How did shirley temple die

American actress and diplomat (–)

For the drink named after her, see Shirley Temple (drink).

Shirley Temple
Temple in
Years&#;active	– (as actress) – (as public servant)
In office August 23, &#;– July 12,
President	George H. W. Bush
Preceded by	Julian Niemczyk
Succeeded by	Adrian A. Basora
In office July 1, &#;– January 21,
President	Gerald Ford Jimmy Carter
Preceded by	Henry E. Catto Jr.
Succeeded by	Evan Dobelle
In office December 6, &#;– July 13,
President	Gerald Ford
Preceded by	Fred L. Hadsel
Succeeded by	Robert P. Smith
In office February &#;– August
Born	Shirley Jane Temple ()April 23, Santa Monica, California, U.S.
Died	February 10, () (aged&#;85) Woodside, California, U.S.
Resting place	Alta Mesa Memorial Park
Political party	Republican
Spouses	John Agar &#; &#; (m.&#;; div.&#;)&#;
Children	3, including Lori Black
Occupation	Actress singer dancer diplomat
Website

Shirley Temple Black (born Shirley Jane Temple; April 23, – February 10, ) was an American actress, singer, dancer, and diplomat, who was Hollywood's number-one box-office draw as a child actress from to Later, she was named United States Ambassador to Ghana and Czechoslovakia, and also served as Chief of Protocol of the United States.

Temple began her film career in when she was three years old and was well-known for her performance in Bright Eyes, which was released in She won a special Juvenile Academy Award in February for her outstanding contribution as a juvenile performer in motion pictures during and continued to appear in popular films through the remainder of the s, although her subsequent films became less popular as she grew older.^[1] She appeared in her last film, A Kiss for Corliss, in ^[2][3]

She began her diplomatic career in , when she was appointed to represent the U.S.

at a session of the United Nations General Assembly, where she worked at the U.S. Mission under Ambassador Charles Yost. Later, she was named U.S. Ambassador to Ghana, and also served as the first female U.S. Chief of Protocol. In , she published her autobiography, Child Star.^[4] After her biography was published, she served as the U.S.

Ambassador to Czechoslovakia (–).

Temple was the recipient of numerous awards and honors, including the Kennedy Center Honors and a Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award. She is 18th on the American Film Institute's list of the greatest female American screen legends of classic Hollywood cinema.

Early years

Shirley Jane Temple was born on April 23, ,^[5] at Santa Monica Hospital (now UCLA Santa Monica Medical Center) in Santa Monica, California,^[6] the third child of homemaker Gertrude Temple and bank employee George Temple.

The family was of Dutch, English, and German ancestry.^[7][8] She had two brothers: John and George, Jr.^[8][9][10] The family moved to Brentwood, Los Angeles.^[11]

Temple's mother encouraged her to develop her singing, dancing, and acting talents.^[12][13][14] At about this time, her mother began styling Temple's hair in ringlets.^[15]

While at the dance school, Temple was spotted by Charles Lamont, who was a casting director for Educational Pictures.

She hid behind a piano while he was in the studio. Lamont liked Temple and invited her to audition. He signed her to a contract in Educational Pictures launched its Baby Burlesks,^{[16][17][18][19]} minute comedy shorts satirizing recent films and events, using preschool children in every role.

In , Temple appeared in Glad Rags to Riches, a parody of the Mae West feature She Done Him Wrong, with Temple as a saloon singer.

Shirley temple biography timeline designs Shirley Temple was the biggest child star of the s, and after her screen career faded she moved into politics. Some of her notable films and diplomatic roles: April 23, Born to George.

That same year, she appeared in Kid 'in' Africa as a child imperiled in the jungle and in Runt Page, a pastiche of the previous year's The Front Page. The younger players in the cast recited their lines phonetically.

Temple became the breakout star of this series, and Educational promoted her to minute comedies in the Frolics of Youth series with Frank Coghlan Jr.

Temple played Mary Lou Rogers, the baby sister in a contemporary suburban family.^[20] Temple and her child costars modeled for breakfast cereals and other products to fund production costs.^[21][22] She was lent to Tower Productions for a small role in the studio's first feature film, The Red-Haired Alibi (),^[23][24] and in to Universal, Paramount and Warner Bros.

Pictures for various parts,^[25][26] including an uncredited role in To the Last Man (), starring Randolph Scott and Esther Ralston.

