Temple Tuesday: Swedish Rabbit Holes with Rita!

It’s amazing how one new photo can spawn so much more, like the above photo I recently acquired of Shirley Temple and some unknown gent. Well, unknown to me that is. Reaching out to Shirley expert supreme, Rita Dubas, I had the answer immediately: Torsten Flodén, a Swedish writer for Filmjournalen Magazine. Not only did Rita have the name, she supplied me with a much better quality print. Comparing the two, you can see what a difference a first generation print makes. Don’t even get me started about the crappy downloads people find on the internet and then attempt to pass them off as their own.



Another benefit to obtaining an original print is the information you often find on the back, like this “approved” stamp, dating the shot to approximately April 1936.



The interview/photo were right after Shirley finished filming “Poor Little Rich Girl” (1936) and while rehearsals for “Dimples” (1936) had begun. As if that wasn’t enough, Rita also generously supplied the August 16, 1936 article that Torsten wrote after he met Shirley, titled “The World’s Biggest Little Star”:



The copy of the shot I have at the top of the article obviously lacks the inscription from Shirley. Despite that, I still love the dreamy quality of this publicity still.



Additional pages from the Filmjournalen magazine article:



Fortunately, most of the images in this article also exist in my collection, such as the Important Events card:


Shirley at two years:



I don’t have a vintage print of this particular one, so a detailed view from Rita’s scan will have to do!



Shirley driving the child-sized gas-powered Tether Racing Car that was gifted to her by frequent co-star and dancing partner, Bill Robinson car, parked outside her Fox bungalow:



The car was auctioned off in 2015 after Shirley’s death and fetched $34,000. I don’t have the exact image from Shirley’s 1936 birthday used in the article, but I can offer up these two alternative shots as a consolation prize:





The detailed shots of Shirley’s legs and hands were part of a session to publicize “Curly Top” (1935):



Rita outdid herself (so what’s new?!?) by translating the ENTIRE article! Here it is, full of interesting tidbits:

