Wednesday, May 08, 2019

Shirley Palooza Four Pt. 5: The Temples of Temple



Today we take a tour of the Temples of Temple, aka the homes of Shirley Temple. Amazingly enough her first three residences are still around, starting with the first two which are in Santa Monica. The trees and the car in the driveway prevented me from getting a very good shot of Shirley’s first home.

By 1934, the Temples had enough money (thank you, Shirley!) to leave their modest residence and move into one that was a bit nicer. Here’s how it looked back in the day:



And how it looks now:



Only two years later, the Temple family moved again, as the money kept pouring in and so did the fans who wanted a glimpse of Shirley. A larger home with more security was called for so it was off to the exclusive area called Brentwood. But before we leave Santa Monica, let‘s take a look at what that beautiful city has to offer! The “spiritual” end of Route 66 was right here on Ocean Avenue at the Santa Monica Pier:



Just down the way on Ocean Avenue is the lovely Palisades Park:



A brick path to take you to the beach:



The Georgian Hotel is across the street, ready to bathe you in its Art Deco splendor:



For good food and drinks, you can’t beat the Ivy at the Shores:



Back to Shirley…

Here’s the estate her family purchased in 1936, located in Brentwood:



Photographing it today is a bit complicated, as it was divided into three parcels and sold off, and the main house was split into two in the process.



The cool weathervane has survived!



Here are the three blue birds, Melissa (aka “The Colonel”), Shirley Jean, and Mary, proud as peacocks as they got to tour Shirley’s childhood home. What a thrill!



Knowing she would be visiting Shirley’s place, Melissa brought a childhood dress of Shirley’s from her personal collection…



…and stood in the same place Shirley did when she wore it many years ago:



Home #2:



Home #3, aka “The Playhouse,” where Shirley and first husband John Agar lived after they were wed in 1945:



John and Shirley descend the spiral staircase of the main house as they are pelted with rice on the way to their honeymoon:



A shot of them inside the Playhouse, which was more akin to a mini Tudor mansion than anything most people would “play” in:



The backyard of the estate:



After an exhausting day, I headed back to the Chateau and sipped their delicious sangria while lounging at the pool. Ahhhhhhhh…



Melissa and I typically end the weekend with dinner and a recap at the Chateau. Sunday night is my fave with the Fried Chicken special:



And Melissa enjoys the Spaghetti Bolognese!



I hope you enjoyed this year’s Shirley Palooza posts!

See more Shirley Temple photos at my main website.

9 comments:

Fifthrider said...

What a relief to see those first two houses in such good condition. The owners really care. Number 3 is good too but needs a little yardwork and... Cut in two?! Very sad to see that house suffer the similar fate at Walt's Carolwood.

Irene said...

What a delight this experience has been. Thank you for sharing all of that with us.

I agree with Fifthrider. I was delighted to see the charm of the first two houses has been maintained! Good for them. And cutting an estate in two - so sad.

Anonymous said...

Fun post, Dave. Those are classic Santa Monica and Brentwood houses. I knew that neighborhood well, once upon a time.

We stayed at the Georgian Hotel some years back. The basement bar was purportedly a speakeasy back in the day. A nice little hotel, right in the middle of things.

Last year we stayed at Le Merigot, also recommended.

JG

emile rose said...

Hello! I am a huge shirley Temple fan, and just stumbled across this! By far the most informative thing I have found online so far.
I have been trying to do research on Shirley Temple's Brentwood Estate, and have run into some confusing things - there are 4 addresses listed on the internet for the Brentwood estate - 231 N ROCKINGHAM AVE, 209 rockingham avenue, and 613 N Arden Dr,Beverly Hills, and 227 Rockingham Avenue. Do you know which address this is (that you visited), and do you have any information that would clarify why there are so many addresses listed for the Brentwood estate?

Also, you mentioned in this post that the main house had been sold off in 2 lots - are there 2 large houses main houses in addition to the playhouse? I had always heard that here was just one?

if you'd be willing to share any information on who the architect was, where I could find the house plans,photos of the house or grounds, or information on ANYTHING having to do with the estate, I would be SOOO THANKFUL!!!
Also, that is a lot, so I apologize, and understand if you're not able to reply!

Daveland said...

Hi Emile Rose - Thanks for checking out my blog. The Beverly Hills Arden Drive address has nothing to do with Shirley’s childhood Brentwood home; I'd love to see the proof that the person who sold the house has to support Shirley ever even living there. As for the multiple addresses for the Brentwood estate, when it was split into multiple properties, the addresses were changed. The main home was split into two residences, and the “Playhouse” (the small tudor home, not the glass block playhouse) is now a separate residence.

emile rose said...

Ok, that is super helpful in clearing up some confusion for me - thank you so very much!! I have not found any actual proof myself that shirley ever lived in the Beverly Hills Arden home. That's actually a bit of a relief, as the home was recently demolished by developers.
Would love to visit the Brentwood location someday! : )

Daveland said...

Apparently the Arden home belonged to John Agar's parents, so Shirley PROBABLY stayed there, but never owned it.

Anonymous said...

Do they still do tours of the Brentwood home?

Daveland said...

It’s a private residence; we "toured" it because we know the owners.