Greta Garbo was the Swedish born iconic actress (Greta Lovisa Gustafsson) who was a huge international star in both silents and “talkiesâ€. She was a beautiful and mysterious woman who retired from film at the height of her fame at the age of 37 into a publicized anonymity, declaring (mythically): “I vant to be aloneâ€. And alone she remained, living a quiet life in New York, socializing with friends, entertaining the occasional movie offer, none of which ever made it to completion. A one-time lover of the silent film great, John Gilbert, she never married, had no children and was rumored to have had lesbian relationships. She kept her own counsel about her life and did not welcome curious intrusion into it. Her legacy is on the screen for all to see, and a rich legacy it is. Whether speaking or not, she is luminous and transcendent, a persona for the ages, beautifully packaged into such classics as Camille, Ninotchka and Anna Karenina. In 1999 the American Film Institute named Greta Garbo number five on the list of greatest woman stars of film history – a strong case could be made for giving her first place.
