“They were displayed in a separate room in the theater. I was so surprised to see so many costumes,” said Tim Vigil an avid classic movie fan. News of the exhibit was announced in The San Jose Mercury News during the first week in June. It’s the only showing of the costumes for the SF Bay area. Part of the “Love, Shirley Temple” exhibit, it will make a tour of seven cities across the country before the full collection of some 560 items, including her autograph books, gifts from celebrities and a collection of 1,000 dolls, will be auctioned by Theriault’s auction house July 14 in Kansas City.
Shirley Temple Black’s two children, Susan Black Falaschi and Charles Black Jr. said that their mother wanted all of the movie-treasures shared. The San Jose Mercury News reported that for years Shirley Temple and her family tried to find a home for all of the things. But economics and the permanent space requirements for the vast collection foiled their efforts.
Proceeds from the collection will go back to the Black family partnership, which is intent on preserving her legacy. A hardcover commemorative book will also be published showcasing the collection, noted the San Jose Mercury News.
“The turn out was good and we really enjoyed it,” said Vigil. He and his siblings commuted from San Francisco and San Leandro just to attend the three-day festival, because as Vigil said, “we have seen these films before on TV as kids, but how often can you see a classic film on the big screen?”
It has been more than a year since Shirley Temple’s passing at the age of 85. And as Vigil noted audiences still flocked to see her movies.
He, his sister Anita and brother John Vigil were impressed by the grandeur of the Stanford Theatre which since its restoration in 1987, with the help of the David and Lucille Packard Foundation has hosted film festivals and vintage film features ever since. The theater built in 1925 prides itself on the fact that people get to watch classic movies in an authentic movie theater (or “movie palace”) on the big screen as they were intended to be seen. Another reason why the Vigil family made the effort to attend the Shirley Temple film fest is because, her movies remind them of happier times.
Temple was the number 1 box office attraction for movie-goers for four consecutive years from 1935 to 1938 and her legacy of memorable films endures to this day. “What is remarkable, is that she made most of her 44 films by the age of 12,” said Tim’s brother John. Yet perhaps what is even more amazing is that her immense popularity and stardom did not spoil or derail her later in life, after the spotlight faded.
As reported by the Washington Post back in 1988 when Shirley Temple Black published her autobiography, “Child Star,” she credits much of her success in life to her ability to being a good sport and working. While it has been noted in other accounts that it was her mother who helped shape her career and keep her on the right path, it was Shirley Temple Black that was able to put the entire child star experience into perspective.
While maintaining a low-key profile after retiring from movies, she had said in interviews that little “Shirley Temple” helps open doors for me as an ambassador.” No doubt having that brief career as a start in life did help pave the way to some very important appointments. The list of her accomplishments away from the movies is impressive.
In a tribute article upon her death in February of last year, Psychology Today noted, She strategically employed her popularity to gain audiences and acceptance with the public in her appointed nations. After her past fame opened the right doors, she used her intelligence and influence to shape the right future.
In a media-driven society which has become even more media-focused, Temple’s ability to move forward in life beyond movie fame is remarkable. Few child actors are able to make that transition easily to adulthood. This has been the case time and again, even in the early days film before Shirley Temple.
Diana Serra Cary, known in the Silent Era of film as “Baby Peggy” said in her autobiography published in 1996, she had a difficult and unhappy life as a child star. Cary often worked long hours as a toddler. In little less than three years Baby Peggy made over 150 movie shorts for Century Studios. Interestingly, her movie “Captain January” was a major box office smash. When it was re-made in 1936 into a sound-movie with Shirley Temple as the lead, it became one of Temple’s most memorable movies, pushing Baby Peggy’s performance of that same story into the shadow of obscurity.
Many of Baby Peggy’s films were lost, when Century Studios caught fire and burned down in 1926 shortly after her movie contract was abruptly canceled by producer Sol Lesser, when her father demanded more money.
Like many child-actors Baby Peggy’s earnings were squandered away by financial mismanagement, mostly due to her father’s poor decisions.
Even though in Temple’s 1988 autobiography there is a hint of that, the Washington Post reported that she “speculates briefly about the financial insufficiencies of her father and his business partner, but on the occasion of her discovery of those insufficiencies she decided a scandal would be unpleasant. Indeed, the only harsh words she seems to have about George Temple are strictures on his tendency to repeat tasteless jokes with unjustified and undiminished relish.”
As Psychology Today pointed out with immense fame and fortune comes tremendous pressure. At age 19, Shirley Temple was determined to lead a “normal” life and continue on. And, unlike the current crop of young stars in Hollywood, Temple’s decisions were more remarkable than they might first appear.
On Feb 15 and 16 of 2014, just days after her death, Stanford Theatre had a tribute to Shirley Temple, showing six of her movies that weekend. Theaters like Stanford Theatre which specialize in vintage and classic film recognize the significance of film history and the impact film has made upon American culture and the world. Apart from the disappointments of real life, movies, (especially cherished ones) can help bring moments of joy and inspiration to a troubled world. Shirley Temple is one of those stars who shined brightly during some of the most bleakest years in American History, “The Great Depression.”
Perhaps as some historians have observed is another reason why Shirley Temple’s movies endure. As author Nick Tasler noted in his article for Psychology Today, “she decided to put her circumstances to use with a deep sense of purpose no matter what role she found herself playing. As Shirley Temple shows us, we don’t always get to choose our roles, but we can always decide how we play them.”
For more information about the vintage films shown at Stanford Theatre visit its web site. And to purchase Shirley Temple films on DVD visit the official Shirley Temple web site.
And to learn more about the upcoming auction, “Love, Shirley Temple” this July, see the Theriault’s web site.
