Greta Garbo
Born in Stockholm, Sweden, Greta Garbo was brought
to Hollywood and the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios by Louis
B. Mayer after seeing her first film, Gösta Berlings
Saga, in Berlin. Mayer also contracted the director, Mauritz
Stiller, who had cast Greta Garbo in the film after she had
studied under him at the Royal Dramatic Theatre in Stockholm.
It was Stiller who had given Greta Gustafsson the stage name
Garbo. Sadly, Garbo's relationship with Stiller came to an
end as her fame grew and he struggled in the studio system.
He was fired by MGM and returned to Sweden in 1927, where
he died the following year.
The best of Garbo's silent movies were Flesh
and the Devil, made in 1927, Love, made in 1927 and The Mysterious
Lady, made in 1928. She starred in the first two with the
popular leading man John Gilbert. They had a much publicized
romance which ended when Garbo left him standing at the altar
in 1926 after changing her mind about getting married, although
it appears she remained loyal to Gilbert as a friend. Gilbert
struggled to get parts when talkies came in to production,
but when Greta Garbo was cast in Queem Christina in 1933 she
insisted Gilbert be in the film as her leading manl, against
the wishes of MGM Head. Louis B. Mayer who had already cast
Laurence Olivier. Garbo won.
Greta Garbo was one of the few actors who made
the transition to talkies, though she delayed the shift for
as long as possible. Her film The Kiss, made in 1929, was
the last film MGM made without dialogue, using a soundtrack
with music and sound effects only.
Her voice was first heard on screen in Eugene
O'Neill's Anna Christie, made in 1930, a film publicized with
the slogan "Garbo Talks". The movie was a huge success
and in 1931 Garbo made a German version of the film. Garbo
played the World War I spy Mata Hari in a 1931 production.
In 1931, Garbo met and quickly befriended Mercedes
de Acosta. The two were introduced to one another by de Acosta's
close friend, author Salka Viertel, who was also very close
to Garbo and wrote the screenplay for several of Garbo's films.
Mercedes described her relationship with Garbo as "the
love of her lifetime", although, from information recorded
at the time, it is unlikely that Garbo shared those feelings.
Garbo was in control of the friendship, which was close for
about a year from 1931 to 1932.
Afterwards, it appears it was a vacillating
relationship, with Garbo even ignoring de Acosta. They were
estranged by 1937 and in 1944 Garbo insisted de Acosta stop
sending her poems and letters professing her love for her.
The last known poem of de Acosta's about Garbo was written
that same year. Their relationship finally ended when De Acosta
wrote about her lesbian affairs in the autobiography, Here
Lies the Heart, published in 1960.
Greta Garbo was nominated for an Academy Award
for Anna Christie, made in 1930, Romance, made in 1930, Camille,
made in 1937 and Ninotchka, made in 1939. In 1954 she was
awarded a special Acadamy Award honouring her career in film.
Two-Faced Woman, made in 1941, was to be Greta
Garbo's last film and she gradually withdrew from the entertainment
world and moved to a secluded life in New York City, refusing
to make any public appearances. Up until her death in 1990
when she was 84, Garbo sightings were considered sport for
paparazzi photographers. Greta garbo's most famous line was
"I vont to be alone." It would appear she meant
it...
Tim Rees
Share
