Shirley Temple, who is most known for her role in the 1934 smash film “Bright Eyes,” died in 2014 at the age of 85, but not before finally disclosing the heartbreaking truth behind her childhood stardom.
Shirley Temple was three years old when she made her first credited appearance in War Babies in 1932. The film was one of eight in the Baby Burlesks series, which mocked big motion movies, actors, celebrities, and current events. Children imitate adults in these frequently sexually provocative one-reelers. They dress up as adults but wear diapers that are secured with huge safety pins. Temple portrayed Charmaine, a sex prostitute in that specific short.
Shirley Temple Black described the series as “a cynical exploitation of our childish innocence” in her memoirs, and observes that the short films were occasionally racist or sexist.
The shorts were sexually explicit while being primarily featuring children, as they were intended to be a parody of adult content, according to the “New York Times.” However, the justification of “doing it for the art” falls short in this case, as the tiny girl was required to wear attractive costumes and emulate famous cinema stars such as Marlene Dietrich, Mae West, and Dolores Rio.
If any of the two dozen youngsters in Baby Burlesks misbehaved, they were forced to sit on a block of ice in a windowless sound booth called the “punishment box.” Temple was repeatedly put to the box, but she claims, “As far as I can tell, the black box did no lasting damage to my psyche. Its lesson of life, however, was profound and unforgettable. Time is money. Wasted time means wasted money means trouble.”
The young celebrity was also forced to work the day after having her eardrum lanced, and she was forced to dance on a gravely wounded foot on another occasion.
Shirley Temple alleged in her biography “Child Star” that MGM producer Arthur Freed, who was notorious for having a “adventurous casting couch,” unbuttoned his trousers and exposed himself to her during their first meeting in 1940. She was 12. She reacted with uncomfortable laughing, unaware of male anatomy, and he threw her out of his office. Thankfully, she had already signed her MGM contract.
Freed went on to create movies including Annie Get Your Gun (1950) and Singin’ In The Rain (1961). (1953).
Anita Colby was the artistic director for Gone with the Wind producer David O. Selznick. If she “found him (Selznick) in stockings,” she urged Temple to be cautious.
This gave Temple the notion that “casual sex could be a condition of employment” with Selznick, according to her memoirs Child Star.
She also remembered meeting with comedian George Jessel to talk about a prospective collaboration, which turned out to be a ruse to harm Shirley.
A quick strike to the crotch was her only way out.
As Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon who is called Peter, and his brother Andrew, casting a net into the sea; they were fishermen. He said to them, “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.” Matthew 4:18–19
Today, we honor one of the Apostles: Saint Andrew. Andrew and his brother Peter were fishermen who would soon take on a new form of fishing. They would soon become “fishers of men,” as Jesus said. But prior to being sent on this mission by our Lord, they had to become His followers. And this happened as our Lord was first the fisher of these men.
Notice that in this Gospel, Jesus was simply walking by and “saw” these two brothers working hard at their occupation. First, Jesus “saw” them, and then He called them. This gaze of our Lord is worth pondering.
Imagine the profound truth that our Lord is continually gazing at you with divine love, looking for the moment that you turn your attention to Him. His gaze is perpetual and deep. His gaze is one that yearns for you to follow Him, to abandon all else so as to hear His gentle invitation not only to follow Him but to then go forth and invite others on the journey of faith.
As we begin this Advent season, we must allow the call of Andrew and Peter to also become our own calling. We must allow ourselves to notice Jesus as He looks at us, sees who we are, is aware of everything about us, and then speaks a word of invitation. He says to you, “Come after me…” This is an invitation that must permeate every aspect of your life. To “come after” Jesus is to leave all else behind and to make the act of following our Lord the single purpose of your life.
Sadly, many people pay little attention to this calling in their lives. Few people hear Him speak and fewer respond, and even fewer respond with complete abandonment of their lives. The beginning of Advent is an opportunity to evaluate your responsiveness to the call of our Lord once again.
Reflect, today, upon Jesus speaking these words to you. First, ponder the question of whether you have said “Yes” to Him with all the powers of your soul. Second, reflect upon those whom our Lord wants you to invite on the journey. To whom is Jesus sending you to invite? Who, in your life, is open to His call? Who does Jesus want to draw to Himself through you? Imitate these Apostles as they said “Yes” to our Lord, even though they did not immediately understand all that this would entail. Say “Yes” today and be ready and willing to do whatever comes next on this glorious journey of faith.
