1939. ©May 4, 1939.

1954

It was while in high school that Gary decided that he preferred to be called Mel, which is the name he went by for the rest of his life.
In June of this year, Mel filled out another Social Security application, presumably around the time of his high school graduation.

1956

On August 18th of this year, Mel married Deanne Eisenberg.

1978

On August 13th of this year, an article was published in an advertising supplement of the Los Angeles Times which talked about Spa Store Inc. Mel was the company's vice president. The store was located at 20346 Hawthorne Blvd. in Torrance.

Rascal Dazzle (archival): 1978 - King World/Picture Scores - 93 min. - documentary feature; ©1978. Seems to have debuted on TV, followed by a theatrical release in late 1979. Includes footage from "The Pigskin Palooka."

1979

On April 22nd of this year, the Los Angeles Times published another advertising supplement, again featuring Mel. By this time, the company had changed its name to Hydro-Spa, Inc. The 1978 supplement mentioned Hydro Spa as one of the brands sold at the store. The Hydro Spa Center was now located at 16301 Hawthorne Blvd. in Lawndale.

1980

On April 27th of this year, the Los Angeles Times published another advertising supplement, this time referring to Mel as the owner of Hydro-Spa.

1984

Our Gang: Inside The Clubhouse (interview appearance/archival): May 8, 1984 - Lang/Camellia City Telecasters - 93 mins. - TV documentary; Includes footage from "Night 'N' Gales," "The Pigskin Palooka," "Canned Fishing" and "Alfalfa's Aunt."

1986

On January 25th of this year, Mel attended the Our Gang reunion organized by Sid Kibrick at his Desert Shadows R.V. Resort in Cathedral City, CA. Among the activities was the placing of handprints in concrete.

1992

According to the second edition of Maltin & Bann's Little Rascals book, Mel was still working in the spa business at this time.

1994

On August 6th of this year, the Los Angeles Times published an article about the new feature film "The Little Rascals," with comments from former Our Gang kids about their lack of involvement in the project. This is what the article had to say about Mel Jasgur: "Some, frankly, have lost interest in what happened so long ago. Mel Jasgur, who played Junior and Slapsy from age 18 months to 3 years before permanently retiring from show business, bares no ill-will toward the new film's makers. Says the 58-year-old owner of Encino's Jack Rabbit Press, 'I don't really have any feelings one way or the other." This article was published 16 days before Mel's death.

2002

Added Attractions: The Hollywood Shorts Story (archival): Feb. 5, 2002 - Jones/TCM - 89 min. - TV documentary; Includes footage from "Aladdin's Lantern" and "Alfalfa's Aunt."

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