Temple Tuesday: Shirley and the Duck Dress

In the 1935 film, “Curly Top,” Shirley Temple has a brief sequence where her character exits the orphanage and is whisked away to a seaside cottage where she will lead a life of luxury with her sister, played by Rochelle Hudson. Costume designer René Hubert created the outfit known as “The Duck Dress” (because of the embroidery detail on the velvet bolero top) for Shirley and the chic outfit that Hudson models. As with anything Shirley did, photographers were on the spot to capture every detail. In the shot below, according to the blurb that accompanied it…

Shirley Temple and her pet pony, “Spunk,” are shown in an affectionate pose. Shirley is being starred in the Winfield Sheehan production, “Curly Top,” at Fox Film studio.



In the film, she refers to the pony as “Spunky.”



In between takes, Shirley and Hudson take a breather with director Irving Cummings. Note the track for a dolly shot at left, and the shot as it appears in the final film (below). The orphanage they are leaving was located on the backlot at Fox.



Zooming in, we can see all the details of Shirley’s adorable outfit, including the purse that appears to be made out of corduroy with a felt and fur Scottie dog attached.



The highlight of the sequence is when Shirley arrives at the cottage, she sashays up to the front door with her hand on her hip, demonstrating that she is now part of high society!



The outfit came up for auction, but the only original part that survived was the velvet bolero top. The skirt belonged to Shirley, but the pleating is different from the one used in the film. The tam hat and purse do not appear to have survived.



From the Theriault’s Catalog:

A short black velvet bolero top is embroidered with yellow ducklings on the bodice and sleeves, with a border of green leaves and flowers, and has a black silk lining. The bolero is worn over a sleeveless dress with pleated skirt. The bolero has studio tag 5943 and the dress has studio tag 4759. The costume was worn by Shirley Temple in the 1935 film "Curly Top" upon leaving the orphanage and arriving at her new home. In various studio promotional photographs of the film, the under-dress appears to have a collar and different pleats, suggesting that this dress was likely an alternate.



In fact, the dress was one used in “Our Little Girl” (1935, pictured above) which also had costumes designed by René Hubert. A detail of the embroidered ducks:



Shirley typically had visitors to the sets of her film. For any dignitaries visiting Hollywood, Shirley was at the top of the “must see” list. From the caption:

Mayor Frank Hague, of Jersey City, N.J., and prominent in Democratic party councils, with Mrs. Hague and Peggy Ann Hague visit with Shirley Temple and Mrs. Temple at Fox Film Movietone City, where “Curly Top,” Shirley’s latest picture, is now in production.



Hague supported F.D.R., who in turn not only supported the Mayor, but helped keep him out of scandal for many years. It was amazing at his lowly salary how he was able to amass quite a bit of wealth during his political career! At his funeral, one lady held a sign that read, “God have mercy on his sinful, greedy soul.” From his January 1956 obituary:

The blustery master-politician, whose temper often was as quick as his speech was ungrammatical, was called by his intimates an efficient executive and a friend of the poor. Some referred to him as a benevolent despot. But others termed him a “machine boss,” an “absolute monarch,” and a dictator.…During his reign, Boss Hague did a lot for the 300,000-population city at New York’s back door. He gave the poor a magnificent medical center and modernized the police and fire departments. He also gave them the highest tax rate in the nation and made a fortune for himself.…Trouble followed him…into his big mansion on his estate at Deal and his place at Miami Beach. Twin final blows were a $15,000,000 suit to make him repay alleged kickbacks from city employees and the death of his nephew and heir-apparent, Frank Hague Eggers, both in 1954.

Back to Shirley, with this color image of her in the duck outfit:



Shirley has a quick chat with beloved humorist Will Rogers, also working on the Fox lot:



Another close-up of Shirley’s purse:



A publicity shot of Shirley in the duck dress, sans hat:



This image served many purposes; anything could be added to the blank wall behind her:



Ideal produced a composition doll wearing a matching outfit; here Shirley poses with a 27" high version:



The designs on the bolero for the dolls varied, as seen here:



Some of them had flowers instead of ducks (the purse and gloves were additions; the rest is all original):



The Danbury Mint put out its own version for a vinyl doll:



It would appear that Shirley (or at least her parents) truly liked this outfit, as she wore it in public on her first visit to Hawaii in 1935, specifically at the Royal Iolani Palace on Saturday, August 10. Below, she sings “On The Good Ship Lollipop” to her throng of fans, which numbered more than 15,000! The dress she wore here matched the one in “Curly Top;” it had not been paired up with the “Our Little Girl” skirt just yet.



