Alfalfa Was Kind of a Jerk

Carl Switzer played “Alfalfa” in the Little Rascals. (Woodcut by author)

In 1921, producer Hal Roach created the Our Gang series of short films. Later renamed The Little Rascals, Roach sought to depict real kids doing real things. The ensemble of memorable characters included Spanky, Darla, Buckwheat, Froggy, Stymie and Pete the dog. By far the most popular rascal was Alfalfa.

Carl “Alfalfa” Switzer was born in Paris, Illinois in 1927. He grew up during the Depression and his parents were unemployed and broke. In 1935, the family took a trip to Los Angeles. They drove to Hal Roach Studios in Culver City and visited the Our Gang Cafe just outside the studio gates. Carl and his brother Harold began singing and dancing in the cafe. In classic Hollywood fashion, they were signed by the studio.

Carl was cast as Alfalfa and appeared in his first Our Gang film “Beginner’s Luck” in 1936. (Harold became an extra.) With his ill-fitting suit, freckles and high cowlick, Alfalfa quickly became a star. According to co-star Darla Hood, “Alfalfa was once mobbed by fans outside the studio while Clark Gable stood by unnoticed.”

Alfalfa’s shtick included an off-key singing voice and ongoing efforts to woo his love interest Darla while fending off the local bully Butch. On camera, Alfalfa was charming and likable. Off screen, Carl Switzer was an obnoxious bully hated by cast and crew.

Switzer developed a reputation as a mean prankster. He loved to put lit firecrackers in crew members pockets and sharp tacks on chairs. Once he hid fishhooks in Spanky’s back pocket. When Spanky sat down, he cut himself so badly he needed stitches. Another time Switzer put an open switchblade in his pocket and told Darla he had a Crackerjack ring for her in his pants. She reached into his pocket and cut herself badly.

George “Spanky” McFarland spoke about Switzer’s most memorable prank. “We were filming and they were taking a long time to set up so Alfie decided to pee on the thousand watt bulbs. The lights exploded and filled the studio with a tremendous stench. Everyone had to be taken off set as the crew cleaned up the mess Alfalfa created.”

Another time Switzer spread a large wad of chewing gum around the gears inside the camera. According to Tommy Bond who played “Butch,” the furious cameraman screamed at Switzer, “When you turn 21 I’m gonna find you and beat the shit out of you.”

The child actors were required to attend three hours a day of on-set school. Switzer was typically late and refused to do his lessons. He was often kept after class causing expensive production delays. Years later at an Our Gang reunion, Switzer encountered his old on-set teacher Mrs. Carter. According to Darla, Switzer cursed at the woman and accused her of ruining his life.

In 1938, MGM purchased the Our Gang comedy rights. Without Roach’s guidance, the shorts lost their popularity. Alfalfa appeared in his last Our Gang film in 1940 when he was 12. With more than 60 films behind him, Switzer’s career as a Little Rascal was over.

Like many child stars, Switzer yearned to make the transition to adult actor. He appeared in Frank Capra’s classic It’s A Wonderful Life as Donna Reed’s date in the famous dance floor turned swimming pool scene. He had small roles in the Bing Crosby film Going My Way and the John Wayne film Island In The Sky. In 1946, Switzer reprised Alfalfa as a teenager in Gas House Kids but the film flopped. He played a slave in Cecil B. Demille’s The Ten Commandments and made his final on screen performance in Stanley Kramer’s 1958 film noir The Defiant Ones.

In 1954, Switzer married the heiress of a grain elevator empire. He and his wife moved to her family’s farm in Kansas and had a son before divorcing in 1957. His ex-wife remarried and raised her son without telling him who his real father was.

Switzer moved back to Los Angeles and took a series of odd jobs including bartender, shoeshine boy and hunting guide. Struggling for money, he began drinking heavily. In 1958 he was shot in the arm outside the Wolf’s Den bar in Studio City. His injuries were minor and the assailant was never caught. No reason was given for the shooting. A year later, Switzer was arrested for cutting down 15 pine trees in the Sequoia National Forest that he intended to sell as Christmas trees. He was sentenced to a year probation and fined $225.

In early 1959, Switzer agreed to train a hunting dog for his friend Bud Stiltz. The dog ran away and Switzer posted a reward for $35. Someone returned the dog and Switzer bought the man a few drinks and paid him the reward. All told, Switzer was out fifty dollars.

Switzer spent several days drinking and sulking. He convinced himself Stiltz owed him the fifty dollars. He went to Stiltz’s house in North Hollywood and banged on the door. “Let me in,” Switzer yelled, “or I’ll kick down the door. I want the fifty bucks you owe me and I mean now.” Stiltz refused. According to Stiltz, the two men began fighting. Switzer pulled out a knife and lunged at Stiltz. Stiltz retrieved a gun from a dresser drawer. After a short struggle, he shot Switzer in the stomach. Switzer bled to death.

The coroner ruled the death “justifiable homicide.” At the subsequent trial, Stiltz was determined to have acted in self-defense and was cleared of all charges. Because Cecil B. DeMille died the same day, Switzer’s death received little television or newspaper coverage. Switzer was buried at Hollywood Forever Cemetery near Paramount Studios. In a strange addendum, Bud Stiltz received a Christmas card every year signed “Alfie” until his death in 1984. He never discovered who sent the cards.