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Humble beginnings -

Greta Garbo was actually born Greta Gustafsson on September 8, 1905. She was born in a slum in the city of Stockholm and grew up in poverty. Her father died when she was 14, and she began working in a barbershop and a department store.

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Discovered as a teen -

Film director Erik Petschler met her when she was 17 years old and gave her a small role in his 1922 movie ‘Luffar-Petter,’ or ‘Peter the Tramp.’ After that, she earned a scholarship and studied acting at the Royal Dramatic Theatre in Stockholm for two years.

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Signing with MGM -

She scored a big role in the 1925 Swedish movie ‘Gösta Berlings Saga,’ and the director knew she was going to be a star. He renamed her Greta Garbo and helped her sign a contract with American studio MGM. MGM got her teeth fixed, put her on a strict diet, and gave her those thin, trademark eyebrows.

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Moving to the US -

In 1925, the newly-named Greta Garbo was off to the US. She started appearing in silent movies for MGM and was an instant hit. Her first appearance was in the 1926 movie ‘The Torrent,’ which was a worldwide success. Garbo spoke almost no English at the time, which obviously wasn’t a problem for silent movies, but she had a luminous on-screen presence that made her a star.

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Silent success -

For the rest of the 1920s, Garbo would continue starring in silent romantic dramas. Some of her more critically-acclaimed projects include ‘Flesh and the Devil’ (1927) and ‘A Woman of Affairs’ (1928).

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John Gilbert -

Garbo frequently starred opposite actor John Gilbert. The two had incredible on-screen chemistry, which isn’t surprising considering they were dating in real life! Their public romance and frequent collaborations certainly helped to elevate them both as celebrities of the day.

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More than an ingénue -

Film critics say that John Gilbert’s greatest talent as an actor was his ability to play a man in love. Over their years working together, Garbo became the ultimate actress to play the object of someone’s desire. They were the perfect cinematic lovers. A simple glance between them could light the silver screen on fire.

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Speaking roles -

By the end of the 1920s, Greta Garbo was one of Hollywood’s biggest stars. However, Louis. B Mayer and the rest of the executives at MGM weren’t sure how she’d transition to the talkies. By this time Garbo spoke English, but still had a heavy Swedish accent.

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'Anna Christie' (1930) -

Like many actors who transitioned from silent movies to movies with sound, it was a big deal for fans to hear their voices for the first time. MGM cast her in the 1930 movie ‘Anna Christie’ and advertised it with the tagline “Garbo talks!”

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Garbo's first words -

The first words Greta Garbo ever uttered on screen were “Give me a whiskey.” It’s hard to imagine a line more perfect for the subversive star.

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The first of three Oscar nominations -

‘Anna Christie’ was a huge success and Garbo received her first Oscar nomination for her performance. MGM need not have worried. Her husky voice and heavy accent only made her more alluring and mysterious.

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"I want to be alone" -

In 1932, she played the role of an aging ballerina in the film ‘Grand Hotel’ alongside John Barrymore and Joan Crawford. It was another classic brooding heroine role to add to her lengthy repertoire, and gave Garbo her signature line: “I want to be alone.”

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Garbo's special appeal -

The word most often used to describe Greta Garbo is “enigmatic.” This means mysterious and difficult to interpret, which describes Garbo to a T.

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A unique beauty -

She was voted the most beautiful woman in the world and was adored by both American and European audiences. Her symmetrical Scandinavian features defined the ideal of beauty in the 1920s and 1930s.

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Mastery of acting -

Many other great artists regarded her as one of the greatest actresses of her time. Bette Davis said: “Her instinct, her mastery over the machine, was pure witchcraft… I only know that no one else so effectively worked in front of a camera.”

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The mystery woman -

Garbo was foreign, exotic, elusive, beautiful, and exceptionally talented. But she was extremely introverted, and the press struggled to get a word out of her, which only added to her air of mystery.

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Privacy and the press -

Garbo was known to detest the media, once saying: “I feel able to express myself only through my roles, not in words, and that is why I try to avoid talking to the press… The creative artist should be a rare and solitary spirit. My work absorbs me. I have time for nothing else.”

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Privacy and the press -

Like many other stars, her avoidance of the press only served to pique public interest even further. This made her a greater target for the media and served to earn her even more coverage! They adored her foreign mystique and seemingly eccentric persona.