It is not easy to tell the story of Shirley Temple so that it does not sound like – a fairy tale. For it is really something quite fantastic. I mean all this, which in recent years has grown up around Shirley. I say "around" on purpose. For the little creature who is the cause of it all is exactly as one wants her to be, hopes she will be, even if one thinks it is incredible that she can be – before one meets her. But everything else seems incomprehensible and inexplicable. And the more one thinks about it, the stranger it becomes. One says to oneself: It is not true. And yet one knows that it is. SHIRLEY TEMPLE is right now Hollywood's absolute biggest star, according to the principle of assessment, that the starlet is the biggest, who draws the most audience and thus gives her company the biggest bucks. It makes the same difference whether we worship Garbo or we worship Charles Boyer, Marlene Dietrich or Clark Gable, Ginger Rogers or Fred Astaire, Myrna Loy or William Pawell [sic]. All right, say the high film directors in Hollywood, we understand you and we appreciate your taste and of course they are all very good. But it cannot be helped, they are in the shelter. In the lead marches a little seven-year-old child with the world's most golden-blond corkscrew curls, with dimples in her cheeks, a small pouty nose on very dancing girlish feet. She has the very respectable annual income of 1,000,000 Swedish kronor a year – as much as the king of Sweden has in his pocket – and her name is: Shirley Temple. So little Shirley has become "the biggest film event" in American cinema for many, many years. She has certainly become a world sensation. I am just reading a letter I received from Hollywood, which says that Shirley has more organized admiration than any other star. Shirley has 384 clubs in as many American cities with a total membership of 3,800,000. While she was making her latest film, "The Bowery Princess," a new Shirley Temple society was formed in Chicago, which immediately had 50,000 registered members. In addition to this there are 489 Shirley Temple clubs in forty-three countries outside America, and their total membership is 5,000,000. At the moment an international Shirley Temple circle has also been formed under the supervision of Shirley's own mother, and in this circle a new little chairman is elected every month. Right now there is a little Hollywood girl named Tamar Cooper who is six years old. [Rita’s note: this “circle” is the Templers, hosted by Mrs. Harmony Haines Woodward for Screen Play magazine. Screen Play must have been associated with Filmjournalen to promote this club in an article. It lasted about six months]. Shirley's mail has also swelled to such an alarming degree that her company has had to set up a special secretary just to deal with it. It is estimated that Shirley receives an average of 2,000 letters a day. People write to her about everything, ask her about everything and give her everything. Just recently, little admiring friends in Australia sent her a live baby kangaroo, which was housed for a while in the garden of the small private bungalow with three rooms and a kitchen, which Shirley received as a gift on the studio grounds. But the kangaroo disturbed the peace both of the little dwarf hamsters, who previously ruled there in unfettered majesty and who are the apple of Shirley's eye, and so Mother Temple thought it safest to donate it to the Hollywood Film Zoo. However, Shirley goes there at least every other Sunday to visit it. I must admit that I was quite curious when I went to meet little Shirley Temple one day. What would she be like? Every single person I had met in Hollywood before had said about Shirley: "You must meet her and become good friends with her – there is no nicer girl." I would like to believe them all, but deep down there was at least a little black-as-night suspicion lurking. Was it really possible, I thought. Hadn't all this that had grown up around her: the million a year, the 2,000 letters a day, the millions of organized admirers and the even more unorganized millions, the film work, Hollywood ruined her a little? That little Baby LeRoy didn't take any damage to his soul from filming and world fame was not so much to be surprised at, since he was so young that he could hardly have had any idea of what he was really doing when he was filming. But Shirley Temple – she was at least eight years old, or about to be, when I first met her. A girl of seven probably knows a lot more than we older people think. Because little children have intuition, if nothing else. I didn't think I would meet a little diva, because I had heard so many good things about her before that I understood that she wasn't. But I thought she would be a bit self-indulgent and spoiled. Self-conscious, if nothing else. So the big presentation took place together with Mother Temple and Uncle "Doc" Bishop, who is Shirley's special protector in the studio. Yes, it's just as well to lay the cards on the table right away. There is no such thing as Shirley Temple, at least I have never seen one. To say that she is a little weird, natural and completely "movie-spoiled" girl is saying so little. She is something more: A little personality. Funny, lively, intelligent, heart-wrenching. Yes, absolutely heartbreaking, if you know what I mean. It's as impossible not to spontaneously and instantly like Shirley Temple as it is to knock over Rockefeller Center by simply blowing on it. She must have been born with sympathy in some strange way. Is she as nice as she is in the movies, a thousand people have certainly asked me in and after Hollywood. There is only one answer: She's nicer. Because in the movies she's more or less a construction. She plays a role, does what she's told. But in private life she's just as much unconsciously, all by herself. I think she looks at her film work and her fame, which she's now beginning to be aware of, in exactly the same way as any little seven-year-old who has some talent – to sing or recite a verse, for example – looks at this as her special ability. She thinks it's all so much fun. When she's filming, she never wants to stop. When everyone from the director to the cameraman is dead tired in the evening and has to finish their work for the day, Shirley almost becomes a little bit of an imp. Just like all children who are playing and who always have the most fun when the game has to end. Shirley takes the whole filming as one big and delightful game. She thinks it's the most fun when she gets to dance or sing. Dancing is in her blood in a way. As soon as Shirley hears music, she has to move to the beat. I've talked to both her dance teacher and her famous dance instructor, who is currently none other than Bill Robinson – you may remember the one who taught little Eleanor Whitney to tap – and they all agree that Shirley is a phenomenon when it comes to dancing. She grasps the most difficult movements instantly and she doesn't just copy. She reshapes the dance program in a personal, inimitable way. One day, as I was watching, there was a movement that Shirley found a little awkward when she was dancing with Robinson. "Raise your shoulders more, little Shirley," said Mother Temple, "that will make it easier." "I can raise my shoulders as much as Mother wants," replied Shirley immediately, "but then I won't reach the floor." Little Shirley always comes up with the funniest ideas. One day she was to be photographed with two very famous writers. (One of them wasn't me). Just as the photographer was about to take the photo, Shirley leaned over to one of them and said, "Tell me, which of you two is the most famous, because I might as well look at him when the photo is taken." Shirley receives private lessons in the studio, and while I was out there she passed her second preparatory class with flying colors. She reads by heart quite fluently and adds in her head as fast as lightning. She likes to play with her rabbits and feed her dwarf hen, she has a pet doll, which she never lets go of, she had that before she became the famous Shirley Temple for that matter. You have probably heard how she was discovered for the film before. She went to a dance school in Hollywood and when a director wanted to make a short film series called "Baby Burlesques" he cast Shirley for one of the roles. Then she got to do some child roles in regular films and right on cue, before Hollywood itself had any idea about it, Shirley was famous with the general public, world famous. Now they write films especially for Shirley Temple just like they write films for Garbo and other big stars. Shirley also has another hobby for that matter. She collects stamps. So if you want to make her really happy, send her some rare Swedish ones. She has lots of the regular Swedish stamps. Then she has an autograph book, because no matter how famous she is, she has also been caught by the autograph collecting bug. And you have no idea what great names she has there. Gary Cooper and Charlie Chaplin, Mary Peckford [sic] and Douglas Fairbanks. But there are also names like Smith and Brown and Johnson. They are her friends among the study workers. You are not allowed to write in Shirley's book just because you happen to be famous – you are only allowed to write there if you happen to become good friends, really good friends with Shirley. A great sign of sympathy from Shirley is when she plays her favorite game with visitors in her private bungalow which is also a playhouse on the studio grounds. Do you want to learn Shirley's favorite game? You start by drawing a square, consisting of 25 small dotted squares. So you have: (shows a grid of hash marks for 25 squares) Then you connect the dots with lines in turn. Both players get to draw one line each. The goal is to get a square as quickly as possible. Then you get to put your initial in it, you get that square, and at the same time you get an extra line as a prize. The person who, when all the squares are filled in, has their letter in the most has won. Shirley was a master at this game and I lost I think twenty times out of twenty-five. Here is a "game" that we played together and which I of course lost: (photo of square game) Shirley always had a lot of fun when we played that game together. She called it Yum-Yum. She always put an S and I always put a T. "It's just ST, just ST — just Shirley Temple, you've lost everything,” she would say when we were adding up who had won. "They’re not usually that bad anyway. But we'll do it again. You never give up, says Mom."