In the montage below, you can see middle left, Shirley makes her first salute to the throng. At right she is shown with her parents, Mr. and Mrs. George Temple. Bottom left, a view of mauka steps of the palace where Shirley held “court.” Center, Miss Helen Poindexter places a lei on Shirley’s father while at lower right Shirley is shown selling a ticket to Governor Poindexter, after her public appearance, for the army benefit ball game for war veterans.



By May 1945, the bolero had been mismatched with the “Our Little Girl” dress, as seen in this LIFE magazine photo when Shirley was sorting through her collection to see what she was going to give away for a clothing drive.



And that’s it today for the duck dress!

See more Shirley Temple “Curly Top” photos at my main website.

Temple Tuesday: All Dolled Up

For her 1934 starring vehicle, “Bright Eyes,” Shirley Temple’s character got to dress up in over-sized adult clothes and parade around as if she was an elegant society lady. Here is candid shot of Shirley with director David Butler, in between takes at the Pasadena location for this scene. The accompanying publicity blurb:

WHAT, NO LOLLIPOP? —Shirley Temple is positive Director David Butler will buy her that chocolate lollipop now she’s donned a feathered hat and long dress. The dimpled starlet plays at being grown-up for a scene in Fox film’s “Bright Eyes,” in which she is featured with James Dunn.

Little Shirley patiently awaits her next scene:



SMALL GIRL. IN A BIG CHAIR — Shirley Temple takes a few moments off for rest in Director David Butler’s set chair. Butler is directing Shirley in his own story, “Bright Eyes,” which will be her last picture for 1934.



In the scene, Shirley pushes a baby carriage around the property with her doll. Below is a screenshot of the house that was used for exterior locations:



How that house looks today:



Jane Withers and Shirley pushed their baby carriages up that very same driveway ninety years ago!



Shirley’s character was kind and loving to her little dolly, whereas Jane Withers’ bratty counterpart constantly swatted hers. Hey Jane, careful — that’s a very valuable Lenci doll!



You can see tensions boiling between the two; who is going to get to keep the dolls once the filming is done?



Named “Pinkie,” the 37” tall Lenci doll began the worldwide tidal wave of dolls gifted to Shirley in real life. From her autobiography Child Star:

For props we were each issued a doll, mine modest and frumpy, befitting my role, and hers a giant glorious Lenci from Italy with dangling blond curls and exquisitely costumed in ruffles and a velvet bonnet garlanded with lifelike flowers. Following her stage role, Withers became possessive, denying me even a peek, clutching it and turning away. Ultimately it developed into a quiet offstage competition for something she really did want, but I did not. Toward the end of “Bright Eyes,” Sheehan caught wind of the doll competition and offered Mother the Lenci doll in order to gain her cooperation on some other minor matter. Believing I really coveted it, Mother acepted his bribe, thinking perhaps to employ the doll in some secondary inducement with me. Her hope vanished when Sheehan publicly announced that I was starting a doll collection with the Lenci as my first. This action was tantamount to removing a finger from the dike. From all over the box-office world a thousand dolls of every type and nationality flooded in. In fact, the concept of a collection of anything beyond slingshots had no appeal whatsoever. It was a Pyrrhic victory; winning the Withers war imposed the unwelcome burden of becoming curator for an unwanted collection. 

Below is a photo I shot when the doll came up for auction in 2015.



Pinkie had a place of prominence in Shirley’s Santa Monica bedroom (photo below).



Sorry, Jane - you shouldn’t have messed with Shirley.



Shirley and Jane Withers’ December 1976 reunion at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel was captured by the photographers. Note that Shirley is covering Pinkie in the photo in her left hand. Why stir up old wounds? Always the diplomat!



