Few child stars have ever achieved the level of celebrity that Shirley Temple had. Nicknamed "Little Miss Miracle," Shirley Temple's work helped carry American audiences through the Great Depression. But behind the stardom, Shirley Temple experienced financial strain and a troubled marriage. Born on April 23rd, 1928, Shirley Jane Temple was just three years old when her mother, Gertrude, perceptive of Temple's burgeoning talent, signed her up for dance lessons. But the decision wasn't entirely selfless. Gertrude herself had wanted to become a dancer and was intent on her daughter succeeding where she had failed. It was at the dance school that Temple was discovered by producers from Educational Films Corporation.
Despite the name, the shorts made by the film distribution company were oriented more toward the comedic than instructional. In 1932, Temple was cast in a series of shorts called "Baby Burlesks," where children played the satirized roles of adults. Temple's first speaking role occurs in the second "Baby Burlesks" short titled "War Babies," where Temple plays an exotic dancer as toddlers in diapers ogle her. Her first on-screen kiss came when Temple was just five years old.
According to The Atlantic, the set of "Baby Burlesks" wasn't the kindest place for children. If anyone misbehaved, they were sent to sit on a block of ice in a black sound booth. Temple wrote in her autobiography that she didn't think that the black box did any permanent damage to her psyche. However, Temple would later tell an interviewer that the lesson she took away from the black box was simple: wasted time is wasted money.
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Career began at age four | 00:00
Early films | 01:21
A box office hit | 02:27
Shirley Temple gets merchandised | 03:18
Financial problems | 04:17
Struggling against rumors and producers | 05:09
Break from movies | 06:15
Diplomatic career | 07:16
Breast cancer awareness | 08:22
Later life and death | 09:24
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