Below is a detailed section of the article that gives a visual for the game mentioned:



As yet another bonus, Rita shared this photo Shirley shot between takes of “Dimples” with Tamar Cooper, who was mentioned in the article:



The back gives a few more clues about what is going on, with the caption, “Shirley and her Sept. President, Tamar Cooper.” As Rita pointed out, the adoring look the little girl is giving Shirley is priceless! Also note the reference at top to “The Bowery Princess”; this was the name of “Dimples” when the film began production. That title was deemed a bit unsavory for Shirley, and thus switched out for the film’s release.



A million thanks to Rita for always coming through above and beyond the original request!
 
See more Shirley Temple photos at my main website.

Temple Tuesday: Dimples and Romance

Actress Astrid Allwyn had supporting roles in two back-to-back Shirley Temple films, starting with “Dimples” (released October 16, 1936) and followed by “Stowaway” (released December 25, 1936). Allwyn was born Astrid Christofferson on November 27, 1905 in South Manchester, Connecticut. At age 13, she was offered a scholarship to the Boston Conservatory of Music for her singing, but declined rather than move away from home. After high school graduation, she moved to New York, hoping for a career as a concert singer, but ended up taking classes at a business college and becoming a typist on Wall Street. She studied dancing and dramatics while in New York and later gathered experience by joining a stock company. Allwyn made her Broadway debut in 1929 in Elmer Rice’s “Street Scene,” and on the strength of her second play, “Once in a Lifetime,” was brought to Hollywood in 1932. Her first husband was actor Robert Kent, who also starred in “Dimples.” Although she played the gold-digging “other woman” in “Dimples” (Delma Byron, seen below with Robert Kent and Shirley, played the romantic lead) Allwyn ended up winning the leading man in real life. Ain’t that grand?



