Shirley Temple, later Shirley Temple Black, (born April 23, 1928, Santa Monica, Calif., U.S.—died Feb. 10, 2014, Woodside, Calif.), U.S. child actress. She was selected from her dancing class for a screen test and made her debut at age four. She won notice in Stand Up and Cheer (1934) and was featured in Little Miss Marker (1934) and Bright Eyes (1934), in which she sang “On the Good Ship Lollipop.” A precocious performer known for her dimples and golden curls, she became the country’s most popular female star and Hollywood’s top box office attraction in the Great Depression era. She received a special Academy Award in 1934. Her later films include The Little Colonel (1935), Wee Willie Winkie (1937), and The Little Princess (1939). As an adult, she served as a U.S. delegate to the UN General Assembly (1969–70) and as U.S. ambassador to Ghana (1974–76) and Czechoslovakia (1989–92).
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