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Mapping Shirley Temple's LA: From Santa Monica to Hollywood

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It's been less than a month since the passing of Hollywood screen legend Shirley Temple Black on February 10th. But with all the Oscar hoopla today, we thought it would be nice to remember her time spent among us here in LA. Born in Santa Monica in 1928, Shirley Temple lived and worked in Hollywood from her earliest memories until she left for Northern California in 1954. Her later years may be remembered primarily for her politics and work as an Ambassador, but her time in Los Angeles was mainly spent in the movie studios. We've compiled a list of all of her homes in LA and other locations that are important in the story of her life. Here's hoping Shirley get the final image in tonight's In Memoriam segment! Good luck Shirley.


Other Places Not on the Map:

Desert Inn - Palm Springs
123 North Palm Canyon Drive
Needing to escape the Hollywood publicity machine, George and Gertrude would take Shirley to Palm Springs, staying at a rented house or the Desert Inn (now the site of Desert Fashion Plaza and the Forever Marilyn statue). From mydesert.com: "Locals have reminisced about Shirley's time at The Desert Inn, describing how she played with local children and was simply, "the sweetest little girl." In circa 1938, while Shirley was prepping for "Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm," she and Desert Inn owner Nellie Coffman made the papers when Shirley christened her own cottage at The Desert Inn; she of course, used a bottle of milk rather than a bottle of champagne."

200 Block of Coral Ave, Balboa Island, Newport Beach
The OC Register remembers Shirley Temple's time spent on Balboa Island as a youngster, where her family rented a cottage. "Longtime Newport Beach resident George Grupe is 92, but he turns 12 all over again when he recalls the youngster on the tricycle riding up and down the sidewalk near his childhood home on Balboa Island. He can still hear the sound of the bell mounted on the handlebars. Shirley Temple just loved to ring it as she rode along, Grupe says. "She said, 'Out of my way. I'm Shirley Temple the movie star.' Ringing that bell – ding-dong, ding-dong."

9521 Sunset Boulevard, Beverly Hills
The property at the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Foothill Road is listed as a childhood home of Shirley's in several sources (including this Curbed story). However, we can't find any additional details about the home or how long she might have lived there with her family.

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Santa Monica Hospital

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Shirley Temple was born at Santa Monica Hospital on Monday April 23, 1928. She weighed six pounds and eight ounces. [Photo from 1941, LAPL Collection]

948 24th Street

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George and Gertrude Temple purchased the Spanish-style bungalow in 1927 after George had been promoted to assistant manager of his bank branch at Washington Blvd and Vermont Ave. The home was large enough to accommodate the growing family, which at that time included George, Gertrude and two sons, Jack and Sonny. The home had a two-car garage, a red-tiled roof, and a massive fireplace in the living room. Shirley was born a year later in 1928. "Shirley spent the first years of her life in a crib placed in a corner of the living room a short distance from the record player... At eight months, Shirley was standing in her crib swaying to the rhythm of the songs." [Source: Shirley Temple, An American Princess]

Mack Sennett Studios [former]

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Hoping to launch her daughter into pictures, in 1931 Gertrude Temple took young Shirley (age 3) to dance classes at the famed Ethel Meglin Studios. The Meglin Studios had several locations around the city, including at the Mack Sennett Studios in Studio City. Meglin put on a popular "kiddie revue" and taught dance classes that would attract talent scouts. Judy Garland, age 9, was also a student of Meglin at that time. It was here Shirley would begin her film career with shorts for Educational Films in "Baby Burlesks".

Fox Ritz Theater

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Shirley's first big role came after a chance encounter with Hollywood songwriter Jay Gorney at the Fox Ritz Theater, where Gorney spotted her singing and doing tap dance while looking at a movie photo display for 42nd Street. Gorney brought Shirley in to the Fox Studios lot to audition for a part in his upcoming film "Stand Up and Cheer", which she won. It was her first big, starring role and would immediately lead to more roles. The Fox Ritz was demolished in 1977 and is now the site of the recently completed Wilshire-La Brea mixed use building that everyone hates.

