Shirley Temple was approached to appear in "Last Tap Dance in Springfield" in 2000. Temple was asked to portray Little Miss Vicki Valentine, a child star much like Temple was earlier on in her career, appearing in such films as Curly Top and Heidi. The actress appeared in a few films of differing quality in her mid-to-late teens, and retired completely from films in 1950 at the age of just 22. The fictional Vicki Valentine was a character loosely based on Temple's life as a child star, all grown up, and was depicted as bitter and mean spirited, trying to undermine Lisa. Temple reportedly didn't like how the character was portrayed, and when offered the role, allegedly told producers to 'f*** off'. Just like real-life show biz, however, the show went on, and Tress MacNeille got the role instead.