Shirley Jean Rickert

Shirley Jean Rickert (born March 25, 1926 in Seattle , † February 6, 2009 in Saratoga Springs ) was an American actress and burlesque dancer. She became known as a child star in the 1930s .

Career

Her ambitious mother let Shirley Jean Rickert take part in beauty pageants as a toddler, the success prompted her mother to move to Hollywood to establish her daughter as a child actor. Shirley Jean Rickert made her debut in 1930 at the age of four in the short film How's My Baby . She became known from 1931 as the actress of Shirley in several films in the short film series The Little Rascals . Here she was particularly noticeable for her platinum blonde hair and her skillfully coiffed kiss curls (forehead curls ). After the little rascals, she starred in several short films in the Mickey McGuire series with Mickey Rooney and alongside John Wayne in the film Under the Sky of Arizona (1934). From the 1940s, mostly only insignificant supporting roles followed.

Her film career ended in the early 1950s and Shirley Jean Rickert appeared as a burlesque dancer and pin-up model. As Gilda and Her Crowning Glory , she performed with Tempest Storm , Jean Carroll and Jane Briggerman. Her romances with various Hollywood stars like Montgomery Clift and Tab Hunter made for mentions in the gossip columns. This second, successful career ended in the 1960s. In later years Rickert appeared at fan meetings of the little rascals and told in interviews about her time as a child star of the Golden Age of Hollywood .

Shirley Jean Rickert died in 2009 after a long illness.

Filmography (selection)

• 1930: How's My Baby?
• 1931: Hollywood jewel theft (The Stolen Jools)
• 1933-1934: 6 Mickey McGuire films
• 1934: The Scarlet Letter
• 1934: Under the Arizona Skies (Neath The Arizona Skies)
• 1935: The Drunkard
• 1935: I Live My Life
• 1940: Five Little Peppers in Trouble
• 1943: Best Foot Forward
• 1943: In Old Oklahoma
• 1944: Meet the People
• 1947: Good News
• 1951: Royal Wedding (Royal Wedding)
• 1952: You shall be my lucky star (Singin 'in the Rain)
• 1953: Photographer out of love (I Love Melvin)
• 1954: Always chasing blondes (The Human Jungle)

Web links

• Shirley Jean Rickert in the Internet Movie Database (English)
• The New York Times on the death of Shirley Jean Rickert , accessed August 12, 2019
• The Telegraph on the Death of Shirley Jean Rickert , accessed August 12, 2019
• The Kleine Trolche fansite , accessed on August 12, 2019