LOS ANGELES - FEBRUARY 20: George McFarland as Spanky, Carl Switzer as Alfalfa, Tommy Bond as Butch and Sidney Kibrick as The Worm in "Glove Taps," on of the Our Gang series later to be known as The Little Rascals. Original release date, February 20, 1937. (Photo by CBS via Getty Images)

Sidney Kibrick, who starred as the bad boy known as “Woim” in Our Gang comedy film shorts in the 1930s, has died at the age of 97. The Hollywood Reporter notes the news was confirmed by his daughter, Jane Lipsic.

Kibrick appeared in about 20 Our Gang/Little Rascals films as Woim, which is Brooklyn slang for “worm.” He was the henchkid for the neighborhood bully Butch (Tommy Bond).

In a chat with Nick Thomas in a 2023 interview, he said creating the shorts was no easy feat. “We’d have two hours of schooling in the morning and then work anywhere from six to 16 hours until we finished,” he said at the time. “There was a lot of work, no question about it, but our director Gordon Douglas was a terrific guy, and he was really able to get a lot out of each kid.”

As the youngest sibling of three, the Minneapolis-born actor moved to Los Angeles as an infant with his family. “My mother took us to Grauman’s Chinese Theatre and after the movie, a man came over to us, pointed at me and said he could ‘use that little kid in the movies,’” Kibrick explained of getting his start in the business. His parents took notice, and he and his brothers began acting. His brothers also appeared in the shorts.

Our Gang allowed him to help his family during the height of national financial crisis. He said he was earning $750 a week for the shorts, “a lot in those days, especially during the Depression,” he told Thomas. He also appeared in features, including Shirley Temple’s Just Around the Corner (1938), Tyrone Power’s Jesse James (1939) and Glenn Ford’s Flight Lieutenant (1942).

As a teenager, he opted for life outside of show business, which devastated his family. “But by the time I was 15, I’d had enough,” he said. “My parents wanted me to continue, but finally my mother went along with my wishes.” He later attended college at USC and became a real estate developer in Southern California, where he became infamous for his stellar fashion.

Aside from his daughter, he is survived by his son-in-law, Marty; his granddaughter, Dana, and his grandson; Adam; his great-granddaughters, Emma, Mia and Lily, and his great-grandson, Landon; and his companion, Eunice David. His wife of 65 years, Greta, died in 2013 at age 83.

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