My dear Lord, I do say “Yes” to You this day. I hear You calling me, and I choose to respond with the utmost generosity and abandonment to Your holy and perfect will. Give me the courage and wisdom I need to hold nothing back from You and Your divine calling in my life. Jesus, I trust in You.
Consider the two photos above, both of the same man. You tell me: How important is your appearance? (EDIT: These photos are part of a series by photographer Joel Pares, Judging America )
The fact of life is this: You don't get a second chance to make a first impression. Your appearance communicates all manner of information about you. Over time, people will get to know you for who you are. But when you first meet them, all they know is what they see.
When I was a young man, I worked as a reporter in an affluent metropolitan area. I covered hundreds of court cases there, and it was a cnstant struggle to read files on cases, and get information from the court clerk's staff, even though I was legally entitled to it. I got to know several of the judges, and offhandedly griped about it to one of them.
He explained that the clerk's staff was very efficient about getting information for the attorneys who needed it, because that's what they saw as being their job. I joked that it didn't help me because I wasn't an attorney. The judge just smiled. "You don't have to be an attorney, you just have to look like one." I started dressing like the attorneys, got shirts with monogrammed sleeves, etc. I learned to ask for records like the attorneys. Sure enough, files were handed over instantly. Because I looked the part. I got scoops on other reporters because my access increased -- because of my appearance.
I was never impressed by appearances. But what I learned was, almost everybody else is. It increased my effectiveness by an order of magnitude. But it's not just what you wear, but how you wear it. Your speech, posture, attitude, all either support a certain impression or detract from it. And the results can be very powerful. People remember who you are. And it's a positive memory.
A great deal of the mechanical functioning of the world is dependent upon folks who can use their discretion to assist you or impede you. They're often overworked and under-appreciated. They can't help everybody. If a dozen people need a favor, who are they most likely to assist -- the person who looks nice, smiles at them, and compliments something about them, or the person who is disheveled, unshaven and growls at them? They can make your day a little better -- and you can make his or hers a little better.
Anyone who has worked in a professional environment has watched an attractive woman use a smile to open doors. What many don't realize is that the same tactic can work for men. Numerous times a smile and a compliment got me favors. The ethical line is to never promise anything you're not willing to deliver.
Here's a couple of tips garnered from three decades of working with public officials, bureaucrats and real people....
Learn how to stand up straight. Put your shoulders back and suck in your gut. There should be a hollow in the small of your back. You look stronger, more powerful. Guess what? You'll actually start to feel better. If you exercise, concentrate on your core body, shoulders and legs.
Look people in the eye. Want the attention of someone you find attractive on the opposite side of the room? Make eye contact, smile slightly, then look away. Flirting is powerful, but must be understated. Want to intimidate someone? Scan the room, let your eyes rest on your target, make eye contact, nod slightly, then keep scanning.
Don't. Raise. Your. Voice. Want to get everyone's attention? Don't speak more loudly, speak more quietly. Make them work to hear you. On the rare occasions when you do raise your voice it will have real impact.
Learn to speak in public. I'm an introvert by nature (INTJ, if you follow such things), and quite content to be utterly by myself. But I regularly speak publicly, conduct training classes for large groups of people, and have debated others on TV. More than once, someone has said to me "You're a natural at this!" No, I'm not. In fact it's extremely unnatural to me. But you can become skillful at anything you practice long enough. Practice trumps talent almost every time.
Learn to be calm. Be the eye of the storm. Nothing communicates power like mastering your emotions when all around you is chaos. Calmness is a learned trait. It comes from being centered emotionally, mentally and spiritually.
Many years ago, I was in a high-pressure executive development program in which one of the exercises was to play the roles of senior executives in a company and survive an onsite visit (a kind of inquisition that could end your career) from a team of corporate VPs. But the folks playing the VPs actually were the corporate VPs who performed the visits. And they weren't nice.
I played the role of the president of a fictional company. I had a staff of four other folks who were my local VPs. They handed us a 400-page document representing the budget, projections and various records of a fictitious company that we supposedly managed. Each of "my" VPs was supposed to give a presentation. Each one was flayed. They were beaten up, got flustered. One of them, a very talented woman who was trying to cope with a family tragedy, ran out of the room in tears.
Then it was my turn. I couldn't possibly know everything that was in the 400-page document, but I knew the important details -- how much we made and how much we spent and our rate of profitability. I winged the rest.
I understood the business, so I made up answers to their questions. Then, the guy in charge (an infamous hardass, who, in reality, was the boss of the president of the company that I worked for), stomped up and demanded that I get rid of the woman who left the room in tears.
