Baby, Take a Bow

Shirley Temple Black, the Hollywood darling of the 1930s, passed away Monday, February 10, at the age of 85. She’ll forever be immortalized in her tap dancing, sing-songing, curly-head-bobbing films, like 1934’s Stand Up and Cheer! and Baby, Take a Bow and 1935’s The Little Colonel. The tiny dancer soft-shoed with some hoofing heavy hitters, including Bill “Bojangles” Robinson, James Dunn and George Murphy.

Though she retired from the silver screen at age 22, she eventually immersed herself in politics, launching a second career as a diplomat. Here at DM, we’d like to think her early dance experience played a role in the development of her creative thinking and problem solving skills.