Allwyn told the story of how she and Kent fell in love in the November 1937 issue of Hollywood Magazine:

Astrid up and got herself married about six months ago to Robert Kent, 20th Century-Fox star, and a mighty good actor in his own right and a chap who is going places in the picture business before he is through. “Frank Morgan can take credit for the start of our romance,” Astrid reveals. “We were shooting a scene in the Shirley Temple picture “Dimples” where Robert was supposed to kiss me. Whether it was because he was shy or because he scarcely knew me,  he suggested to Bill Seiter, the director, that he merely kiss my hand. Bill had some suggestions of his own—and Robert was told to kiss me the way a boy should kiss a girl. Well, the cameras began to grind and we began to kiss. Frank Morgan was supposed to interrupt the embrace with a bit of dialogue but as he said later ‘I didn’t have the heart’ so we kept it up until Bill finally yelled out. From that time on—thanks to Frank Morgan—we began a friendship that ended where we are now—happily married and deeply in love.”

The marriage took place shortly after “Stowaway” wrapped up production, when the two headed south to Tijuana for the ceremony. They married on January 10, 1937, as announced in the Hanover Evening Sun on January 18, 1937:

Astrid Allwyn and Robert Kent, film players, have disclosed they were married Sunday, January 10 in Tijuana, Mexico. The only attendant was J. Edward Bromberg, screen actor. The couple obtained their marriage licenses under their true names of Astrid Christofferson and Douglas Blackley. Their romance began last spring.



Bromberg also costarred in “Stowaway,” seen at left below with Alice Faye, Temple, and Robert Young.



Below are Allwyn and Eugene Pallette in a scene that was ultimately deleted from the final film. Once again, she played a woman with less than desirable morals, about to blackmail Robert Young for some moolah.



The scene below was also deleted from “Stowaway.” Allwyn is barely visible in the final film, hardly earning her onscreen credit.



Despite being “happily married,” Astrid and Robert were divorced in 1941. Allwyn had the distinction of appearing in three Best Picture Oscar nominated films: “The White Parade” (1934), “Love Affair” (1939), and “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington” (1939). She married a second time in 1941 to businessman Charles O. Fee. After filming Hit Parade of 1943 (1943), Astrid made a decision to retire so she could focus on family and raising her children. One of her daughters, Melinda Fee, had a modestly successful career in movies and television. Astrid remained married to Charles until her death in Los Angeles on March 31, 1978 from cancer, at age 72. She is buried in Forest Lawn in Glendale, Court of Freedom, #955.



Above is a publicity shot for Fox, shot by Gene Kornman in 1936. The accompanying blurb:

Hollywood continues to smile upon the small hat and triumphantly demonstrates that size imposes no limits in either beauty or variety. Turbans are strong in the mode and imbued with exceptional charm — as witness this black velvet model by William Lambert, 20th Century-Fox stylist, and worn by lovely Astrid Allwyn, featured player of the same studio. The round crown is effectively trimmed with a black cellophane novelty. The ring worn by Miss Allwyn is one of her heirlooms from Sweden — a floral design in mosaic is set in jet and mounted in antique gold.

She may not have had a huge career, but in Shirley-world, Astrid Allwyn was the perfect villainess for “Dimples.”



See more Shirley Temple photos at my main website.

Temple Tuesday: Shirley & Seiter

Today’s post starts with Shirley and then goes off into some very interesting tangents, thanks to the generosity of one of my readers. Director William Seiter is credited with being at the helm of three Shirley Temple movies, starting with “Dimples” (1936). Costar Frank Morgan is on the left, and Seiter is on the right, watching the proceedings from the comfort of his chair.



In her autobiography Child Star, Shirley tells how Seiter prevented Morgan from taking the attention away from her during a sad ballad:

William Seiter posed me to sing over Morgan’s shoulder. Anchoring Morgan in a chair with the back of his head to the camera was the only way to thwart that wizard. He couldn’t wiggle his ears.

Still, the sight of Morgan’s thick white wavy hair does cause a bit of an odd distraction as Shirley emotes and sings “Picture Me Without You.”



The publicity caption for this “Dimples” shot reads:

SHIRLEY TEMPLE CONQUERS ANOTHER TASK MASTER — like all directors who have preceded him, William Seiter, assigned by Darryl F. Zanuck to direct “Dimples” and “Stowaway” for 20th Century-Fox, has fallen in love with “Shirley Temple the artist” and “Shirley Temple, the unspoiled seven year old kid who gets so much fun out of her work.”