I demurred. "I understand your concerns. That's not what we expect from one of our executives. Here's why I'm certain she can be salvaged..." I calmly stared into his eyes and made up some shit to explain the less-than-stellar performance in her department. And then I ended with, "She's never behaved like this before, but I know she hasn't slept well in weeks. Her daughter has cancer."
He scowled, stomped away, and before he left the room, without looking at me, he asked, "Is that last bit true?"
"Yes."
He "harumphed" and stomped out (he seemed to be big on stomping).
I was simply wrung out. I had practiced martial arts since I was a child and had fought with real swords before, and that was far less mentally exhausting. My next stop was the men's room, where I silently pondered where I was going to look for a new job. Then the guy who ran the program walked in.
He chuckled, then clapped me on the back. "You passed. You were the only one they couldn't shake. "
Turning to the disciples in private he said, “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see.
For I say to you, many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, but did not see it, and to hear what you hear, but did not hear it.” Luke 10:23–24
What did the disciples see that made their eyes “blessed?” Clearly, they were blessed to see our Lord. Jesus was the One promised by the prophets and kings of old, and now He was there, in flesh and bone, present for the disciples to see Him. Though we do not have the privilege to “see” our Lord in the same way that the disciples did some 2,000 years ago, we are privileged to see Him in countless other ways in our daily lives, if we only have “eyes that see” and ears to hear.
Since the time of Jesus’ appearance on Earth, in the flesh, so much has changed. The Apostles were eventually filled with the Holy Spirit and sent forth on a mission to change the world. The Church was established, the Sacraments were instituted, the teaching authority of Christ was exercised, and countless saints have given witness to the Truth with their lives. The past 2,000 years have been years in which Christ was continually made manifest to the world in countless ways.
Today, Christ is still present and continues to stand before us. If we have the eyes and ears of faith, we will not miss Him day in and day out. We will see and understand the countless ways that He speaks to us, leads us and guides us today. The first step toward this gift of sight and hearing is your desire. Do you desire the Truth? Do you desire to see Christ? Or are you satisfied with the many confusions of life that seek to distract you from what is most real and most life-changing?
Reflect, today, upon your desire. The prophets and kings of old “desired” to see the Messiah. We are privileged to have Him alive in our presence today, speaking to us and calling to us continually. Foster within yourself a desire for our Lord. Allow it to become a blazing flame which longs to consume all that is true and all that is good. Desire God. Desire His Truth. Desire His guiding hand in your life and allow Him to bless you beyond what you can fathom.
My divine Lord, I know You are alive today, speaking to me, calling me and revealing to me Your glorious presence. Help me to desire You and, within that desire, to turn to You with all my heart. I love You, my Lord. Help me to love You more. Jesus, I trust in You.
“Lord, I am not worthy to have you enter under my roof; only say the word and my servant will be healed. For I too am a man subject to authority, with soldiers subject to me. And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come here,’ and he comes; and to my slave, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” Matthew 8:8–9
These are words spoken by a man who is very familiar with the exercise of authority. He is a Roman centurion, and he states that he himself is “a man subject to authority” and that he also has soldiers who are subject to him. Thus, his daily life consists of following orders and giving orders that are to be obeyed.
When authority is exercised properly, it is a gift that helps to order society, family life, the life of the Church and even our personal lives. Of course, when authority is exercised improperly, in an oppressive and abusive way, it causes much damage. But the exercise of authority is, in and of itself, an act that has the potential to do much good.
Jesus Himself is quite impressed with the Roman centurion in the Gospel passage quoted above. Of him, Jesus states, “Amen, I say to you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith.” Imagine having the Son of God say that about you! Jesus is impressed, in part, because the centurion acknowledges that he is not worthy to have Jesus come to his house. This is humility, in that the centurion clearly perceives his unworthiness. But Jesus is also impressed because the man manifests a clear and certain faith in Jesus’ authority to heal his servant from a distance. He does not hesitate to profess his belief in this authority of our Lord.
In our own lives, we are often lacking in this area. We face a difficulty (such as the illness this centurion’s servant was enduring), and instead of turning to God with full and unwavering confidence, we turn in on ourselves. We become anxious, fearful, doubtful, confused and sometimes even angry. When any of these qualities are present, it is not because of the difficult situation we face; rather, it is because of our lack of faith and our lack of confidence in the all-powerful authority of our Lord.
