She is the Queen of the Icebergs on the silver screen.
She is hailed as a Renaissance goddess with the most beautiful eyes of the past and the future.
The British journalist summed up her beauty best: her face is the ultimate in human evolution.
The demon Hitler was a fan of hers, so fascinated that she repeatedly brushed "La Traviata".
For this special fan, she was rude: "I will persuade him to truce, otherwise I will kill him." I am the only person in the world who can see him without being searched. ”
Compared with her contemporaries, Hollywood actresses, her beauty is tough and unique.
So does her acting skills.
In the era of silent films, there are often large ranges of body movements and exaggerated expressions.
Her face doesn't need to change, and she can be different with just one look.
With "Riptide", it has captured the hearts of countless people, including men and women.
She became famous overnight.
The film remuneration is second only to Chaplin.
At the end of the 1920s, silent films transitioned to sound films.
Audiences couldn't stand exotic accents, and many of their European counterparts returned home before the film "made a sound."
She took it to the next level with a pure and beautiful voice, low, hoarse, sexy, and perfectly matched by a perfect face.
The Oscar Special Award is for her.
She is the Empress of Silent Films: Greta Garbo.
Garbo is beautiful and mysterious.
She has been in the industry for 16 years, shooting 27 films, but only giving 17 interviews.
36 years old, in the golden age, but resolutely disappeared.
Whether compared with the actress Of her contemporaries, Dietrich, or compared with the younger generations Ingrid Bergman and Catherine Hepburn, Garbo's film time is also too short.
Far from the show business circle, living in the shallow, and no one mentions the acting career, let alone why the film is gone.
She may just want to live an ordinary life.
But in his later years, Garbo was full of regret: "I wasted my life, and now it is too late to change her." The purpose of my walk is to escape from reality. When I'm alone, I often think about everything in my past, and there are many questions worth pondering. In short, I am not satisfied with this life. ”
On April 16, 1990, at the age of 84, Garbo died of illness in New York after nearly 50 years of seclusion.
What is she running away from?
Not satisfied with what?
Why do you live a lifetime of unmarried and lonely?
Rumor has it that she was unmarried for life and was associated with a man.
He is a Swedish national treasure director, Moritz Stiller.
It's also her Bole.
Stiller discovered and nurtured her.
Garbo's name was what he had given her.
When MGM went to Europe to invite Stiller, he promised to take Garbo with him.
In this way, he took her out of Sweden and went to New York thousands of miles away to develop.
Stiller is famous in Europe.
But Garbo is just a newcomer and doesn't speak English yet.
Garbo was left out in the cold for months.
Stiller left again with Garbo and went to Hollywood.
With "Riptide", Garbo has established a new female image among a group of silent film actors.
Her performance is silent, and her eyes can speak.
Roland Barthes said: "Garbo's face has the rules of elegant love, and the flesh and blood on her face gives a devastating feeling. ”
MGM also discovered the potential of Garbo.
Her films followed and soon became the company's popular fried chicken.
But Garbo and Stiller rarely had the opportunity to work together.
The only opportunity for cooperation was won by Garbo.
Stiller's way of working is at odds with the System of Lywood.
Depressed, Stiller decided to return to Europe.
Shortly after returning to Sweden, Stiller died of illness at the age of 48.
On his deathbed, he held in his hand a photograph of himself and Garbo when they first arrived in New York.
In the photo, the two people are leaning against the railing, relaxed and happy.
Image source: Wikipedia
It was a sunny day, and Garbo's rare smile was full of smiles.
After learning of his mentor's death, Garbo's beautiful face never smiled like that again.
The words used most by the media to describe Garbo are "melancholy", "confused" and "sad".
The mere phrase "Garbo laughs" to promote Garbo's only comedy, Ninochika, is enough to draw viewers to the theater.
Before leaving, Stiller asked Garbo if he would like to return to Sweden together.
She refused.
At that time, her path to superstardom had just begun.
After hearing the bad news, Garbo has always felt sorry.
Because she loved him: "If I've ever loved anyone, it's Stiller." ”
How could Garbo not love?
This man, who was 22 years older than her, gave her fatherly love and care.
He discovered her in the advertising video.
At first sight, Stiller stared at her like a camera for a long time.
She felt nervous and worried.
Stiller was impatient with this.
He ordered her to take off her hat and coat and look at her from head to toe.
Leave only the phone number for her to audition a few days later.
Stiller said to his assistant, "This person has a bit of a different kind of strength, and I have to see where she is different."
When goodbye, he made her faint from the show.