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An influential woman -

As her stardom grew, Garbo was able to renegotiate her contract with MGM and have a greater say in her choice of roles. She also attempted to wield her power over the directors of her movies!

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Working in privacy -

Director Rouben Mamoulian recounted that Garbo informed him she didn’t do intimate love scenes in front of directors. She told him that she only allowed the camera and lighting men in the room, and sent the director out to get a milkshake! Mamoulian refused to be sent away, and Garbo made an exception for him. They made the 1933 movie 'Queen Christina' together. 

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Garbo's unusual diet -

The studios put most of their actresses on strict diets to ensure they maintained a “desirable” weight. It’s reported that Garbo lost 33 pounds (15 kg) when she was first signed by MGM. She later adopted a unique diet under the guidance of the celebrity nutritionist Gayelord Hauser.

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The celebrity dietician of the 1930s -

Hauser seems to have been an early advocate of the diet and wellness culture we see today! Some of the main components of Hauser’s diet plan include vegetables, wheat germ, and yogurt. Garbo was also known to use his recipe for ‘celery loaf,’ a kind of vegetarian meatloaf made of blended celery, nuts, and milk.

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Garbo's sexuality -

One of the aspects of Garbo’s life that is most often discussed is her sexuality. While she kept to herself most of the time, she was known to refer to herself as a boy in public and favored more masculine clothes. Although she had a well-known romance with her frequent co-star John Gilbert, she often referred to herself as a bachelor.

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Decades of speculation -

One of her biographers, Barry Paris, wrote that she liked to confuse people. She enjoyed playing up the public perception people had of her and didn’t feel the need to correct them. Many speculate that she was bisexual, although there is little hard evidence. Several women have claimed that they had affairs with Garbo, but the star herself never confirmed nor denied the rumors.

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Mercedes de Acosta -

One woman who has been strongly linked to Garbo, and to many other noteworthy women of the era, is Mercedes de Acosta. She was a poet, playwright, screenwriter, novelist, costume designer, and, most surprisingly for the time, an out and proud lesbian.

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Mercedes de Acosta's other women -

De Acosta is rumored to have had affairs with the likes of Virginia Woolf and Marlene Dietrich. She moved to Hollywood in the 1930s, where she reportedly met and fell in love with Greta Garbo. Sources say she moved into a house beside Garbo’s Hollywood home and began writing a play for Garbo to star in.

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The influence of MGM -

Garbo would have been dressed as a boy for much of the performance, but MGM reportedly came in and put a stop to it. Garbo had a predisposition for wearing boyish clothing and the studio had carefully worked to make her a glamorous style icon. They refused to allow de Acosta to ruin the image they had created.

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A controversial memoir -

Some accounts say that Garbo and de Acosta had an on-again-off-again romance for a decade. In 1960, de Acosta released her autobiography titled ‘Here Lies the Heart.’ She didn’t directly mention her same-sex romances, but named a number of women as close friends, including Garbo. Many of these women reacted with anger, feeling that they had been outed.

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Was she a spy? -

Another often-discussed rumor relating to Greta Garbo is her supposed work as a wartime spy. Garbo certainly played the role of a spy in the movies ‘Mata Hari’ (1932) and ‘Ninotchka’ (1939), but whether or not she was involved in any real-life espionage is dubious.

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The real Garbo -

There are rumors that she collected information from Nazi sympathizers in Sweden for the Swedish and British intelligence agencies during World War II. However, other sources say there is no evidence she left the US during this period and that she may simply be confused with another spy named Garbo! Indeed, a Spanish spy named Juan Pujol García worked under the codename Garbo for Britain during World War II.

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Retirement -

Garbo shocked the world when she suddenly retired from acting in 1941 at the age of 36. There is much speculation about her reasons for quitting. Some believe it’s because her last film, ‘Two-Faced Woman,’ was a failure, some say MGM conspired to end her career, and others think World War II had something to do with it. Based on the little we know of Greta Garbo’s personality, it’s possible she did it simply because she felt like it. She lived in Manhattan until her death in 1990, and was often spotted going for long walks around New York.

Sources: (Britannica) (Sotheby's) (Mental Floss) (History Collection) (Pride)

See also: Marlene Dietrich: The making of a silver screen icon

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