Film career

After viewing one of Temple's Frolics of Youth films, Fox Film Corporation songwriter Jay Gorney saw her dancing in the theater lobby.

Recognizing her from the screen, Gorney arranged a screen test for Temple for the film Stand Up and Cheer! (). Temple auditioned on December 7, , and won the part. She was signed to a $per-week contract that was guaranteed for two weeks by Fox. The role was a breakthrough performance for Temple. Her charm was evident to Fox executives, and she was ushered into corporate offices almost immediately after finishing "Baby, Take a Bow", a song-and-dance number that she performed with James Dunn.

Biography shirley temple black Shirley Temple was an actress and former U.S. ambassador to Ghana and Czechoslovakia. This biography provides detailed information about her childhood, life, achievements, works & timeline.

Roles

Biographer John Kasson argues:

In almost all of these films, she played the role of emotional healer, mending rifts between erstwhile sweethearts, estranged family members, traditional and modern ways, and warring armies. Characteristically lacking one or both parents, she constituted new families of those most worthy to love and protect her.

Producers delighted in contrasting her diminutive stature, sparkling eyes, dimpled smile, and 56 blond curls by casting her opposite strapping leading men, such as Gary Cooper, John Boles, Victor McLaglen, and Randolph Scott. Yet her favorite costar was the great African American tap dancer Bill "Bojangles" Robinson, with whom she appeared in four films, beginning with The Little Colonel (), in which they performed the famous staircase dance.^[27]

Biographer Anne Edwards wrote about the tone and tenor of Temple's films:

This was mid-Depression, and schemes proliferated for the care of the needy and the regeneration of the fallen.

But they all required endless paperwork and demeaning, hours-long queues, at the end of which an exhausted, nettled social worker dealt with each person as a faceless number. Shirley offered a natural solution: to open one's heart.^[28]

President Franklin D. Roosevelt praised her performances, saying, "It is a splendid thing that for just 15 cents, an American can go to a movie and look at the smiling face of a baby and forget his troubles."^[29]

Finances

On December 21, , Temple's contract was extended to one year at the same $ per week (equivalent to $3, in ) with a seven-year option, and her mother Gertrude was hired at $25 per week (equivalent to $ in ) as her hairdresser and personal coach.^[30] Released in May , Stand Up and Cheer! became Shirley's breakthrough film.^[31] She performed in a short skit in the film alongside popular Fox star James Dunn, singing and tap dancing.

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Fox executives rushed her into another film with Dunn, Baby Take a Bow (named after their song in Stand Up and Cheer!). Temple's third film, also with Dunn, was Bright Eyes (), a movie written especially for her.^[32]

After the success of her first three films, Temple's parents realized that she was not being paid sufficiently.

Her image also began to appear on numerous commercial products without her legal authorization and without compensation. To regain control over the use of her image and to negotiate with Fox, Temple's parents hired lawyer Lloyd Wright to represent them. On July 18, , Temple's contractual salary was raised to $1, per week (equivalent to $22, in ), and her mother's salary was raised to $ per week (equivalent to $5, in ), with an additional $15, (equivalent to $, in ) bonus for each finished film.^[33] Cease-and-desist letters were sent to many companies and the authorized corporate licenses began to be issued.^[34]

Bright Eyes, written with her acting style in mind, was released in ^[35][36] The film included the song "On the Good Ship Lollipop", which is considered to be her signature song.

She was awarded a miniature Juvenile Oscar in ^[37][38][39]

–

Temple's quota of films in each calendar year was increased from three to four in the contract that her parents signed in July Now and Forever starring Gary Cooper and Carole Lombard (with Temple billed third with her name above the title beneath Cooper's and Lombard's), The Little Colonel, Our Little Girl, Curly Top (with the signature song "Animal Crackers in My Soup") and The Littlest Rebel were released after the contract was signed.

Curly Top was Temple's last film before the merger between 20th Century Pictures and the Fox Film Corporation.^[40]

Temple's salary was $2, per week (equivalent to $55, in ) by the end of ^[41] Elaborate sets were built for the production at the famed Iverson Movie Ranch in Chatsworth, where a rock feature at the heavily filmed location ranch was eventually named Shirley Temple Rock.^[42]

Heidi was the only other Temple film released in ^[43] Midway through shooting of the movie, the dream sequence was added to the script.

