Shirley Temple in The Little Colonel - A Historic Film Against Prejudice

According to “The Films of Shirley Temple”, after “Bright Eyes,” the studio, seeing that they had a fine, if pint-sized actress on their hands, decided to make a much grander picture, a period picture with two fine actors. Lionel Barrymore from the legendary Barrymore family was cast as her grandfather, and the wonderful Hattie McDaniel, who only four years later would be cast in “Gone with the Wind” and become the first African-American to win an Academy Award, was cast as the family’s longtime servant/cook, Mom Beck.

The film takes place in the South, just after the end of the Civil War. Lionel Barrymore /Colonel Lloyd is a staunch veteran Confederate still living in his grand plantation home with some of his former slaves. He hates the North and anything to do with Yankees. Meanwhile, his daughter, the beautiful Elizabeth Lloyd played by Evelyn Brent, has fallen in love with a Yankee. Knowing that her father will never give his consent, Elizabeth, with the help of Mom Beck, plans to elope with the man she loves. The Colonel catches her leaving and is tempted to shoot the man she loves dead. Instead, he declares that if she leaves the house to marry this man, she will be dead to him. She does leave and the result, of course, is Shirley Temple/Lloyd Sherman – a name that truly combines north and south.

The Little Colonel, old as it might seem, certainly shows the history of where we are today – the great divide between northern and southern values; the divide between the tradition of slavery and prejudice versus equality--seeing people for who they are, not for the color of their skin or heritage.

In the film, Jack Sherman has been living with his wife and child in a northern army camp. After six years, he is ready to leave with an opportunity to find a living in western lands. There are two fellows who sell him some land, promising wealth, but, unbeknownst to him, they are nothing more than con-artists. While Jack attempt to find a way to support his wife and child, Elizabeth and little Lloyd (now called “the Little Colonel” by everyone), return to the small cottage in the South which Elizabeth’s mother who passed on at an early age, left her. It is here that the story really begins.

Shirley is darling in this role, sweet to her mother and a bit mischevious with Mom Bec, but we love every minute of it. She also has much shorter, blonder curls in this film, which gives her a slightly different look. But as sweet as she is, the Little Colonel has one flaw of character, one that she apparently inherited from her Confederate grandfather – she has a terrible temper. We soon see this temper exhibited when she meets her grandfather for the first time.

The second time she meets her grandfather, he takes her home to dry her clothes. The servants dress her in one of her mother’s old fashioned dresses with a lovely bonnet and she appears to sing a song her grandmother wrote. Grandfather, who has never stopped loving his deceased wife, is truly touched and offers to play a game with her. They play chess, with soldiers representing north and south. The result is a huge fight during which Shirley/Lloyd finally, in anger, knocks the table over. Throughout these scenes, as unpleasant as “grandfather” tries to be with this moppet, we see his heart
melted by her. She, in turn, with all flaws and bad temper melts as quickly to sweetness. Temple and Barrymore are a wonderful pair.

When the Little Colonel’s father finally returns, his is sick and, having been swindled by the pair of con-artists, has lost all his money. Because Papa Jack’s illness is deemed contagious, it is thought best that little Lloyd be sent to her grandfather’s for safety. It is at grandfather’s house that two things happen. When grandfather complains about her appearance she says, “My mother loves me even if my clothes are old and ugly.” In that, we learn that true love, love of a person that is not about appearance, is the most important thing.

Then, another event takes place, the first onscreen dance between Shirley Temple and Bill Robinson. Now Bill Robinson was said to be the best tap dancer in the world, but being a person of color, there wasn’t much work in film. It was necessary for black people to play servants, but it must be said that he plays “Walker” with great style and pizazz! The friendship that developed between Bill Robinson and Shirley Temple was a true friendship that would last until his death in 1949. While others might have seen a grown man and a little girl, an African-American man and a little white girl, these two saw one another for what they were – two happy people who loved life and loved to dance. Shirley later spoke of her “Uncle Billy” as kind of soulmate.

Bill "Bojangles" Robinson and Shirley Temple in the famous stair dance.

In the film, grandfather tells “Walker”/Bill Robinson to take Lloyd up to bed. She’s not used to a big house and misses her mother, so she says to him, “I don’t want to go up there.” When Walker offers her a new way of going upstairs, she’s curious. This offers Bill Robinson the chance to perform his famous stair dance on film. He also taught it to Shirley. Shirley’s stand-in, Marilyn Granas, said recently that the first time the pair performed and filmed this scene there was absolute silence on the set as people watched this tiny girl and veteran dancer go up the stairs. Little Shirley made not one mistake. It was perfect the first time and they were all amazed. At that moment magic was born.

This scene is now considered historic as the first time an inter-racial couple held hands on film. In

Shoes and hat worn for second dance. Location of dress
which appears on front cover of DVD is unknown.

fact, in the south, the film of the pair holding hands was cut out in the 1930s, being considered too controversial. We have come a long way, but obviously not far enough. Shirley and Bill might have been astounded at the time to hear this billed as historic. They were two people who liked one another, two artists who admired one another and they played their parts in a way that says “humanity,” not color divide. It should be noted that white people were not the only ones to make derisive comments about a little white girl and a black man being friends. Bill Robinson’s own friends of color often commented on the relationship, looking askance on his friendship with Shirley, ‘the famous little white girl.’

As “The Little Colonel” moves forward, we see the price of prejudice more sharply. The men whom Lloyd/Shirley term as “those bad men” (and who probably pass as okay because they are white) return to try to rob “Papa Jack” again. Mom Beck, who has gone to town on business and returns, unwittingly falls into their hands. The Little Colonel, seeing that her father is in danger, runs through a frightening dark forest to get her grandfather to come and save her father. When he refuses on the basis of her father being a Yankee (he still will not speak to her mother), she gives the most heartrending performance in a few words and leaves him. It brings tears to the eyes just to think of those moments on film.

Beautiful dress, rarely seen, filmed in color
for The Little Colonel's final scene.

In the end, of course, grandfather comes to his senses. He takes Lloyd back to the house and uses his gun and his toughness to save Shirley/Lloyd’s parents from robbery and possible death. He also reunites with his daughter, welcoming his son-in-law into the family. Of course, looking back many may want to theorize about this film, but all these events took place on simple terms though the eyes of the child, which is the way I, and many others watched and came to love Shirley Temple films. Either you have love in your heart or you don't.

Now, all the years The Little Colonel was shown on film, it ended with Hattie McDaniel/Mom Beck, hitting the door of the closet she’s locked in with her backside until the door finally comes down. It was only recently that this writer learned that this was not the final scene at all. It appears 20^th Century Fox, knowing what a big star little Shirley was and would be, and considering this a very lavish film, decided to test a new color process on the final scene. No doubt, this color film at the time was also quite expensive. In later years, when the film was shown on television and put on VHS, no one knew what to do with the color film so it was left off.

Perhaps one reason this came to light was the fact that Shirley Temple’s costumes – which were kept, first by Shirley’s mother and then by Shirley herself-- are about to be auctioned [see Love, Shirley Temple] and the gorgeous final outfit, a true treasure is among them. This auction will take place on July 14^th in Kansas City and online.

Theriaults - Love, Shirley Temple Auction