Fun is right. This shot captures the little prankster putting cuffs around Seiter’s ankles while songwriter Ted Koehler pretends to nap. Seiter must have been a good sport.



Below, Seiter gives direction for a scene between Shirley and Helen Westley.



Seiter directed Shirley’s very next film, “Stowaway.”



Shirley gets ready for the shuffleboard scene:



Seiter is once again wearing his customary fedora.



When Walter Lang had to leave for a “medical furlough,” it was Seiter who took over directorial duties on “The Little Princess” (1939), but was uncredited for his troubles. From Shirley’s autobiography Child Star:

For several days cameraman Artie Miller complained in graphic detail about the pain he suffered from a cyst in his cheek.  “There must be a lot of trouble in the world,” I remarked to Mother. “Everyone else has problems. When do I get to have some?”



Seen from the back in this publicity still for “Susannah of the Mounties” (1939), Seiter turned out to be an unfortunate choice for this uninspiring movie that only served to speed up Shirley’s departure from Fox.



In a typical twist of serendipity, it turns out that one of my faithful Temple Tuesday readers has a Seiter connection. As Jackie M. informed me:

My cousin’s name was Jill Woodward, and she has a small entry on imdb.com. She was in a number of silent movies (imdb lists only 4, which is better than TCM, which only lists 2!) and married Bill Seiter in 1919.

From the imdb bio:

Jill Woodward was born on January 18, 1897 in Illinois, USA. She was an actress, known for My Country First (1916), Lightning Bryce (1919) and The Kentucky Colonel (1920). She was previously married to Paul Lill and William A. Seiter. She died on June 17, 1985 in Glendale, Los Angeles County, California, USA.

Jackie was kind enough to share some photos from the family scrapbook. Other than a few captions written on the back, these great photos don’t have a lot of corresponding information. Here’s Bill with a golf club, circa 1919. He was quite the dashing man in his younger days, beginning as a bit player for Mack Sennett, doubling a cowboy.



Here comes a bit of a mystery; according to Wikipedia (I know, I know…not always the most factual!), Seiter was married to Laura La Planted from 1926 to 1934 (ending in divorce). She is “credited” as being his first wife, followed by Marian Nixon from 1934 to 1964, when he died. According to Variety, March 1915, Jill was married to Paul Lill in 1915 with an annulment following only two days later. From the June 12, 1920 issue of Moving Picture World under the “Clip and Paste” column:

Jill Woodward, wife of Director Wiliam A. Seiter, of the National Film Corporation, will be assistant director to her husband in his next production for National.

That’s as much as I could find out about that relationship.

Here are Jill and Bill accompanied by the caption, “Cherokee Court, about 1918.” There is a Cherokee Avenue in Hollywood; whether this building still stands or not is another mystery.



A lovely shot of the two, captioned: “Jill and Bill, ‘Hollywood.’” If you noticed the common credit on these photos for the photographer, it reads C. Heighton Monroe. I assume he had a decent biz in Hollywood, as I found some photos online that he shot of contemporary movie stars of the day, such as Louise Fazenda, and studio head Sam Warner.



Below the couple pose with Douglas MacLean (1890-1967), a stage and film actor who later became a producer and screenwriter, working with W.C. Fields (“Tillie and Gus”) and Cary Grant (“Ladies Should Listen”).



MacLean lived in a bungalow in the Alvarado Court complex next to the famous movie director, William Desmond Taylor (born William Cunningham Deane-Tanner). On February 2, 1922, Taylor was found dead, murdered inside his bungalow. MacLean’s then wife, Faith, was a key witness in the still unsolved murder, as she had witnessed an unknown person leaving Taylor’s apartment the night of the murder. Below is Taylor’s crypt at Hollywood Forever Cemetery:



The caption for the photo below reads, “Jill at the Oxford Street home, L.A., 1922.”



Hollywood does indeed have an Oxford AVENUE. I sure would love to see this beautiful home if it still exists!



Below is an interior view of the property, labeled “Oxford Street. Jill & Bill Seiter rented furnished, 1922.”



