Professor Hamilton's Diary: Feb. 27, 1935

He has no time to write; Shirley Temple wins a pint-sized Oscar

Things have obviously deteriorated at the Hamilton house today. He dashed off four words: “Classes. Baby still ill.”

I guess no one had an inclination to catch child star Shirley Temple in The Little Colonel, which was completing its run at Reading’s Embassy theater, a masterpiece of art deco ornamentation. The photo above from that film, accessed through Wikimedia Commons, shows Shirley doing the staircase tap dance with her favorite partner, Bill “Bojangles” Robinson. That night, Shirley was presented with a special miniature Oscar at the 7th Annual Academy Awards, recognizing her contributions to film in 1934. The news short below includes a snippet of a dance routine and the moment in which she was given her statuette.

Read on about this pint-sized prodigy and her amazing career.