8 Beloved Child Actors Who Completely Disappeared From Our Screens

5. Shirley Temple

Not just the name of a refreshing virgin cocktail, Shirley Temple was one of the first bona fide child stars, first coming to prominence in the 1934 in Bright Eyes at the age of 5. She was a major box office draw in those early years and starred in many feature-length films in addition to shorts, but her popularity waned as she grew older and Temple retired from film altogether at the age of 22. She took on some television roles in her 30s but soon gave that up as well, but the fact that Shirley Temple had gotten over the whole 'fame' thing in her 20s isn't the most interesting thing about her. After stardom, Temple sat on the boards of various corporations, from Del Monte to Disney, and became politically active in the 1960s for the Republican party. She even served as the ambassador to Ghana (and later Czechoslovakia) and the Chief Protocol of the United States in the 1970s and onwards. When she was diagnosed with breast cancer she announced the fact on the radio, becoming one of the first people to openly speak about the illness.

Shirley Temple passed away in February this year, and is a sparkling example of a child star who managed to make her adult years just as (if not far more) exciting and fulfilling as her childhood.