In a quieter moment, you can just hear Shirley: “Really Jane, if you hadn’t been such a pill, you could have had the darn doll for yourself!”



This darling costume also graced the cover of one of Saalfield’s many 1930s Shirley Temple publications:



In 2003, the Danbury Mint released a limited edition porcelain doll of Shirley recreating the same scene (minus the carriage) in honor of Shirley’s 75th birthday:



Sorry, Jane - you weren’t part of that tribute, either!

See more Shirley Temple in “Bright Eyes” photos at my main website.

Temple Tuesday: Shirley and Santa

Every star/starlet had to do their share of publicity photos, and Shirley Temple was no exception to the rule. For the 1939 holiday season, Shirley posed for these shots at 20th Century-Fox. This would be her last Christmas shoot for the studio before her first “retirement” in 1940. Even though Shirley musters all the excitement and anticipation of a little girl peering through the stairs to catch a glimpse of Santa, we all know it’s a lot of hooey. As Shirley herself admitted years later:

I stopped believing in Santa Claus when I was six. Mother took me to see him in a department store and he asked for my autograph.



I call this one “O Holy Night.” Yes, stars were allowed to do religious photos.



These two previously posted shots show a much younger Shirley, this time posing as Santa Claus herself:



Shirley looks like she could barely squeeze through this chimney; how would Santa have ever made it?!?



In later years, Shirley authorized The Danbury Mint to produce a porcelain doll that faithfully recreated the vintage still and appropriately titled it “Santa’s Helper”:



Final one for today shows Shirley posing with a gigantic teddy bear, wearing the beautiful red velvet coat ensemble from “Heidi”:



Selling for $10,000, this beauty came up for auction in 2015:



From the Theriault’s catalog description:

RED VELVET COAT, BONNET AND BOOTS WORN BY SHIRLEY TEMPLE IN THE 1937 FILM "HEIDI"

Of luxurious burgundy velvet, the coat features a fitted double-breasted bodice with soutache loop closures and flared skirt. The coat is decorated with rich sable collar and hem border. Along with a matching bonnet with silk streamers and a pair of high velvet boots with sable trim. The extraordinary luxury costume, designed by Gwen Wakeling, was worn by Heidi (Shirley Temple) during a winter sleigh ride through Frankfurt when suddenly she hears Grandfather calling out for her, and she frantically begins to look for him.

See more Shirley Temple photos at my main website.

Temple Tuesday: Shirley Makes Peace!

20th Century-Fox had high hopes that 1939’s “Susannah of the Mounties” would turn out to be another hit along the lines of “Wee Willie Winkie.” Due to its story, cast, and director, John Ford, the action and adventure in “Winkie” gave the movie a broader appeal to audiences than the typical Shirley film. “Susannah” tried but failed to live up to its predecessor, and much of that because its director, William Seiter, was no John Ford. One actress of the time referred to him as the least imaginative director she’d ever worked with, and “Susannah” surely proves it. Still, Fox tried hard, even going so far as to hire twelve full-blooded Blackfoot Indians from the Montana reservation to serve as extras. William Martin “Good Rider” Pepion, another Blackfoot, played the role of Shirley’s friend and (almost) romantic interest in the film.

The writers also did a disservice to Shirley; ultimately she is the one who brings the Canadian Mounties and Indians together, but throughout the story her character is an unappealing bossy and jealous little girl.

Behind the scenes though, Shirley had great fun working with the Blackfoot members and they adored her, dubbing her “Bright Shining Star” in a ceremony held on the set of the movie.

Shirley made the September 1939 cover of Screenland magazine, wearing a buckskin dress that the Blackfoot tribe gifted to her.

In the June 1939 issue of Screen Guide, there was a story about Shirley growing up and tidbits about the movie, all in glorious color.

In 1999, the Danbury Mint produced a porcelain doll depicting Shirley in the very same buckskin outfit. Here’s the vintage brochure:

…and the actual doll (courtesy of Melissa, aka “The Colonel”!), which surprisingly does a great job matching the brochure AND the actual costume!

See more Shirley Temple photos at my main website.