259 19th Street

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In late 1934, the family moved to a new house following Shirley's continued success and growing fame in the movies. From 'Shirley Temple, American Princess': "The house in Santa Monica was too cramped for the Temples' new life. They moved to a larger, but fundamentally middle-class, house, a few blocks away." In her autobiography, Shirley says of the home: "Inside and out, it was festooned with a jungle of hanging plants in wrought iron pots." [Image via Google StreetView]

Fox Studios

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Many of Shirley's early films were filmed on the 20th Century Fox studio lot located off Pico in Century City. Because she was on set so much, 6 to 7 hours a day, Monday through Saturday, a special bungalow was built for her. "Painted white and trimmed in a blue scalloped and polka-dot design, the four bedroom bungalow had on its grounds a garden, a picket fence, a tree with a swing, and a rabbit pen." The bungalow also included a baby grand piano and a mural of Shirley in a fairy-tale princess costume. [image of Shirley at her bungalow from miss-shirley-temple.tumblr.com/]

Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel

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In 1934, six year old Shirley Temple received a miniature Oscar statuette at the Academy Awards ceremony held in the Blossom Room. She had appeared in six movies that year.

Shirley Temple's Hand Prints

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In March 1935, Shirley famously placed her hands into the wet cement in front of Grauman's Chinese Theater (now the TCL Chinese Theater). The event coincided with the release of her picture "The Little Colonel", which co-starred Lionel Barrymore.

227 Rockingham Avenue

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By 1936, the family needed a larger home - plus something with more security to keep the fans at bay. "The house was of French-Normandy design, its front hidden from the road and its rear looking down across a slope of hills to the Will Rogers Memorial Polo Grounds." The home also had a stable for Shirley's ponies Spunky and Little Carnation. The home featured a large playhouse in the back yard, that would eventually be converted into a second home, later occupied by Shirley and her first husband John Agar. [Source: Shirley Temple, American Princess.]

Westlake School for Girls

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In 1940, following a number of dismal returns on her films, an aging Shirley Temple (age 12) left 20th Century Fox for better opportunities but was unable to secure a new contract with another studio. Her parents enrolled her at Westlake School for Girls (located in Holmby Hills) that Fall, where other famous children were enrolled, including June Lockhart and Phoebe Hearst. Shirley would go on to sing in the glee club and write a gossip column in the school newspaper. [Photo of Shirley at her graduation from Westlake via miss-shirley-temple.tumblr.com]

ZaSu Pitt's Home

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In 1943, Shirley met her future husband John Agar at the home of film-star and neighbor ZaSu Pitts. "On a Sunday afternoon in the summer of 1943, ZaSu's daughter Ann Gallery held a small swimming party at her home." John and Shirley were both there. At the time John was 23 and Shirley was 15, but she was smitten, and would manage to be at ZaSu's house when she was told that John was to be there.

Wilshire United Methodist Church

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On September 19, 1945, Shirley (age 17) married John Agar in what Life Magazine described as "Hollywood's biggest social event since the Vilma Banky - Rod La Roque nuptials of 1927." The wedding invite list of 500 included California Governor Earl Warren and producer David O. Selznick. A crowd of thousands surrounded the church trying to make their way in but were held back by military and local police. The reception was held in the backyard of the Temple's Brentwood home on Rockingham.

209 Rockingham Avenue

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The playhouse in the back of the Temple's family home that had originally housed Shirley's large doll collection, was converted into a separate residence. John Agar and Shirley moved into the residence shortly after their wedding in 1945 and lived in the home with their daughter Linda Susan, until their divorce four years later. The photo shows the family in the living room of the home.

Dave's Blue Room / Sherry's

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Dealing with her crumbling marriage to John Agar, Shirley would sometimes hang out in the after-hours clubs on the Sunset Strip. From her autobiography, Shirley describes her one time run-in with gangster Mickey Cohen at Dave's Blue Room. "We met at mid-stairway, his chunky body pressed sideways facing me. As we stood fitted together like sardines, he said he had noticed me with his friend [Barney]Ruditsky, and how much he liked my films. In such close proximity to a genuine underworld insider, my imagination raced ahead but he was gone." Ruditsky later invited Shirley to come along, in an unmarked car, to watch the LAPD and County sheriffs perform a marijuana raid at a hideaway of actor Robert Mitchum, but she declined.

9439 Sunset Boulevard

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After a year long romance, Shirley married Charles Black. The two were married in December 1950 in Del Monte, CA. The current site of the Neutra-designed Kronish house, this address is also given as a former home of Shirley Temple's. One source lists it as being occupied by Shirley from 1950-52. This time frame would coincide with her marriage to Charles Black and the family's move to Washington DC, before returning to LA in 1953 and settling at 2200 Bowmont.

