Baby Burlesks

Lore & Background

All eight films in the Baby Burlesks series were produced by Jack Hays and directed by Charles Lamont, except the first, Runt Page, which was directed by Ray Nazarro. The series featured three-year-old Shirley Temple, who received $10 a day for her work. Her first Baby Burlesks film was War Babies, not Runt Page. The films were released between January 1932 and October 1933, with titles including War Babies, Pie Covered Wagon, Glad Rags to Riches, Kid in Hollywood, Polly Tix in Washington, The Kid's Last Fight, and Kid 'in' Africa.

In her autobiography, Temple characterized the series as 'a cynical exploitation of our childish innocence,' and acknowledged that the short films were sometimes racist or sexist. The series was produced during the Pre-Code era of American cinema, before stricter enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code.

In 2009, all eight films in the Baby Burlesks series were available on videocassette and DVD.

Reader's Guide

The Baby Burlesks series holds historical significance as the first screen appearances of Shirley Temple, who would become one of the most famous child stars in Hollywood history. Produced during the Pre-Code era, these short films reflect the less regulated content standards of early 1930s cinema. Temple's own later assessment of the series as 'a cynical exploitation of our childish innocence' provides a critical perspective on the treatment of child performers in that period. The series also illustrates the types of comedic and often controversial content—including racist and sexist elements—that were common in popular entertainment before stricter censorship codes were enforced. As a complete set of eight films, the Baby Burlesks series remains available for study and viewing, offering insight into both the early career of a major star and the broader cultural attitudes of the time.

Did You Know?

• Shirley Temple was three years old when she appeared in the Baby Burlesks series.
• Temple received $10 per day for her work in the series.
• The first film, Runt Page, did not feature Shirley Temple; her first Baby Burlesks film was War Babies.
• In 2009, all eight Baby Burlesks films were available on videocassette and DVD.

Production & Creative Team

The Baby Burlesks series was a collection of eight short films crafted during the Pre-Code era of American cinema, all brought to life under the banner of Educational Pictures in the early 1930s. The creative engine behind the franchise was remarkably consistent: producer Jack Hays oversaw every installment, while director Charles Lamont helmed seven of the eight entries. The sole exception was the series opener, Runt Page, which fell under the direction of Ray Nazarro. At the center of each picture stood a three-year-old Shirley Temple, marking her very first appearances on the silver screen. Despite being the undisputed draw of each production, the young star's compensation was modest by any measure—just ten dollars per day of work. This combination of a single production company, a tight creative partnership, and a toddler protagonist gave the series a distinctive, almost workshop-like quality, as though the same small team were iterating on a formula with a child at its heart.

Temple's Later Reflection

Decades after she had grown up and left the spotlight, Shirley Temple looked back on the Baby Burlesks with a sharp and unflinching eye. In her 1988 autobiography, Child Star, she characterized the entire series as 'a cynical exploitation of our childish innocence,' a phrase that captures the uncomfortable dynamic of a three-year-old being placed in front of a camera for commercial gain. Temple did not stop at the general observation of exploitation; she specifically noted that the short films occasionally carried racist or sexist content, suggesting that the creative team behind the productions was not always mindful of the messages embedded in their scripts. This retrospective critique adds a layer of moral complexity to what might otherwise be remembered simply as a charming series of toddler comedies. It reminds modern viewers that the Pre-Code era, even in its most lighthearted and brief productions, was not immune to the social prejudices of its time, and that the child at the center of the frame had no voice in shaping what was put before her.

The Eight-Film Arc

The Baby Burlesks ran for exactly eight installments, stretching from the debut of Runt Page on January 1, 1932, through the final entry, Kid 'in' Africa, released on October 6, 1933. The titles alone paint a picture of a series that leapt between wildly different settings and premises: a war-themed comedy (War Babies), a pie-making adventure (Pie Covered Wagon), a rags-to-riches fantasy (Glad Rags to Riches), a Hollywood satire (Kid in Hollywood), a Washington D.C. outing (Polly Tix in Washington), a boxing story (The Kid's Last Fight), and an African excursion (Kid 'in' Africa). The release cadence was roughly every two to three months, with a notable gap between the first three entries in 1932 and the cluster of four films landing between February and April 1933. This pacing suggests a production schedule that could accommodate the needs of a three-year-old performer while still keeping the series on a steady release rhythm for Educational Pictures' distribution network.

Legacy & Modern Availability

Although the Baby Burlesks were modest short films made for a specific early-1930s audience, they have maintained a persistent place in both popular and scholarly discussions of Shirley Temple's career. The series is consistently referenced alongside her later, more famous feature films, serving as the essential origin point in any comprehensive account of her screen life. Academic and biographical works—including Temple's own 1988 memoir, Anne Edwards's 1988 biography American Princess, and Robert Windeler's 1992 study The Films of Shirley Temple—dedicate space to the series, treating it as a formative chapter in the story of one of Hollywood's most recognizable child stars. For modern audiences, the complete eight-film set became accessible in 2009 when all entries were made available on both videocassette and DVD, ensuring that the full arc of Temple's earliest screen work could be viewed as a cohesive body of work rather than scattered fragments. Each title also maintains a presence on IMDb, allowing researchers and fans to track individual entries within the broader series.

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