Temple herself reportedly was behind the dream sequence and she had enthusiastically pushed for it, but in her autobiography, she vehemently denied this. Her contract gave neither her parents nor her any creative control over her movies. She saw this as Zanuck's refusal to make any serious attempt at building upon the success of her dramatic role in Wee Willie Winkie.^[44]

One of the many examples of how Temple was permeating popular culture at the time is the references to her in the film Stand-In; newly minted film studio honcho Atterbury Dodd (played by Leslie Howard) has never heard of Temple, much to the shock and disbelief of former child star Lester Plum (played by Joan Blondell), who describes herself as "the Shirley Temple of my day", and performs "On the Good Ship Lollipop" for him.

–

The Independent Theatre Owners Association paid for an advertisement in The Hollywood Reporter in May that included Temple on a list of actors who deserved their salaries while others' (including Katharine Hepburn and Joan Crawford) "box-office draw is nil".^[45]

In , she was the subject of the Salvador Dalí painting Shirley Temple, The Youngest, Most Sacred Monster of the Cinema in Her Time, and she was animated with Donald Duck in The Autograph Hound.^[46] In , Lester Cowan, an independent film producer, bought the screen rights to F.

Scott Fitzgerald's Babylon Revisited for $ Fitzgerald thought his screenwriting days were over, and with some hesitation, accepted Cowan's offer to write the screenplay titled "Cosmopolitan" based on the short story. After finishing the screenplay, Fitzgerald was told by Cowan that he would not do the film unless Temple starred in the lead role of the youngster Honoria.

Fitzgerald objected, saying that at age 12, the actress was too worldly for the part and would detract from the aura of innocence otherwise framed by Honoria's character. After meeting Temple in July, Fitzgerald changed his mind, and tried to persuade her mother to let her star in the film. However, her mother demurred.

In any case, the Cowan project was shelved by the producer. Fitzgerald was later credited with the use of the original story for The Last Time I Saw Paris starring Elizabeth Taylor.^[47]

As her contract with 20th Century-Fox was coming to a close, Temple's mother applied her for entrance into the Westlake School for Girls in September ^[48] There, Temple would enroll as a seventh grader.

Temple noted that she had difficulty adapting to a school environment after having spent much of her youth with adults and private tutors. However, her classmate June Lockhart described her as having "integrated herself right away" and seeming "delighted to be there". Temple frequently attended school dances and extracurricular activities, and according to Lockhart, "students did not treat her differently despite her successful film career."^[49][50] Temple graduated from the school in May ^[51][52]

– Final films and retirement

Shirley signed with MGM after leaving 20th Century-Fox.

However, upon meeting with Arthur Freed for a preliminary interview, the MGM producer exposed his genitals to her. When this elicited nervous giggles in response, Freed threw her out and ended their contract before any films were produced.^[53] The next idea was teaming her with Garland and Rooney for the musical Babes on Broadway.

Fearing that either of those two could easily upstage Temple, MGM replaced her with Virginia Weidler. As a result, her only film for MGM was the relatively unsuccessful film Kathleen, released in Miss Annie Rooney followed for United Artists in , but was unsuccessful. The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer starring Cary Grant and Fort Apache starring John Wayne and Henry Fonda were two of her few hit films in the s.^[54] Her then-husband John Agar also appeared in Fort Apache.

She and future U.S. president Ronald Reagan were both in That Hagen Girl (). She did not formally announce her retirement from full-length films until ^[55][56]

Radio career

Temple briefly had her own radio series on CBS. Junior Miss debuted March 4, , in which she played the title role.

The series was based on stories by Sally Benson. Sponsored by Procter & Gamble, Junior Miss was directed by Gordon Hughes, with David Rose as musical director.^[57] The series ended on August 26, ^[58]

Television career

From until , Temple was the hostess, narrator, and an occasional actress on an anthology series of fairy tale adaptations called Shirley Temple's Storybook. During the hour-long program was seen as a series of specials on ABC.

Starting in the series began airing every third Monday night, alternating with Cheyenne. In the series moved to NBC, where it was broadcast under the title of The Shirley Temple Show until September 10, ^[59]

In , she hosted the AFI's Years Stars awards show on CBS.^{[citation needed]}

In Temple served as a consultant on an ABC-TV film production of her autobiography, Child Star: The Shirley Temple Story.^[60][61] Directed by Australian director Nadia Tass and filmed by her husband David Parker, the film stars Ashley Rose Orr as Temple, Emily Anne Hart as teen Shirley, Connie Britton as Gertrude Temple, Colin Friels as George Temple, and Hinton Battle as Bill "Bojangles" Robinson.

