Today I am writing about Shirley Temple.
There is no reason for this, other than I think a lot of you will find the following information pretty interesting. Like, did you know she lived in Washington, D.C? And she gave birth in Bethesda, Maryland too. Who knew that? I sure didn’t.
First of all, I know you are all wondering, so I will answer your question: yes, Shirley Temple is still alive. She turned 82 this past April 23. In addition to her famous acting career that began when she was a mere three years old, she has been active in a number of organizations such as The Walt Disney Company, Del Monte Foods, and the National Wildlife Federation. Another surprise to me about her life was that according to Wikipedia, “in 1967, she ran unsuccessfully for United States Congress [as a Republican for the House of Representatives], and was appointed United States Ambassador to Ghana in 1974 and to Czechoslovakia in 1989.
Shirley Temple married twice, the second time, to one Charles Alden Black, who was in the Navy. They relocated to Washington, D.C. when Black was recalled to the Navy at the outbreak of the Korean War. It seems that Shirley, her husband, and Temple’s daughter from her first marriage lived in D.C. for only a few years. In 1952, Shirley Temple gave birth to a son at the Bethesda Naval Hospital.
Shirley and her son. (Taken from The Official Shirley Temple web site)
After the birth of her son, the Korean War’s end, and her husband’s discharge from the Navy, the family moved to California, where Shirley gave birth to her third child, another daughter. Some other facts about Shirley Temple include that she was one of the first women to speak openly about [having] breast cancer. One of the more fun facts I learned about Shirley Temple was actually listed at the bottom of her Wikipedia page:
“While Temple occasionally used Jane as a middle name, her birth certificate reads “Shirley Temple”. Temple’s birth certificate was altered to prolong her babyhood shortly after she signed with Fox in 1934; her birth year was advanced from 1928 to 1929. Even her baby book was revised to support the 1929 date. She admitted her real age when she was twenty-one.”
Currently, Shirley Temple lives in Northern California and seems to keep herself busy with activities such as the upkeep of her official website, shirleytemple.com. Frankly, I think it’s pretty neat that she is still alive. Sometimes it is rewarding to just do a little research on famous people of the past and see if they are still around today. People such as Shirley Temple might surprise you that they are still alive and kicking!
And now, a great song sung by Miss Shirley Temple:
CAPSLove 