MovieChat Forums > The Blue Bird (1940) Discussion > WHICH child is the unfortunate actress C...

WHICH child is the unfortunate actress Caryll Ann Ekelund??

posted 18 years ago by khsemmens
29 replies | jump to latest

This child actress is listed in the full credits for The Blue Bird as "Little Girl" (from the heaven/unborn children scene). IMDB says this young actress sadly died from burns at the age of 4.5 years:
"According to Shirley Temple, her co-star in The Blue Bird (1940), in her autobiography "Child Star," she was killed after a lighted birthday candle at home ignited her dress and burned her to death. Her five older brothers acted as pallbearers while a graveside quartet sung her favorite song "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" from The Wizard of Oz (1939) when she was interred at Forest Lawn Cemetery. Her burial shroud was the unborn child toga from her role in The Blue Bird (1940)."
My question:

Does anybody know WHICH little girl she is???

There are so many little girls in those scenes, although a few are "featured".

A sad footnote to such a unique movie .....

[–] wenarskys 15 years ago

Dearlydepartedtours dot com has an interesting segment on Caryll Ann. She was NOT burned by a birthday candle; they cite an actual newspaper article from her town from the next day. She was burned when a jack-o-lantern caught her dress, or costume, on fire on Halloween night, which was of course, October 31. She died on November 4 at the hospital. The article says she had first and second degree burns, and at the time the article was written, she had not died yet. In the days before there were burn units and antibiotics, she most likely died from infection since it was several days later. I only recently found out who this little girl was in the film, and it made it doubly sad, putting a face to a name. I always thought she looked a bit like Shirley when she was small. She has a cute closeup in the film. How ironic that she is the girl who tries to leave Heaven too early to come to earth; when, within a matter of just a few weeks she would leave this earth seemingly too early.... Her grave says her name and "Little Sissy" on it. :(

[–] The_Dying_Flutchman 13 years ago

The medical profession could not have used antibiotics on this child as they did not become widely available til after 1941 and then used primarily on soldiers during WWII.

Time is the only true purgatory.

[–] Bruce7 13 years ago

This link has all 3 pics on the page

http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=6921259
Can you fly this plane?
Surely you can't be serious.
I am serious,and don't call me Shirley

[–] 13 years ago

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[–] 13 years ago

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[–] naughtylitleboy 8 years ago

http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=6921259

[–] Popcorngal (4360) 4 months ago

I wonder why someone did not throw water on her or smother the flames with a blanket? Poor kid?