Reel Entropy

Beloved 1930s child star Shirley Temple died today of natural causes. She was 85.

Despite retiring as an actor at 21, Temple has an extensive, award-winning filmography that includes Heidi, The Little Princess and The Littlest Rebel. She became the first performer to receive a juvenile Academy Award in 1934 at just 6 years old. She is one of only 12 recipients of this honor.

After retiring from film, Temple moved on to a political career with the Republican party, but lost her first election to represent California’s 11th district. She was appointed by Richard Nixon to the United Nations General Assembly two years later, and would go on to serve as U.S. ambassador to Ghana under Gerald Ford and to Czechoslovakia under George H. W. Bush. Also during the Ford administration, she became the first woman Chief of Protocol of the United States.

Temple beat cancer in 1972, undergoing a mastectomy. She was one of the first celebrities to publicly announce the diagnosis.

Temple had three children, the youngest of whom is 59. BBC reports she died in her home surrounded by family and caregivers.

Movies are a director’s medium. Acting, on its face, is very easy — only a few small steps up from modeling. The camera man dresses the models up and they pose for him while he takes still pictures. The costume designer dresses up the actors and they pose for the directors while the cameraman takes moving pictures.

That’s why less talented actors — Keanu Reeves and Kristen Stewart are good examples — keep getting work. They show up on time with their lines memorized and follow the director’s instructions. That’s why headshots are the first things an actor uses to get a job. That’s why our favorite performers are usually the ones we’re most attracted to — for an actor to actually raise the level of a production without also writing or something takes a load of charisma and herculean effort, so we all just like the pretty one because it’s easier.

Philip Seymour Hoffman had twice the requisite charisma and consistently gave that effort, and was an A-list actor for more discerning movie goers. At 46, he had decades of performances left that we are never going to see, both cinematic and on-stage — his live work is extensive and award-winning, culminating in him starring as Willy Loman in the 2012 Broadway production of  Death of a Salesman.

He leaves behind a girlfriend of 15 years, a son, two daughters and millions more who will never see him light up another stage.