The dark side of Hollywood: Shirley Temple and the infamous ‘Black Box’
Prior to anything remotely resembling censorship guidelines, Hollywood was undoubtedly a dark and sleazy place. Although, in many ways, not an awful lot has changed. However, back in the day, there is one particularly horrifying story that lurks in Hollywood’s dark history.
The story concerns none other than Shirley Temple, who, between 1934 and 1938, was considered one of the leading child actors in Hollywood. Temple’s trademark curled locks, and affable demeanour landed her several roles throughout her childhood. However, Temple’s introduction to Hollywood was marred by a tale of true creepiness. Temple once referred to her first performance as “a cynical exploitation of our childish innocence” but also admitted that she may never have had the success she did without it.
Temple’s first role was in a film called Baby Burlesks. She was just three years old when she signed with Educational Pictures, a company known mostly for its quickfire comedies. However, in 1932, rights and protection laws were not applied to films. It wasn’t until 1934 that the Hays code of censorship guidelines came into force.
The Baby Burlesks was meant to be satires of classic Hollywood films performed by toddlers. Sadly, these performances were anything but innocent. They featured children dressed in overly sexualised adult clothing. In fact, in the short that Temple appeared in, she performed the role of what appears to be a prostitute and wears a small bra whilst polishing her nails. The performance was highly sexualised, sashaying into the scene with her hands on her hips before kissing the child senator on the lips.
Yet, the unacceptable nature of the scenes was not all that young child actors had to deal with. Like the lack of protection and censorship guidelines, there was also a distinct lack of safety parameters for on-set child actors. Directors were regularly accused of being cruel to the children and punishing them unfairly.
Historian John Kassan noted the poor living conditions on the set of Baby Burlesks. He wrote: “To threaten and punish uncooperative child actors, the director, Charles Lamont, kept a soundproof black box, six feet on each side, containing a block of ice. An offending child was locked within this dark, cramped interior and either stood uncomfortably in the cold, humid air or had to sit on the ice. Those who told their parents about this torture were threatened with further punishment.”
So Shirley Temple, with her big eyes and the sheer look of innocence in them, was subject to horrific conditions in the early days of Hollywood when she became a star. Being a child star is difficult and traumatic enough, so, unsurprisingly, Temple retired from film acting at the age of 22.