2200 Bowmont Drive

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Following her divorce from John Agar in 1949, Shirley escaped to Hawaii where she met Charles Black, an assistant to Jim Dole of the Hawaiian Pineapple Co. They were married within a year and relocated to Washington DC as part of Black's service in the military. After a brief tenure in D.C., the family which now included a daughter from her first marriage and a new son with Black, returned to LA. In 1953, the family moved into the home at 2200 Bowmont Drive, overlooking Beverly Hills. It would her last home in Southern California. In 1954 following the birth of daughter Lori Alden Black, the family moved to Atherton, in Northern California.

The Brown Derby - Hollywood

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Although, there is dispute as to the origin of Shirley Temple's namesake drink, Temple herself said the drink was first concocted at the Brown Derby in Hollywood.

Shirley Temple's Hollywood Star

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The star sits on the east side of Vine, between Sunset and Selma. At the time of Shirley's death on February 10, the star was out for repairs. At last check, it is still out of commission.

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Santa Monica Hospital

Shirley Temple was born at Santa Monica Hospital on Monday April 23, 1928. She weighed six pounds and eight ounces. [Photo from 1941, LAPL Collection]

948 24th Street

George and Gertrude Temple purchased the Spanish-style bungalow in 1927 after George had been promoted to assistant manager of his bank branch at Washington Blvd and Vermont Ave. The home was large enough to accommodate the growing family, which at that time included George, Gertrude and two sons, Jack and Sonny. The home had a two-car garage, a red-tiled roof, and a massive fireplace in the living room. Shirley was born a year later in 1928. "Shirley spent the first years of her life in a crib placed in a corner of the living room a short distance from the record player... At eight months, Shirley was standing in her crib swaying to the rhythm of the songs." [Source: Shirley Temple, An American Princess]

Mack Sennett Studios [former]

Hoping to launch her daughter into pictures, in 1931 Gertrude Temple took young Shirley (age 3) to dance classes at the famed Ethel Meglin Studios. The Meglin Studios had several locations around the city, including at the Mack Sennett Studios in Studio City. Meglin put on a popular "kiddie revue" and taught dance classes that would attract talent scouts. Judy Garland, age 9, was also a student of Meglin at that time. It was here Shirley would begin her film career with shorts for Educational Films in "Baby Burlesks".

Fox Ritz Theater

Shirley's first big role came after a chance encounter with Hollywood songwriter Jay Gorney at the Fox Ritz Theater, where Gorney spotted her singing and doing tap dance while looking at a movie photo display for 42nd Street. Gorney brought Shirley in to the Fox Studios lot to audition for a part in his upcoming film "Stand Up and Cheer", which she won. It was her first big, starring role and would immediately lead to more roles. The Fox Ritz was demolished in 1977 and is now the site of the recently completed Wilshire-La Brea mixed use building that everyone hates.

259 19th Street

In late 1934, the family moved to a new house following Shirley's continued success and growing fame in the movies. From 'Shirley Temple, American Princess': "The house in Santa Monica was too cramped for the Temples' new life. They moved to a larger, but fundamentally middle-class, house, a few blocks away." In her autobiography, Shirley says of the home: "Inside and out, it was festooned with a jungle of hanging plants in wrought iron pots." [Image via Google StreetView]

Fox Studios

Many of Shirley's early films were filmed on the 20th Century Fox studio lot located off Pico in Century City. Because she was on set so much, 6 to 7 hours a day, Monday through Saturday, a special bungalow was built for her. "Painted white and trimmed in a blue scalloped and polka-dot design, the four bedroom bungalow had on its grounds a garden, a picket fence, a tree with a swing, and a rabbit pen." The bungalow also included a baby grand piano and a mural of Shirley in a fairy-tale princess costume. [image of Shirley at her bungalow from miss-shirley-temple.tumblr.com/]

Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel

In 1934, six year old Shirley Temple received a miniature Oscar statuette at the Academy Awards ceremony held in the Blossom Room. She had appeared in six movies that year.

Shirley Temple's Hand Prints

In March 1935, Shirley famously placed her hands into the wet cement in front of Grauman's Chinese Theater (now the TCL Chinese Theater). The event coincided with the release of her picture "The Little Colonel", which co-starred Lionel Barrymore.

