词条 | Garbo, Greta |
释义 | Garbo, Greta Swedish-American actress original name Greta Lovisa Gustafsson born September 18, 1905, Stockholm, Sweden died April 15, 1990, New York, New York, U.S. ![]() The daughter of an itinerant labourer, Greta Gustafsson was reared in poverty in a Stockholm slum. She was working as a department-store clerk when she met film director Erik Petschler, who gave her a small part in Luffar-Petter (1922; Peter the Tramp). From 1922 to 1924 she studied at the Royal Dramatic Theatre in Stockholm, and in 1924 she played a major role in Gösta Berlings Saga (“The Story of Gösta Berling”). The film's director, Mauritz Stiller (Stiller, Mauritz), gave her the name Garbo, and in 1925 he secured her a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Inc.) in Hollywood. At first, MGM chief Louis B. Mayer (Mayer, Louis B) was skeptical of Garbo's talent, but he and all studio executives were impressed by the initial rushes of her first American film, The Torrent (1926). Garbo projected a luminous quality that was perfect for silent pictures, motivating Mayer to sign her to an exclusive contract and raise her salary even before she completed work on this film. Throughout the remainder of the decade, Garbo appeared in such popular romantic dramas as Flesh and the Devil (1927), Love (1927), A Woman of Affairs (1928), and The Kiss (1929). She often costarred with John Gilbert (Gilbert, John), with whom she was romantically involved offscreen. Garbo's success during this stage of her career was based not only on her mysterious, ethereal screen persona, but also on public interest in the Garbo-Gilbert affair. ![]() ![]() ![]() The war in Europe may have been a factor in the end of Garbo's screen career. Because her films had been more popular abroad than at home, and because markets for American films were swiftly dissipating throughout occupied European countries, it has been said that executives at MGM conspired to kill Garbo's career by casting her in a film they knew would bomb, the comic misfire Two-Faced Woman (1941). Contrary to popular perception, Garbo did not leave Hollywood in disgust after this film. She was nearly lured back to the screen twice—once to portray George Sand (Sand, George), the other time to star in Alfred Hitchcock (Hitchcock, Sir Alfred)'s The Paradine Case (1947)—but instead chose permanent retirement, a move that added to her enigma and increased her cult following. After a screen career of 20 years, Garbo lived the next five decades in her New York City apartment and made no public appearances. She was awarded an honorary Oscar in 1955; true to form, she did not attend the ceremonies. Additional Reading John Bainbridge, Garbo (1955, reissued 1975); Alexander Walker, Garbo: A Portrait (1980, reissued 1990); Barry Paris, Garbo (1995). |
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