A Shirley Temple for Shirley Temple
Photo credit: Getty
Shirley Temple Black, of the famed Shirley Temple film series, passed away yesterday at 85 years old.
As the New York Times reports: “From 1935 to 1939 she was the most popular movie star in America, with Clark Gable a distant second. She received more mail than Greta Garbo and was photographed more often than President Franklin D. Roosevelt.”
I was well aware of her star quality. As a little girl, I watched her sing “On the Good Ship Lollipop” and “Animal Crackers in My Soup,” mimicking every little tap of the toe and wishing I had perfect blonde ringlets that bounced just so. What I didn’t know was that Black had gone on to have a successful second career as a diplomat and a Republican fund-raiser. Or that—after a mastectomy in the early ’70s—she would become one of the first celebrities to talk publicly about breast cancer.
Still, she will most likely be remembered for her little-girl charm, which would be a strong legacy all on its own, since she brightened Americans’ spirits during the Depression. Shirley Temple was such a big deal that the Brown Derby restaurant in Hollywood created a cherry-red soda concoction in her name. It’s the drink that I (and every little girl, everywhere) ordered when I was out to dinner with my family; I felt no less important for not being able to drink an adult cocktail. In fact, I felt that they might be missing out on something.
Black, I tip my hat (and tap my toes) to you. And I’ll be drinking a Shirley Temple in your honor today.
Shirley Temple
Makes one
Some people just garnish with a cherry; some people garnish with a cherry and an orange slice. We do the latter, because why not?
3 ounces lemon-lime soda
3 ounces ginger ale
Dash grenadine
Maraschino cherry for garnish
Orange slice for garnish
Pour lemon-lime soda and ginger ale into a highball glass with ice cubes. (Or a wine glass, if you want to feel like a grownup.) Add a dash of grenadine and stir to combine. Top with cherry and orange wheel.