You just never know where the topic of Shirley Temple will lead. If anyone has any additional info on the Jill Woodward/William Seiter relationship or the historic properties listed here, please let me know!

THANKS, JACKIE!!
 
UPDATE!

Thanks to Melissa (aka “The Colonel”) and her newspapers.com subscription, a few questions about Jill and her husbands can be answered!

On the two-day marriage, the Oakland Tribune reported this on March 7, 1915:

One day of wedded bliss, following a whirlwind wooing of a brief two weeks, was the lot of Paul R. Lill, aged 20, son of a wealthy Pasadena family, who married Miss Verness Woodward, motion picture actress. Their shattered romance became known yesterday when Mrs. George H. Lill, mother of the youth, declared Paul was not legally married to Miss Woodward. So far as the public records go the couple are legally married, but Paul Lill says he falsified when he swore he was 22 years old. He added that he was led to give a wrong age because Miss Woodward wanted him to marry her and he thought they would be happy together. How the romance turned out is best explained by the youthful bridegroom in an interview he gave out last night at Santa Barbara, where he and his bride went on their honeymoon. He said: “We were married in Los Angeles February 18 by the Rev. James I. Myers of the Broadway Christian church. The following day we came to Santa Barbara and on the 20th my wife left me without giving any explanation. We have both come to the conclusion that it was best for us to part and remain apart forever. We are convinced our marriage was a most unwise move. I have heard from my folks and they are going to have our marriage annulled.” Lill then told of meeting his wife just two weeks before they were wed, and he asserted that it was she who proposed that they get married. “It’s true that I am not of age and that I gave a wrong age when securing a marriage license,” he continued. “We both regret it exceedingly. My wife never made the slightest explanation for leaving me. She simply disappeared. I ran across her later, but she would not say why she left me. Verness declared we had made a botch of our lives and said we’d better quit.” The young woman has not given the slightest inkling to any of her relatives here regarding the break that has come between her and young Lill. Her brother, Frank Woodward, of 1705 Burlington Street, had not heard of the separation. Mrs. Frank Woodward said yesterday. “We have had several messages from Verness since she went on her honeymoon. She said she had been engaged by a motion picture company at Santa Barbara and the manager had made her leading woman. So far as we know she and her husband were happy. We were greatly surprised to learn of the wedding. Verness brought her husband to our home the day they were married and she seemed very happy.” Mr. and Mrs. Lill, parents of the young bridegroom, live at 180 South Lake street, Pasadena. Mr. Lill has an office on Colorado street there. Before the interview was had with her son Mrs. Lill was positive in her statement that the marriage ceremony had not been performed. “I knew of the affair,” she said, “but after the license was taken out my son and the young woman decided they did not care for each other and that ended it. My son is only 20 years old, so he could not get married without our consent.” Rev. James I. Myers said last night he remembered marrying Lill and Miss Woodward. They came to his home in Rose Lawn drive with a young man to act as witness, he said, and he performed the ceremony.

Sounds like the two youngsters were hot and heavy for each other and the groom’s mother stepped in, attempting to whitewash the little affair. Want to see what Frank’s place on 1705 Burlington looks like today? Of course you do. Built in 1919, it still looks to be in great shape!



As for the Pasadena address, it appears that only a 180 South Lake Avenue exists, and a modern office building resides there. Moving onto wedding #2, the L.A. Times from June 12, 1924 reported this:

Bill and Jill Seiter are both in pictures now, which is by way of being a family quorum. Williams is the well-known director and Jill is his wife. Mrs. Seiter is playing the role of the Princess Sonia Zaiskine in “His Hour,” the production which King Vidor is directing, and Elinor Glyn is supervising for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Mrs. Seiter is using the name Jill Reties, which is Seiter spelled backward, and indeed one name sounds just as reasonable as the other. Before marrying William Seiter Mrs. Seiter was known to picturedom as Jill Woodward, leading woman. She retired from professional life when she married, more than seven years ago, and is only just now returning to the screen.

Take that, Wikipedia! Yes, William and Jill were married. As for the Paul and Jill wedding, I’d believe the Reverend, not the mother-in-law! I am still hoping to find out more about Cherokee Court and the house on Oxford Street. Anyone?