It was filmed in Port Melbourne, Australia.^[62]

Merchandise and endorsements

John Kasson states:

She was also the most popular celebrity to endorse merchandise for children and adults, rivaled only by Mickey Mouse. She transformed children's fashions, popularizing a toddler look for girls up to the age of 12, and by the mids, Ideal Novelty and Toy Company's line of Shirley Temple dolls accounted for almost a third of all dolls sold in the country.^[27]

Successful Shirley Temple items included a line of girls' dresses and many other items.^[63]

Alongside licensed merchandise came counterfeit items bearing Temple's likeness to capitalize on her fame, from dolls, clothing, and other accessories to even cigars with her face printed on the label.^[64] Temple lamented in her memoirs that it "made no economic sense" to pursue litigation against those who made unlicensed goods under her name; a successful lawsuit was filed by Ideal Toy Company against a certain Lenora Doll Company, which manufactured and sold Shirley Temple dolls without authorization, with Temple herself cited as a co-plaintiff befitting her celebrity status.^[65]

Myths and rumors

At the height of her popularity, Temple was the subject of many myths and rumors, with several being propagated by the Fox press department.

Fox publicized her as a natural talent with no formal acting or dance training.

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As a way of explaining how she knew stylized buck-and-wing dancing, she was enrolled for two weeks in the Elisa Ryan School of Dancing.^[66]

False claims circulated that Temple was not a child, but a year-old dwarf, due in part to her stocky body type. The rumor was so prevalent, especially in Europe, that the Vatican dispatched Father Silvio Massante to investigate whether she was indeed a child.

The fact that she never seemed to miss any teeth led some people to conclude that she had all her adult teeth. Temple was actually losing her primary teeth regularly through her days with Fox—for example, during the sidewalk ceremony in front of Grauman's Theatre, where she took off her shoes and placed her bare feet in the concrete, taking attention away from her face.

When acting, she wore dental plates and caps to hide the gaps in her teeth.^[67] Another rumor said her teeth had been filed to make them appear like baby teeth.^[68]

A rumor about Temple's trademark hair was that she wore a wig. On multiple occasions, fans yanked her hair to test the rumor.

Shirley temple biography pictures This is an accepted version of this page This is the latest accepted revision, reviewed on 21 January There is 1 pending revision awaiting review. American actress and diplomat (–) For the drink named after her, see Shirley Temple (drink). Shirley Temple Temple in Years active – (as actress) – (as public servant) 27th United States Ambassador to.

She later said she wished all she had to do was wear a wig, bemoaning the nightly process she had to endure in the setting of her curls as tedious and grueling, with weekly vinegar rinses that stung her eyes.^[69]

Rumors spread that her hair color was not naturally blonde. During the making of Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm, news spread that she was going to do extended scenes without her trademark curls.

During production, she also caught a cold, which caused her to miss a couple of days. As a result, a false report originated in Britain that all of her hair had been cut off.^[68]

Diplomatic career

Temple became active in the California Republican Party. In , she ran unsuccessfully in a special election in California's 11th congressional district after eight-term Republican J.

Arthur Younger died of leukemia.^[70][71] She ran in the open primary as a conservative Republican and came in second with 34, votes (%), behind Republican law school professor Pete McCloskey, who placed first in the primary with 52, votes (%) and advanced to the general election with Democrat Roy A.

Archibald, who finished fourth with 15, votes (%), but advanced as the highest-placed Democratic candidate. In the general election, McCloskey was elected with 63, votes (%) to Archibald's 43, votes (%).

Shirley temple die: Shirley Temple was an actress and former U.S. ambassador to Ghana and Czechoslovakia. This biography provides detailed information about her childhood, life, achievements, works & timeline.

Temple received 3, votes (%) as an independent write-in.^[72][73]

Temple was extensively involved with the Commonwealth Club of California, a public-affairs forum headquartered in San Francisco. She spoke at many meetings throughout the years, and was president for a period in ^[74][75]

Temple got her start in foreign service after her failed run for Congress in , when Henry Kissinger overheard her talking about South West Africa at a party.

He was surprised that she knew anything about it.^[76] She was appointed as a delegate to the 24th United Nations General Assembly (September – December ) by President Richard M. Nixon^[77][78][79] and United States Ambassador to Ghana (December 6, – July 13, ) by President Gerald R.