Under the tiredness of tension and depression, she conveys the passion of longing for love.
Just in time, Stiller caught it.
He gave a super high evaluation: "You can only meet one face like this in a hundred years." ”
He promised her a dream of stardom.
Rename her Garbo.
Take her teeth to straighten.
Teach him how to use a knife and fork and how to adjust his posture.
Teach her how to act and how to deal with the media.
He and she walked and talked in the woods.
He made her a movie and made her famous in Europe.
And win her the opportunity to develop in the United States.
It was he who made a shy and sensitive girl from a Swedish slum into a unique superstar in Hollywood.
Garbo's growth did not go well.
Her original name was Greta Gustav. Born in Sweden, he grew up in a slum.
Father Carl Gustav was a cleaner. Her mother, Anna Lovisha, was a farm cook and was very patriarchal.
Although Garbo is known as the perfect face to appear only once in a hundred years, her appearance was not outstanding at an early age.
The mother has slender limbs, flat chest, and wide shoulders to pull a carriage.
The father has facial features that are more handsome than women.
Garbo perfectly inherited the genes of his parents.
For my father, it is not appropriate to have perfect facial features as a cleaner.
Yu Jiabao, inheriting his father's facial features is a gift from Heaven.
When static, her body is uncoordinated, unsightly, and not beautiful.
When dynamic, her posture produces a strong feeling, giving people a sense of proud beauty.
This is also the reason why she has the most close-ups and long-term scenes in the film.
But at an early age, she was shy, sensitive, and liked to be alone in a corner thinking.
At the age of eleven or twelve, she liked Mary Bikofour, the richest and most famous in the early Days of America.
I will repeatedly watch "Poor Little Broad Girl" starring my idol.
She learns acting while watching.
It was also at this time that the dream sprouted: 24-year-old Mary could play an 11-year-old girl, why couldn't she act?
Although poor, life is still relatively carefree.
Unfortunately, a life full of fantasies was quickly shattered.
At the end of the long summer vacation, Father Carl fell ill with severe nephritis and collapsed in bed.
One day, the father called his daughter to bed and told her that he was feeling bad.
She hurriedly took her father to the clinic for medical treatment.
After a long queue, it was finally my father's turn.
The doctor asked him to take off his hat and asked countless questions, but he did not treat him.
She felt that her father was going to die, but the doctor only cared that they could afford to pay for the medical expenses.
She was forced to leave with her father.
A few days later, my father died of illness.
At that time, she was only 14 years old, and she had already seen the cold and warm of the world.
It was the most painful day of her life.
Many years later, she still shuddered when she mentioned it.
She was poor and scared.
After dropping out of school, she desperately tried to earn money.
He went to work in department stores, bathed as a beauty in a burlesque troupe, put on strange costumes to perform funny and ridiculous movements, and worked as a model many times.
While struggling to survive, her dream did not relax for a moment.
She seized opportunities large and small and went to auditions everywhere.
Until she met Stiller, she stepped onto the screen.
Walk firmly towards your idol.
Directors who have worked with Garbo recall: "She was very ambitious. ”
Garbo's name is unknown, and MGM initially signed it, just to keep the famous Stiller.
Garbo and MGM's famous lion in the opening credits
Image source: Personal Library
When she first arrived in the United States at the age of 20, she didn't speak English, but she worked very hard.
This also laid the foundation for her smooth transition to sound films in the future.
When she first arrived, she was snubbed, but when the opportunity came, she seized it tightly.
Garbo starred in the film "Riptide", which became a hit.
It proves that Stiller's vision is very accurate.
Over the next 16 years of her career, she starred in films such as The Queen of Sweden, La Traviata, Anna Christie, Ninočka, and Two-Faced Woman.
In the late 1920s and early 1930s, cinema went from silent to audible.
This is a disaster for foreign actors.
Silent actors who can't speak are forced to switch careers or learn to speak from scratch.
Many of their European counterparts also took the opportunity to leave the United States.
Garbo is Swedish, and the company has been worried that her accent will disappoint the audience and delay her voice.
But sound movies are an inevitable choice for the trend of the times.
The company had to take risks.
Anna Christie was Garbo's first sound film.
Garbo conquered the audience with a pure beautiful voice and a low, hoarse sexy voice.
No one knows how much sweat she put in to speak English well.
Not only did she have no accent, but her pronunciation was too pure, and she had to deliberately highlight the Swedish accent in response to the audience's request.
She was nominated for an Academy Award three times in her lifetime.
Although they all passed by, it did not affect her to become a screen superstar.
