Garbo and Roberts

Greta Garbo.



This is a familiar name in the heydays of MGM. (If you remember the roaring lion logo which was later bought over by Sony I think.)
If you have watched her films, you will be surprised by her onscreen prescence.
She was totally memesrising, powerfully enigmatic, sexy and alluring.
I saw her film "Queen Christina" in the musty old library of my school.
The movie "Queen Christina" poster.


One of the suave picture in the movie.

I dig that film out coz I had a free period.
I was so absorbed by her onscreen personality.
Her onscreen chemistry with the Spainish Ambassador, John Gilbert is utterly amazing, sizzling and hot.

The sizzling scene in Queen Christina.


Another movie casting both as lead actor and actress.


John Gilbert's individual shot.

It is hotter than any romantic scene in today's films.
Nevermind the fact that the box office did not do well back then, stating that Gilber's high-pitched voice is the cause.
Box office is never a genuine reflection of things. They are not in the past and they are not in the present or future.
His voice is alright in the show. Perfectly suitable. I might have attributed to the poor quality of the film used.
Geez..never have occured to me that I might have fell in love with black and white TV.
I used to detest that period, though I like Charlie Chaplin.

I put her aside for quite sometime.

Then I embarked on the novel "Genuine Lies" by Nora Roberts.
I was amazed by her vivid description of a movie star.
I am sure that there is such person in Hollywood.
It is just that I din know who.

One day while I went shopping, I came across Greta Garbo's "Queen Christina" again.
I got a gut hunch that something clicked.
I din know wat was wat but I do know it has to do with the things I have done recently.

Tonight, I tot I would research on the film and write a blog entry on it.
I went through the biography and snippets of news on Greta Garbo and her lover, John Gilbert.
Then it occured to me.
The female lead started almost the same way as Garbo.
Eve Benedict was strangely similiar to Greta Garbo.
If that is the case,
It make all the more logical to equate John Gilbert with Charlie Grey.
It also make sense to equate Julia Summers with Garbo's biographer Swanson who reflected her life with truth. (Of coz without the link that Swanson was Garbo's daughter. Garbo did not get married.)
Frankly speaking, I was very emotional and sad at the seemingly glamourous lives of actors and actresses.
The fate of them lie in the hands of the studios.
So tragic.
Read the novel and Garbo's biography.