Former US Ambassador to Ghana, Shirley Temple, has died at 85, the BBC has reported, quoting family sources.
Temple was the US Ambassador to Ghana between 1974 and 1976 during the military regime of General Kutu Acheampong.
She also served as U.S. Ambassador to Czech and Slovak Federal Republic in 1989.
Prior to joining politics, Temple was an American film and television actress, singer, dancer, and former U.S. ambassador to Ghana and Czechoslovakia.
She found fame as a child star in the 1930s in films like Bright Eyes, Stand Up and Cheer and Curly Top.
She died on Monday at home in Woodside, California, from natural causes.
"She was surrounded by her family and caregivers," a statement said.
"We salute her for a life of remarkable achievements as an actor, as a diplomat, and... our beloved mother, grandmother [and] great-grandmother."
The BBC reported that as an actress, she found fame as a young girl in the 1930s in films like Bright Eyes, Stand Up and Cheer and Curly Top.
After retiring from films in 1950 at the age of 21, Temple returned to the public eye as a Republican candidate for Congress and as a US diplomat.
Temple was one of the most popular child stars in Hollywood history, getting her first film role at the age of three.
Her singing, dancing and acting won over fans worldwide. She was given a special juvenile Oscar in 1935, when she was just six years old. To this day, she is still the youngest person to receive an Academy Award.
She starred in a total of 43 feature films - but found it difficult to sustain her career in adulthood and retired from Hollywood in 1950.