As the famous director Clarence Brown said: "She has not won an award once, but she will always be the most immortal woman on the screen." ”
In 1954, the Oscar jury, seemingly wanting to make up for her "mistakes," set up a special prize for Garbo in recognition of her outstanding performance.
But she did not show her face to accept the award, nor did she make any statement.
At this time, Garbo has been shadowing for 13 years, and she is as mysterious and unique as ever.
Writing to a friend about Hollywood, Garbo said, "They don't have my type of people here. ”
Her mysterious temperament and unique personality gave her a foothold in Hollywood.
But it also made her sad and lonely.
As her fame grew, paparazzi, producers, and company owners got closer and closer to her.
She was very introverted, did not like this, and could only make many requests to close herself off.
She asked that there be no outsiders when filming.
When shooting close-ups, you should use curtains layer by layer to shoot alone.
She demanded higher and higher remuneration.
She hates the media and publicity and doesn't like to be interviewed.
For the agent, garbo at that time was a nightmare.
For the company, as long as you are still a cash cow, any requirement can be met.
She raised her salary again and again to make the company feel unworthy and let her leave.
This mysterious and unique one also extends from work to life.
In those days, thieves often patronized the mansions of Hollywood superstars, but never went to Garbo's house.
It is said that the thieves admired Garbo.
She left a huge inheritance of $55 million to her niece in her 60s when she died.
But her life was extremely ordinary and simple.
She ordered gustav, the housekeeper, not to exceed $100 a month in his household.
Garbo never answers the phone. Let the housekeeper lie that it is "Mr. Norlin's Mansion", unless the call is from a popular person.
She also does some exercise when there is no one around.
She likes to ride horses, but the rent is always paid in cash every month in case the owner of the stables knows her address, and there is always a discount on the rent.
She had several pets: a dog; two cats, a parrot.
Garbo once tried to teach the parrot to shout when she came home from work: "Hello Greta! ”
The less exposure she had, the more mysterious she was perceived and the more interested she became in her private life.
She became one of the first celebrities to be bothered by paparazzi.
Dressed in a loose tunic and covering her dress, she sneaked into the theater box to watch the dance performance.
Soon all the telescopes seemed to be aimed at her, not at the stage.
There was a clear commotion from the crowd.
She had to leave early.
After the show, the crowd crowded the street in front of the theater, because I heard that Garbo had come to see the show tonight.
In her 16 years in Hollywood, she has moved 11 times.
Even after retiring, living alone, she was often followed by paparazzi, and she never let them take close-up photos.
"Please leave me alone."
This is a classic line that is found in Garbo's films.
It is also a portrayal of her heart and life.
She is a star-studded star, but she only wants to be alone.
Although people are not in the jianghu, the jianghu is still full of her rumors.
Because she was never married, rumors spread that she was gay.
To this end, after retiring, she interrupted contact with many female friends.
But she was clearly not.
She had always been in love with Stiller.
She also loved John Gilbert.
Garbo's third film after arriving in Hollywood, "Flesh and the Devil", was made in conjunction with John Gilbert, the highest-paid and most popular male star at the time.
The two performed a perfect romance on the screen.
Off-screen also achieved a remarkable relationship.
Gilbert chased her for two years, and every marriage proposal was rejected by her.
Soon, Gilbert and Inna Claire.
Garbo, who was filming in other places, loyally blessed him after learning about it: "I hope he is extremely happy." ”
It was 1929.
Garbo's refusal should have something to do with Stiller, who returned home alone during that time and then quietly died of illness.
Garbo loved Gilbert, but that was about it.
A few years later, when filming The Queen of Sweden, Garbo had the right to participate in everything about the film.
She offered to replace the original male protagonist, Lawrence Oliver, on the grounds that there was no tacit understanding with Oliver.
In fact, because Gilbert has begun to decline, Garbo wants to help him.
Both the film and Garbo were successful, but Gilbert was not.
It was 1933.
Three years later, at the age of 38, Gilbert died of a heart attack due to chronic alcoholism.
The two men I loved in my life are gone.
Garbo, like the Queen of Sweden, is powerless to love anymore.
After filming "Two-Faced Woman" in 1941, she suddenly announced that she was out of film, at the age of 36.
Leaving Hollywood, she remains mysterious and outlier.
She bought an apartment in New York, and all seven rooms were tastefully furnished.
She often stayed in one of the innermost huts, with a row of colorful paintings of Avrentsky hanging on the walls.
The paintings hanging on the other walls are wrapped in a coarse cloth.