See more Shirley Temple photos at my main website.

Temple Tuesday: Shirley’s Peers

Shirley Temple’s films often featured other child hopefuls of the day, including the Kibrick brothers. Sidney Henry Kibrick (born July 2, 1928) made his first film appearance with Shirley in the feature “Out All Night” (1933), followed by “Kid’s Last Fight” (1933), part of the Baby Burlesk series. The freckled young boy can be seen above center, just before he and his cohort attempt to kidnap Shirley so that her boyfriend will lose the big fight. Film producer Hal Roach saw Kibrick performing with Shirley and cast him as one of the kids in the “Our Gang” series (also known as “The Little Rascals” for TV syndication). Kibrick is one of the last surviving members of the classic comedies. He performed in them from 1933 to 1943. He played a thug again (uncredited) in Shirley’s 1938 film, “Just Around the Corner.” In the photo below, he stands with his arms outstretched, fourth from the right. This was a deleted musical number from the end of the film. Kibrick remembered this about working with Shirley: “She tried her best to teach me how to dance, but I couldn’t do it!”



In an interview last summer, Kibrick shared his memories of working on the “Our Gang” comedies:

Myself and Butch [Tommy Bond] were the two tough kids who picked on Alfalfa [Carl Switzer] and Darla [Darla Hood]. My character’s name was Woim or “The Woim.” That was pretty much the basis of the show.…[Alfalfa] was a difficult kid. I didn’t bond with him. I don’t think a lot of the kids did. He created problems for everybody on set. He often wouldn’t do the job the way he was supposed to. It got to a point where he only wanted to do things the way he wanted to do them. He wouldn’t listen to the director Gordon Douglas all that much. Nobody really got along with him. Spanky was very popular with the kids. He was really friendly. And Darla was a gem. She was terrific. But Alfalfa really had a chip on his shoulder. He created problems for the rest of the kids. He treated me the same way he treated a lot of the other kids. He tried not to get along and ignored me. He picked on me. Now, I’m talking about him as a kid, you know?

Leonard Kibrick (photo above, center, wearing a hat) was four years older than his brother Sidney, and was in three Shirley Temple movies: “Poor Little Rich Girl” (1936, as Freckles, uncredited, in a deleted scene shot in Pasadena for the opening sequence of the film), “Dimples” (1936, children’s band member #1, seen below, on Shirley’s right):



…and “Just Around the Corner” (1938, gang member, uncredited, seen below, putting the coin in Shirley’s collection box for the Benefit for Uncle Sam):



Leonard also appeared in the “Our Gang” comedies (1934 to 1936), usually portraying a bully. Tommy Bond replaced Kibrick as the villain in the series (as “Butch”) in 1937, and Leonard's younger brother Sidney Kibrick portrayed Butch’s sidekick, “The Woim” (aka “The Worm”). A native of Minneapolis, Minnesota, Leonard Kibrick died of cancer on January 4, 1993 in Rancho Mirage, where he is buried. His tombstone reads: “Beloved Husband, Father, and Poppy.”

Another frequent young costar of Shirley’s was Diane Fisher, seen here in a bit part from “The Blue Bird” (1940). Afraid she won’t get called to join the other children on the silver ship that would reunite them with their earthbound parents, Fisher’s character sheds a tear. Of course, her name is called at the last minute!



Born in Gilmer, Texas on July 16, 1932, the adorable little girl lived with her mother in Hollywood, garnering bit parts in a number of big budget pictures, including “Gone with the Wind” (1939). This photo of Diane with Vivien Leigh shows that the little girl was involved in the production and dressed for the barbecue scene. Whether or not she can be seen in the finished film is doubtful. Anyone out there with a sharp eye?



Diane was so popular in “The Blue Bird” that she was cast again with Shirley in “Young People” (1940), as Susie.



You can see Diane patiently waiting for a piece of Shirley’s birthday cake below, distributed in between takes of “Young People.”





Fisher made one more film after “Young People,” and retired in 1940 at the ripe old age of eight, moving back to Texas. You can read her obituary here.

See more Shirley Temple photos at my main website.