Shirley Temple Films: Curly Top (U.S., 1935)


Figure 1.--'Curly Top' is one of the most beloved of all of Shirley's films. Together with 'The Littlest Rebel', she dominated the 1935 box office. One of the film’s musical numbers was 'Animal Crackers in My Soup', one of Shirley's best loved numbers.

This beloved Shirley Temple vehicle had perhaps the most destinctive leading credits of all her movies. Her trade-mark curls begin flashing on screen before we see her smiling face. The plot is loosely premised on the the Jane Webster story "Daddy Long Legs" which was a Broadway hit in the 1910s ahd fimed in 1931 with Janet Gaynor and Warner Baxter. "Curly Top" is perhaps the most popular movie Shirley made. Perpetually orphaned Shirley is adopted by a millionaire. The movie has a Dicksonian beginning. It opens on a dark, stormy evening at the Lakeside Orphanage. A group of pefectly behaved little girls, Shirley (Elizabeth Blair) march upstairs in perfect order. The girls wear bib-front overalls. We are not sure about the costuming. I don't think American orphanages outfitted the girls in overalls. The well-to-do bachelor Edward Morgan (John Boles) becomes enchanted with curly-haired orphan, Elizabeth Blair. Elizabeth has an older sister, Mary. Morgan arranges to adopt both using the alias "Mr. Jones." As spends his time with them, he falls in love with Mary. Shirley also made 'The Littlest Rebel' in 1935. They were two of the most popular films of the year. One of the film’s musical numbers was 'Animal Crackers in My Soup', one of Shirley's best loved numbers.






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Created: 6:47 PM 8/7/2010
Last updated: 6:47 PM 8/7/2010