SHIRLEY TEMPLE
Even though Mary Pickford  was called America’s Sweetheart, really it was Shirley Temple. As a mature woman and mother, Shirley Temple Black was named American Ambassador to Ghana and later to Czechoslovakia, and was quite effective by all accounts. She died at the age of 85, having accomplished much.
In the 1930s, Shirley Temple absolutely ruled the movie scene. Compared to today’s child actors, she wasn’t really very good. But she was so darn charming and cute it really didn’t matter. As the little girl on the silver screen she was irresistible. Her handlers developed dolls, dishes, and other paraphernalia stamped with her name, a first time use of a star in this manner. And a Shirley Temple to this day is a drink for children, minus any alcohol. 
When I mentioned the little girl, I wasn’t kidding. She made her first movie appearance at the ripe old age of 3. After appearing in numerous short features, and capturing the attention of both the public and the movie studios, her breakthrough part came in Stand Up And Cheer (1934). The President creates a Department of Amusement to lift America’s depression over the Depression. The film consists of various vaudeville acts strung loosely together. Not much of a movie, but it launched Shirley as a genuine star. 
The same year she was Little Miss Marker. Her father uses her as a marker for his gambling debts, giving her to his thuggish creditors as security. Then he commits suicide and they’re stuck with her. In today’s films they would probably shoot her, but in this one they use her charm to rig horse races.
Bright Eyes (1934) was developed especially for Shirley, and she hit it out of the park. Her signature song, On The Good Ship Lollipop, was a huge hit and the sheet music sold over half a million copies. She is a homeless waif who can sing and dance and melt the hearts of gruff adults. In 1935 the Motion Picture Academy honored her with a juvenile (smaller version!) Oscar. 
From there Shirley Temple appeared in a string of movies developed to take advantage of her popularity. The movie-going public couldn’t get enough of her. 
The Little Colonel (1935), Curly Top (1935), and The Littlest Rebel (1935) followed quickly. In 1937 she was cast as the legendary Heidi, and handled the part with grown-up aplomb. Likewise as Rebecca Of Sunnybrook Farm (1938). By 1940, she was pretty much done as a juvenile star. In the late 50's she had a successful television show, Shirley Temple’s Storybook.
All of the movies in this column are available on DVD. All are fine for any age, with a caveat that these were made in the 1930's and would be offensive to many.