Ford.^[80] She was appointed first female Chief of Protocol of the United States (July 1, – January 21, ).^[80][81]

In , Temple was considered a potential running mate to Gerald Ford in that year's presidential election. While staying in Kansas City for the Republican National Convention, Temple and her husband were given a room with a White House telephone in it.

Temple recalled that she speculated to her husband that the phone had been installed as Ford was about to ask her to be his running mate at the convention, however, the phone was disconnected.^[82]Bob Dole was instead chosen as the Vice Presidential nominee.

Temple had hoped after Ronald Reagan's victory in the presidential election that she would be given a cabinet position or another ambassadorship.

Reagan did send Temple as his representative to Paris as part of American inaugural celebrations abroad, however, she was not given any new posting during the Reagan administration. Writer Anne Edwards suggested that this was because Temple had supported Reagan's rival, George H. W. Bush, in the Republican primaries. When rumours circulated that Reagan was planning to reappoint Temple as chief of protocol after Lenore Annenberg's resignation, Temple remarked that she didn't "believe in looking back".^[83]

She served as the United States Ambassador to Czechoslovakia (August 23, – July 12, ), having been appointed by President George H.

W. Bush,^[84] and was the first and only woman in this job. Temple bore witness to two crucial moments in the history of Czechoslovakia's fight against communism. She was in Prague in August , as a representative of the International Federation of Multiple Sclerosis Societies, and was going to meet with Czechoslovakian party leader Alexander Dubček on the very day that Soviet-backed forces invaded the country.

Dubček fell out of favor with the Soviets after a series of reforms, known as the Prague Spring. Temple, who was stranded at a hotel as the tanks rolled in, sought refuge on the roof of the hotel. She later reported that it was from there she saw an unarmed woman on the street gunned down by Soviet forces, the sight of which stayed with her for the rest of her life.^[85]

Later, after she became ambassador to Czechoslovakia, she was present during the Velvet Revolution, which brought about the end of communism in Czechoslovakia.^[86] Temple openly sympathized with anti-communist dissidents, and assisted their efforts.^[86] She was ambassador when the United States established formal diplomatic relations with the newly elected government led by Václav Havel.

She took the unusual step of personally accompanying Havel on his first official visit to Washington, traveling on the same plane.^[76]

Personal life

In , year-old Temple met year-old John Agar, whom she married two years later in , at age ^[87][88][89] She gave birth to Linda Susan Agar in ^[87][90][91] Agar was reportedly an alcoholic and had extramarital affairs.

Temple divorced Agar in on the grounds of mental cruelty.^[92]

Temple was married to Charles Alden Black from until his death on August 4, ^[93] They had a son, Charles Alden Black Jr., and a daughter, Lori, who became a bassist for the rock band the Melvins.

Breast cancer

At age 44 in , Temple was diagnosed with breast cancer.

At the time, cancer was typically discussed in hushed whispers, and Temple's public disclosure was a significant milestone in improving breast cancer awareness and reducing stigma around the disease.^[94][95]

Death

Temple died at age 85 on February 10, , at her home in Woodside, California.^[96][97][95] The cause of death, according to her death certificate released on March 3, , was chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).^[98] Temple was a lifelong cigarette smoker but avoided displaying her habit in public because she did not want to set a bad example for her fans.^{[99][failed verification]} She is buried at Alta Mesa Memorial Park.

Awards, honors, and legacy

On March 14, , Shirley left her footprints and handprints in the wet cement at the forecourt of Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood. She was the Grand Marshal of the New Year's Day Rose Parade in Pasadena, California, three times in , , and On February 8, , she received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

In , she received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement.^[][] In February , Temple was honored by the Freedoms Foundation of Valley Forge, Pennsylvania.^[] In , Temple was installed as an honorary deputy paramount chief of the Oguaa people of Ghana.^[]

In , she received the Kennedy Center Honor for her achievement in film.

^[]

Her name is further immortalized by the mocktail named after her, although Temple found the drink far too sweet for her palate.^[][] In , Temple brought a lawsuit to prevent a bottled soda version from using her name.^[][]

On June 9, , Temple was featured on that day's Google Doodle in celebration of the opening anniversary of "Love, Shirley Temple” a special exhibit featuring a collection of her rare memorabilia at Santa Monica History Museum.^[]

Filmography

Main article: Shirley Temple filmography

See also

References