Helping Grandma 1931

In a tight-knit neighborhood, Mrs. Margaret Mack runs a small grocery store that the local kids treat like a second home. They affectionately call her Grandma, even though she isn’t the grandmother of any one child, and she returns their warmth with genuine care. She loves the gang, and the gang loves her back, filling the shop with chatter, cheer, and a sense of family as they help out by waiting on customers, delivering groceries, and keeping her company.

A chain-store company eyes Grandma’s shop, hoping to buy it for more than its market value, while a swindler lurks with an even cheaper offer. The kids quickly sense that something is off and believe both parties are aiming to steal the store from her. The swindler arrives first, pressing Grandma to sell immediately for a mere $1,500. She balks at the price, refuses the rush, and then heads downtown to run errands, leaving the kids in charge with a simple instruction to tell any caller to “call back later.”

When the chain-store officials drop by, Jackie, Farina, and Chubby step in to stall the prospective buyers, quipping that “You couldn’t sell many chains in this town anyhow,” and joking that “Even the banks close on Saturday afternoon.” The officials are amused and leave some papers for Mrs. Mack to review. Just after they depart, the swindler returns, spotting a contract of sale labeled at $3,500 and swipes it before anyone can stop him.

Meanwhile, Stymie faces a goofy dilemma: he’s supposed to obtain ten cents’ worth of something, but can’t remember what “it” is. He has a note naming it, yet neither he nor Wheezer can read it. Wheezer asks Stymie if he would recognize it if he saw it, but Stymie says no—he might remember it only if he could taste it. To solve the mystery, the kids stage a taste test, offering a range of items: a potato, Peet Bros., soap, shoe polish, gasoline, moth balls, glue, Limburger cheese, and finally fish-meal fertilizer. After sampling, Stymie declares with certainty, “Yep, that’s it.”

Dorothy is busy doling out candy to Wheezer when the phone rings. It’s the chain-store representatives, who are ready to raise their offer. Wheezer, distracted by the candy, shouts at Dorothy, “T’aint enough!” before turning to the phone and shouting, “Call later!” The miscommunication amuses the store reps, who decide to call back, and the price continues to climb, eventually hardening into a flat offer of $5,000.

Grandma returns with the swindler, who rushes to secure her signature on the transfer. After several interruptions by the children, Grandma signs, believing the deal is sealed. The swindler denounces the kids as hoodlums and orders them out, but Grandma stands by them. When the chain-store officials arrive, the swindler boasts that the store now belongs to him and shows them the signed paper—but the document is blank. The real contract of sale was never signed, so he accuses Grandma of trickery.

The officials press on with the phone bid, offering Grandma $1,500 more than the original price. Realizing the swindler had impersonated her on the call, Grandma confronts him, delivering a sharp punch. When he threatens her, [Wheezer] swings into action and strikes him on the head with a hammer. The attempted swindle is thwarted by the quick thinking and loyalty of the kids, and Grandma’s store—and the bond they share—emerges intact.