Famous Actors Who Were Exploited By Their Directors

Shirley Temple is still, to this day, one of the biggest child stars of all time, known for her curly ringlets, her dimpled cheeks, and leading roles in films like Bright Eyes, The Little Princess, and Wee Willie Winkee. Despite being famous from a young age, Temple was remarkably well-adjusted as an adult, and didn't suffer any public meltdowns like many teen stars of today. But her career was by no means serene. In her memoir, Child Star, she writes that when she was 12, Hollywood producer Arthur Freed unzipped his pants and exposed himself to her during a private meeting to discuss a possible contract with MGM. Temple, in her innocence, responded by laughing at him, and Freed threw her out of his office.

When Temple was 22, she retired from the acting business. Unfortunately, she discovered that despite earning millions of dollars over the course of her career—at one point, she signed a contract with 20th Century Fox for $50,000 per film—her father had lost most of her income through bad investment advice and poor financial decisions, leaving her with less than $90,000.

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