A close friend who had been to her house for the first time in many years was curious, and she said, "Because I had to wrap them up when I was away, and when I came back I would only take two pieces of cloth on top of the paintings, and no one but you would come here, and you wouldn't have to look at them." You can look at this layer of cloth wrapped around the outside. I don't want people to see these paintings when I'm not here. ”
Her life can be said to be very monotonous.
Every day at 10 a.m., she put on her sunglasses and took to the streets to buy food.
After a one-hour lunch break, take another detour around the street.
The evening is spent with the TV.
She lives a low-key life, from dressing to making friends, and doing her work of secrecy to the extreme.
She always wore comfortable men's clothes when she went out, with the brim of her hat pulled low, and a scarf and sunglasses.
Image source: NetEase
She had only a few friends, and if anyone revealed her whereabouts, she immediately broke off relations with them.
After the film, she became acquainted with producer Raymond Dom.
The two walked together for 18 years.
But she didn't even tell Dom her phone number.
He even solemnly declared to Dom: "Don't ask me about the movie, especially why I stopped filming."
She seems to want to erase her acting career.
Sometimes she wouldn't even ask any questions: "Don't ask me questions!" ”
Before she died, she carefully burned most of the letters.
The reason for the shadow has become an eternal mystery.
People thought she was lonely after living in seclusion.
Ingrid Bergman, a junior compatriot who was refused to meet garbo, said: "Can you imagine it? She was only 36 years old at the time, an extremely beautiful and intelligent actress, and from that day on, she stopped doing it. Can you imagine what she did all these years after she got up in the morning? If she had children and grandchildren, that would be a different matter, but she was so lonely..."
Is she really lonely?
not necessarily.
The book "The Secret of Erofrin" reveals a heroic deed unknown to Garbo.
In early 1940, Garbo used his status as a star as a cover for espionage work.
With great wealth but a frugal life, she is clearly not for money.
During World War II, Hitler recruited scientists from all over the world to develop atomic bombs.
Nils Bohr was a well-known Danish atomic scientist who was also on Hitler's list.
Garbo succeeded in convincing Bohr to help him escape from Copenhagen to England.
Germany's atomic bomb development, which was originally ahead of the United States, is likely to be successfully tested first.
Bohr's escape led to a halt in development.
Garbo disregards his personal safety to buy time for victory.
It was not until she was in her prime that she publicly acknowledged this history and made it public.
The film "The Fearless" documents this experience.
Garbo's bravery and justice earned her the title of "Peace Movie Star".
In La Traviata, she says, "My heart is not used to happiness. Perhaps, it is better to live in your heart, in your heart, the world will not see me. ”
Looking back on her youth, she has regrets: "I don't remember being young, I've never been really young like other girls." Just like other children who are truly young and ignorant... I always have my own opinion, however, I never say it. ”
Looking back on her life in her later years, she lamented: "I am like a ship without a rudder - confused, lost and lonely." I was clumsy, shy, nervous, and afraid. That's why I built a wall of repression around myself and lived behind that wall forever. ”
The loneliness of the first half of life is passive, stemming from a lack of love.
People who lack love will fall in love with their ideal parents.
Garbo is no exception.
Taste the warmth and cold of the world too early.
She could only hide herself.
Loneliness gives her a temporary sense of security.
But it didn't make her happy, and it made her miss out on what she loved.
The loneliness of the second half of life is active, stemming from unfinished love.
They met.
He built her.
They love each other.
She finally transformed from an ordinary little girl into a superstar.
Love has not yet been spoken, but he is gone forever.
Gestalt psychology says that everyone pursues a complete mental graph.
First love is mostly fruitless, an unfinished mental figure, an unfulfilled wish.
So the memories of first love are all beautiful.
Even some people can't forget their first love in their lives, and when they are old, they are desperate to find their first love.
Their love, before it has begun, ends forever.
Her love will never end.
She felt the responsibility on herself: if she hadn't refused to leave the United States with him, he might not have left early, and they might have ended differently.
But his departure is an irreversible fact.
Facing the facts, accepting the loss, and learning to grieve is the only way to resolve it.
She repeatedly rejected another man's proposal.
Agreed for the last time.
But he escaped.
One escape, one escape for a lifetime.
Her line in "The Queen of Sweden" is as follows: "I will end my life alone."
Her life ended like the Queen of Sweden, who gave up the throne for love, but still could not prevent the tragedy of love from happening.
She stood in the wind at the bow of the ship looking into the distance, her face expressionless, her eyes seemingly hollow but as if to tell everything.
Leave the world with a stunning and mysterious legend.
This article is written by Chi Jinwen
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