227 Rockingham Avenue

By 1936, the family needed a larger home - plus something with more security to keep the fans at bay. "The house was of French-Normandy design, its front hidden from the road and its rear looking down across a slope of hills to the Will Rogers Memorial Polo Grounds." The home also had a stable for Shirley's ponies Spunky and Little Carnation. The home featured a large playhouse in the back yard, that would eventually be converted into a second home, later occupied by Shirley and her first husband John Agar. [Source: Shirley Temple, American Princess.]

Westlake School for Girls

In 1940, following a number of dismal returns on her films, an aging Shirley Temple (age 12) left 20th Century Fox for better opportunities but was unable to secure a new contract with another studio. Her parents enrolled her at Westlake School for Girls (located in Holmby Hills) that Fall, where other famous children were enrolled, including June Lockhart and Phoebe Hearst. Shirley would go on to sing in the glee club and write a gossip column in the school newspaper. [Photo of Shirley at her graduation from Westlake via miss-shirley-temple.tumblr.com]

ZaSu Pitt's Home

In 1943, Shirley met her future husband John Agar at the home of film-star and neighbor ZaSu Pitts. "On a Sunday afternoon in the summer of 1943, ZaSu's daughter Ann Gallery held a small swimming party at her home." John and Shirley were both there. At the time John was 23 and Shirley was 15, but she was smitten, and would manage to be at ZaSu's house when she was told that John was to be there.

Wilshire United Methodist Church

On September 19, 1945, Shirley (age 17) married John Agar in what Life Magazine described as "Hollywood's biggest social event since the Vilma Banky - Rod La Roque nuptials of 1927." The wedding invite list of 500 included California Governor Earl Warren and producer David O. Selznick. A crowd of thousands surrounded the church trying to make their way in but were held back by military and local police. The reception was held in the backyard of the Temple's Brentwood home on Rockingham.

209 Rockingham Avenue

The playhouse in the back of the Temple's family home that had originally housed Shirley's large doll collection, was converted into a separate residence. John Agar and Shirley moved into the residence shortly after their wedding in 1945 and lived in the home with their daughter Linda Susan, until their divorce four years later. The photo shows the family in the living room of the home.

Dave's Blue Room / Sherry's

Dealing with her crumbling marriage to John Agar, Shirley would sometimes hang out in the after-hours clubs on the Sunset Strip. From her autobiography, Shirley describes her one time run-in with gangster Mickey Cohen at Dave's Blue Room. "We met at mid-stairway, his chunky body pressed sideways facing me. As we stood fitted together like sardines, he said he had noticed me with his friend [Barney]Ruditsky, and how much he liked my films. In such close proximity to a genuine underworld insider, my imagination raced ahead but he was gone." Ruditsky later invited Shirley to come along, in an unmarked car, to watch the LAPD and County sheriffs perform a marijuana raid at a hideaway of actor Robert Mitchum, but she declined.

9439 Sunset Boulevard

After a year long romance, Shirley married Charles Black. The two were married in December 1950 in Del Monte, CA. The current site of the Neutra-designed Kronish house, this address is also given as a former home of Shirley Temple's. One source lists it as being occupied by Shirley from 1950-52. This time frame would coincide with her marriage to Charles Black and the family's move to Washington DC, before returning to LA in 1953 and settling at 2200 Bowmont.

2200 Bowmont Drive

Following her divorce from John Agar in 1949, Shirley escaped to Hawaii where she met Charles Black, an assistant to Jim Dole of the Hawaiian Pineapple Co. They were married within a year and relocated to Washington DC as part of Black's service in the military. After a brief tenure in D.C., the family which now included a daughter from her first marriage and a new son with Black, returned to LA. In 1953, the family moved into the home at 2200 Bowmont Drive, overlooking Beverly Hills. It would her last home in Southern California. In 1954 following the birth of daughter Lori Alden Black, the family moved to Atherton, in Northern California.

The Brown Derby - Hollywood

Although, there is dispute as to the origin of Shirley Temple's namesake drink, Temple herself said the drink was first concocted at the Brown Derby in Hollywood.

Shirley Temple's Hollywood Star

The star sits on the east side of Vine, between Sunset and Selma. At the time of Shirley's death on February 10, the star was out for repairs. At last check, it is still out of commission.