How Shirley Temple Lost a Million-Dollar Fortune and Endured ‘Bumps and Bruises’ Along the Way

With unemployment high and the American economy still reeling from the 1929 stock market crash, President Franklin D. Roosevelt attempted to lift the country ’s spirits. “As long as our country has Shirley Temple, we will be all right,” he said. “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.”

From 1935 to 1938, Shirley, the child star with the dimples and 56 corkscrew curls, remained the undisputed queen of the box office. Her upbeat, feel-good films, including The Little Colonel, Curly Top and Wee Willie Winkie, grossed millions and saved her film studio from bankruptcy. For several years, Shirley also earned more money annually than anyone in Hollywood except MGM boss Louis B. Mayer — but by the time she was 22, it would mostly be gone.

Gertrude Temple’s longed-for daughter arrived in the spring of 1928. “When Shirley was in her crib, her mother started training her,” Shirley’s childhood friend and movie stand-in Marilyn Granas tells Closer. “She would say, ‘Sparkle, Shirley!’ and Shirley would sparkle.”

At 2 ½, Shirley began dance lessons. By 4, she was appearing in comedy short films doing parodies of Mae West and Marlene Dietrich. “That was my starlet period,” recalled Shirley, who noted that by the time she was signed by Fox for $150 a week, “I really knew a lot about the craft [of acting].”

Her breakout occurred in the film Stand Up and Cheer!. In it, she sang a song called “Baby, Take a Bow” and did a little dance. By the time the film wrapped, the studio signed Shirley to a seven-year contract. Big hits would follow, including Bright Eyes, a movie written for the child star. Shirley’s salary was increased to a then astronomical $1,000 a week. Gertrude, who acted as her guardian, hairdresser and acting coach, was paid $250 a week, with an additional $15,000 bonus after each new film wrapped. In 1935 and 1936, Shirley starred in four films a year.

As her fame grew, she began endorsing products, including dolls, children’s clothing, breakfast cereal and hair curlers. “It was kind of a partnership,” explained Shirley. “My mother and I worked at the studio, and my dad managed his own business and managed my money.”

What Happened to Shirley Temple? Inside Her Iconic Film Career 

Shirley Temple Had a Rude Awakening

Shirley’s father, George, was a self-taught man who learned bookkeeping in night school. He worked in banking and the insurance industry until he became his daughter’s business manager. “He was a very proud man,” said Shirley. “And everybody liked him.”

After a failed teenage marriage, 22-year-old Shirley wed Charles Black in 1950. When she asked her father about taking control of her finances, she discovered that most of her money was gone. “It turned out that out of about $3.4 million that I had earned since I started, I had $44,000 in a trust fund. That was it,” said Shirley. She lost a fortune worth the equivalent of around $45 million today, but she didn’t hold it against her father.

He left school in the seventh grade,” she explained. “I think that he was counseled badly, and I think he was an innocent led to slaughter.” She also noted that George had a soft heart for anyone with a sad story. “He used to give wonderful cash loans to people,” she said. “[And] maybe not get the money back or certainly not with any interest.”

In her 1988 memoir Child Star, Shirley wrote glowingly of her parents and her years in Hollywood. And she meant it. When George developed an ailment that paralyzed the swallowing muscle in his throat, Shirley insisted he come live with her and her family. “He wouldn’t let anyone feed him but me,” she said.

Despite the loss of her money, Shirley went on to a happy marriage, children and a second career as a diplomat. “I wouldn’t change anything in my life,” she insisted. “There were some bumps and bruises and unpleasant times. But how are we going to learn how to be good citizens and really know what to do with our lives unless we face these things?”