Child Star: The Shirley Temple Story

Unlike Shirley Temple herself, this by-the-book (that book being Temple's 1988 autobiography) made-for-TV bio-pic doesn't "sparkle." 10-year-old Ashley Rose Orr is mostly up to the challenge of portraying America's beloved child star, but she lacks that spirited vivacity that made Shirley such a beacon of hope during the Depression. Connie Britton and Colin Friels provide able support as her parents (although we never get a sense of what drove mom to push the precociously-talented Shirley into show business) in this sunny chronicle that finds Shirley winning over jealous co-stars and dictatorial directors, while at the mercy of untrustworthy studio execs who cheat the family. Also chronicled is the tragic manner by which Temple lost her dream role as Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz. Teen star Melissa Joan Hart (Sabrina, the Teenage Witch) served as executive producer (by the time Shirley was Melissa's age, her film career was all but finished). An optional purchase as a biography, most libraries would be better off making sure they have Shirley Temple's films instead, several of which are now also available on DVD. (K. Lee Benson)