In the case of the Roman centurion’s servant, it was the will of God that Jesus physically heal, and so He did. But in the countless daily challenges we face in life, God’s answers might be varied. One unwavering quality we must always have is a certain conviction that God desires to exercise His loving authority in our lives, in the way He chooses, if we trust Him and invite Him to take control.
Reflect, today, upon the perfection of the authority of Christ. Do you believe that He can exercise His perfection of power in your life? Do you believe that His authority is what is needed to order your life, your family, our Church and even our world? Prayerfully submit yourself to the authority of Christ this day and allow yourself to become amazed as you witness all that He is able to do.
All-powerful Father, I entrust to You my life and every situation in my life that needs Your power and control. Please bring order and harmony to my life and to the lives of those around me. May all Your children learn to more fully entrust themselves to You as their loving God.Jesus, I trust in You.
Jesus said to his disciples: “As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. In those days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day that Noah entered the ark. They did not know until the flood came and carried them all away. So will it be also at the coming of the Son of Man.” Matthew 24:37–39
Are you awake? Spiritually speaking? As we begin the liturgical season of Advent, we are given the future coming of the Son of God to ponder. As this passage goes on, Jesus says, “Therefore, stay awake! For you do not know on which day your Lord will come.”
By the “day your Lord will come,” we should understand three things. The first coming of Christ is obviously that which we most clearly ponder in Advent and Christmas. The unity of human nature with divine nature, in the Person of Jesus, is truly awe-inspiring. But that already took place long ago.
Thus, a second coming of Christ that we must continually ponder is His coming by grace, every moment of every day of our lives, once we have chosen to freely give our lives over to His service, for His glory, in accord with His will. When we live with such an interior disposition by which we seek His ongoing “coming” by grace, then we will find that we need to continually “stay awake!” If we do not, then we can be certain that we will miss countless opportunities to become more united to Christ every day and to be used as an instrument of that very grace for His service and glory. If we do not diligently build a habit of becoming attentive to every prompting of grace in our lives, then we will, unquestionably, begin to become “drowsy” and will fall asleep, spiritually speaking.
A wonderful measure of our daily attentiveness to the innumerable gifts of grace given to us every day is to also consider how attentive we are to the final and glorious coming of Christ at the end of time. Just as Jesus explains, most people will pay little attention to this final coming, presuming it will not even be in their lifetimes. But if you have that attitude, then you have completely missed the point. The point is preparedness—today, tomorrow and always. True preparedness for the final coming of Christ will not only help you enter the mysteries of these Advent and Christmas seasons by which we ponder the first coming of Christ, it will also help you form a habit of daily attentiveness to grace.
Reflect, today, upon how ready you are for the final coming of Christ at the end of time. Are you ready if Christ were to come today? If not, understand that a lack of preparedness for the final coming also means a lack of preparedness to celebrate His first coming at Christmas long ago, as well as His daily comings by grace. Prepare today. Do not wait. If you do, God will daily transform you in ways that are glorious beyond comprehension.
My ever-present Lord, You come to us, day and night, calling to us, leading us and offering to enter our lives. Please help me to always be attentive to You and to always open my heart fully to Your daily coming by grace. Jesus, I trust in You.
“Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy from carousing and drunkenness and the anxieties of daily life, and that day catch you by surprise like a trap.” Luke 21:34-35a
This is the last day of our liturgical year! And on this day, the Gospel reminds us of how easy it is to become lazy in our life of faith. It reminds us that our hearts can become drowsy from “carousing and drunkenness and the anxieties of daily life.” Let’s look at these temptations.
First, we are warned against carousing and drunkenness. This certainly applies on a literal level, meaning, we should obviously avoid abusing drugs and alcohol. But it also applies to numerous other ways that we are made “drowsy” through a lack of temperance. Abuse of alcohol is only one way of escaping from the burdens of life, but there are many ways we can do this. Any time we give in to an excess of one sort or another, we begin to let our hearts become drowsy on a spiritual level. Whenever we seek momentary escapes from life without turning to God, we allow ourselves to become spiritually drowsy.
Second, this passage identifies “the anxieties of daily life” as a source of becoming drowsy. So often we do face anxiety in life. We can feel overwhelmed and overly burdened by one thing or another. When we feel burdened by life, we tend to look for a way out. And far too often, the “way out” is something that makes us spiritually drowsy.
