A Kiss for Corliss

Shirley Temple tries to make her boyfriend angry by writing in her diary about her imaginary affair with David Niven. Later, when she's pretending to have amnesia, her father and David Niven find out and proceed to torture everyone.

It's a sequel to Miss Temple's 1945 vehicle, KISS AND TELL, in which she plays Corliss Archer, a fifteen-year-old girl created in a short story by F. Hugh Herbert. Miss Archer's sixteenth year of life lasted from 1943 through 1956 on the radio, and 1951, 1952, 1954 and 1955 on syndicated television. At least five actresses performed the role, plus however many did so in the stage play in 1943.

This was Miss Temple's last motion picture feature, and her most poorly received. It's episodic nature and idiotic plotting explain why. This was the period of time when America began to look upon teen-agers as a separate demographic, and all the old, stupid chestnuts were pulled out of the ashes for this one.

With the failure Bonnie Prince Charlie to reestablish David Niven as a box office star, that began a period for several years where Niven was scrambling for work. It's why he appears essentially as a guest star in a big screen version of the Meet Corliss Archer radio series, A Kiss For Corliss.

Shirley Temple is the star and this is the second time she appears as the eternally innocent Brooklyn bobbysoxer, she did Kiss And Tell four years earlier. Fans of the radio show probably were disappointed.

Temple's father is Tom Tully who is a lawyer and representing the third wife of playboy David Niven in a divorce suit. His daughter is having her usual troubles with her boy next door boyfriend Darryl Hickman. In a Lucy Ricardo type scheme she fakes a diary where says she's involved with Niven. The 'diary' falls into the wrong hands and Niven almost winds up marry Temple. I suppose that was better than That Hagen Girl where Ronald Reagan actually does marry Shirley Temple.

This is a most unfunny comedy. Niven looks embarrassed to be appearing in this. But he was a recent widower with two small sons and declining box office. He appeared in a few films like this in secondary roles to support his family.

Shirley Temple would also quit the movies after A Kiss For Corliss. No one in this film comes out with any career enhancement.

I saw this movie on Family Channel a few years ago and LOVED it! Anyone who likes Shirley temple, or just classic movies in general will love this sweet movie. I'm still waiting for Family Channel to run it again. The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer is another movie sort of like this one, with the same kind of happiness and fun.

Fawning teenager Corliss Archer (Shirley Temple) becomes infatuated with Kenneth Marquis (David Niven). He's getting divorced for the third time and her father is one of his attorneys. When her diary filled with an imaginary affair is discovered, it becomes a full blown scandal.

This is Shirley Temple's last film before quitting acting for about a decade. She just doesn't have it after being a child superstar. She's golly gee trying so hard that the humor isn't allowed to breathe. Her acting is old school. She's cute enough to lead but I don't think she has the ability to do more. The other issue is the paper thin backing for Corliss's romantic interest. One can put it down to a flighty teenager. She's just not a compelling character.

This was Shirley Temple's final film, and when I saw it I could see why. While she had once been the top-grossing actress in Hollywood as a child, by the late 1940s, she wasn't commanding such huge salaries and the projects they gave her were often inferior. "A Kiss for Corliss" is a film that looks like it was designed a kooky sitcom--not the work for an accomplished actress.

As far as "A Kiss for Corliss" goes, it has a mildly interesting pedigree. Temple played the same character a few years earlier in "Kiss and Tell". Two other actresses later played the character on two short- lived television series--and perhaps their being short-lived is because the character was a bit annoying!

In this installment, Corliss is wooed by a creepy old guy (David Niven), though he really is doing this to bother Corliss' father*. Additionally, Corliss has some adventures with her boyfriend (Daryl Hickman) and as a character, she's very broadly written, insufferable, annoying and hard to believe. In fact, it was so bad that I almost expected to hear a laugh track in the film! I found Corliss so over- the-top and difficult to like that I can see exactly why she then walked away from her film career. In addition, how many times could they cast the very youthful looking Temple as a love interest in a May-December romance (such as in "That Hagan Girl" and "The Bachelor and the Bobby Soxer"--both films which are actually much better than this Corliss Archer film. Tough to like.

*Although Corliss was once again played by Temple, her family was oddly played by a different cast.

UPDATE: I just saw the original Corliss Archer film, "Kiss and Tell". It was MUCH better than this one and is well worth seeing...and also stars Temple. It's amazing how much better writing influences how much you like or hate a character.