Shirley Temple
...car at age six. She received a custom-made miniature Oscar. To honor Shirley for her work, Fox threw her a yearly Birthday celebration inviting children of employees and contract players. Fox presented Shirley to the public as one year younger than she really was. “Shirley was thirteen before she knew her real age” (Edwards, 157). She lived her life constantly in the public eye. Like every other Hollywood star, Shirley had many fans. “Shirley posed for more than 50 photographs a day, six days a week, whether or not she was filming” (Edward, 156). With all the paparazzi, fans now had a Shirley Temple they could take home with them. Fox instilled Shirley Temple dolls that resembled Shirley in different roles she played in her movies. They had become collectible figures owned by almost every 7 to 12-year-old girl. Such dolls are being auctioned for high prices today, as they are not sold in stores anymore. At a very young age, Shirley Temple had become the top-grossing box office star in the world. At times when she was not filming, she would go to a regular school. Her grades improved in high school when she wasn’t as involved in acting as she was in her elementary years, when she was barely passing. During her teenage years she met a man who was just a friend at first but turned out to be her future husband. At her high school graduation, she announced her engagement to John Agar, a former Air Force sergeant who later also became an actor. Married at 17, her life was always in the public eye. Shirley and John divorced a few years later because Agar became a severe alcoholic. Shirley had had one daughter, Susan, with John Agar before she divorced him. John Agar died on April 7th, 2002. At 21, she had split and was anxious to take the first real vacation of her life. Shirley left Hollywood and went to Hawaii. There she met her second husband, Charles Black. They had three children together: Lori, Susan, and Charles Jr. Although she continued to act on radio and television in the 1950s, she never made another feature film. Instead, she dedicated her life to public service. As a child she was the world's best know ambassador of goodwill. Unlike some child stars of today, Shirley Temple's early fame didn't drive her to drugs or crime as a teenager or adult. On the contrary, her professional training gave her the poise and confidence to make contributions to the world long after her childhood film career ended. Appointed by President Richard M. Nixon, in 1969, Mrs. Black became a U.S. Delegate to the United Nations. In the years that followed she served as a U.S. Delegate to many International Conferences and Summits on cooperative treaties and human environment. In 1976 she became the first female Chief of Protocol of the United States. From this position she moved on to the U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Ghana from 1974-1976, then U.S. Chief Protocol, and then an...