Jesus speaks this Gospel as a way of challenging us to remain awake and vigilant in our life of faith. This happens when we keep the truth in our minds and hearts and our eyes on the will of God. The moment we turn our eyes to the burdens of life and fail to see God in the midst of all things, we become spiritually drowsy and begin, in a sense, to fall asleep.
As the liturgical year comes to a close, today, reflect upon the fact that God is calling you to become wide awake. He wants your full attention and He wants you completely sober in your life of faith. Put your eyes on Him and let Him keep you continually prepared for His imminent return.
Lord, I do love You and I desire to love You all the more. Help me to remain wide awake in my life of faith. Help me to keep my eyes on You through all things so that I am always prepared for You when You come to me. Jesus, I trust in You.
I met my wife on a dating site dedicated to Filipino girls, and there is a distinct differences between girls from the Philippines and those born and raised in America, or any other westernized culture, for that matter. First, Philippines girls are taught from the time they are little girls clear into adulthood that the most important role they will ever play is that of a wife and mother. The concept of male and female equality doesn’t make sense, as they feel that men and women (although being equal in importance) have distinct roles in society and in the family. Second, there is no divorce in the Philippines, so when a Philippine girl gets married, she gets married for life. Her commitment to the family and her husband come before any career or outside interest. Third, morality and chastity are treasured, and it is a common saying that the most precious gift a girl can give her husband is her virginity.
I have been married to my wife for 18 years now, and we have been blessed with 2 beautiful children. Although there have been many struggles, marrying her is the best single decision I have ever made.
1. If you are on verge of getting raped, hit his testes as hard as you can and see how he will fall down and if they are in the group, don't perform this brave stunt instead tell them you have HIV.
2. The Bystander Effect.If you're unaware of this consequence, learning about it could save your life. The Bystander Effect refers to the dispersal of blame among onlookers. When someone is standing on the sidelines of a robbery or a fight, they will not intervene because they anticipate others to aid.
When you are in a fight, are being robbed, or worse, do not expect others to help you. They will want to avoid it. Instead, look them in the eye, ask for their help, specifically direct it at them. That removes the feeling of anyone else being able to help as you asked it specifically of them.
3. Removing things from stab wounds causes more blood loss, which increases the likelihood of the victim dying. That object should be left alone. Don't try to get rid of it.
4. Before getting off the plane, don't inflate your life jacket. In case of emergency water landings, it is not a good idea to be ready with your inflated life jacket. According to many aviation safety experts, doing so will only make things worse for you.
This is due to the fact that as the plane begins to sink, the water inside the cabin will push you to the ceiling. You wouldn't be able to move without assistance from there. So put on your life jacket and only inflate it once you've exited the plane.
5. Learn how to change your own tire and make sure you are equipped with a full size spare and all the tools you need.
6. Let Someone Know Where You Will Be – When you live alone or even when you go out for the night, let a friend know where you will be.
This barely takes any effort on your part, and if something does go wrong or you are not back in the morning, somebody will know where to start if they have to look for you.
7. Don't walk down the stairs with your hands in your pockets. You need your hands to protect your head or stop your fall.
8. Take it slow.Most of the mistakes happen because we want to be fast. We want to go to other places, are in a rush and run amok. This is how a lot of accidents happen; someone is in a hurry and doesn’t pay enough attention.
9. If you are lost in the desert, or any deserted area, the important thing you can carry to increase your chances of being found is a small reflective mirror.
Anytime a plane flies overhead you can reflect light towards them and you greatly increase your chances of being found. This seriously is more important than carrying more water with you.
10. When you realize you are in a rush remember this: The 5 minutes you might be late could save your life. Is it really worth it to save those 5 minutes? Sometimes it might be, but if it isn’t then take a deep breath and slow down.
11. Getting out of that sinking car. It is critical that you open a door as soon as you can before the water pressure makes it impossible.
If you can’t do that then break a window. If either of these fail stay calm and wait for the water to flow into the car. Once enough comes in the pressure will equalize and the door should open.
12. If you fall into water, don't panic. You don't have to be able to swim; you just have to float. Hold your breath and let yourself bob to the surface.
13. ALWAYS. I MEAN ALWAYS, listen to your gut instincts. They are your first distress call signals. They have never, I mean, NEVER failed me.
14. Bears
If it's black, fight back. If it's brown, lay down. If it's white, goodnight
FREE BONUS: If you've ever been curious about who you truly are, then this is something that you NEED to see...
To me, it felt a little bit surreal - almost too accurate to be true, even.
But as I delved deeper into my archetype, I just couldn't help but think how true everything was.
