The Mysterious Recluse

The Mysterious Recluse 1

Garbo -- divine, mysterious, 1)reclusive. One of the most famous faces of the 20th century. On screen she was 2)raw sexuality, off screen her affairs with men and women 3)captivated the press. And her silence made her a legend. But it was a legend she tried to escape for fifty years. What was the secret of Greta Garbo? The truth lies in the face, the voice and our own appetite for mystery.

Greta Lovisa Gustafson was born on September 18, 1905 in the working class soda 2 4)mall merrier of Stockholm.

The 19-year-old Garbo said goodbye to her family in Stockholm, she was given visa number 396 and arrived in New York City on July 5, 1925. At the time MGM 5)publicity 3 chief Howard Dietz said of 6)Garbo, “I hate that name, It reminds me of garbage.” America was unimpressed with Greta -- but a series of 7)amateur photos was about to launch Garbo’s career.

After three months, production chief Irving Thalberg assigned Garbo to The Torrent 4. Garbo’s natural manner distinguished 5 her from more histrionic silent actors. MGM had found Garbo’s identity. Off screen, Garbo barely spoke 6 English. When she tried to joke that she was an “imported star”, but accidentally said “important star” the crew laughed at her 8)vanity. On screen, MGM enhanced the 9)mystique of its new star by teaming her with the best photographers and designers.

Clarence Sinclair Bull was assigned to do all her official photography. He would become known as “the man who shot Garbo.” He referred to her as the Mona Lisa of the 20th century.

Garbo created a new kind of 10)glamour 7. A combination of sexuality, fashion and mystery. Audiences wanted to know more about the woman behind the face, but Garbo refused to talk. The studio played along since her 11)reticence 8 seemed to create more interest in the Swedish 12)sphinx. The 13)subtext of one of her next films was thinly 14)veiled. Queen Christina was the story of the legendary 9 17th century Swedish leader who 15)abdicated her throne rather than 16)subjugate 11 herself to a man.

Greta Garbo (Lines from Queen Christina): I thought you would understand when you saw me again what had happened. Could it have been so enchanting 12 to be a woman? Mother queen -- just a woman in a man’s arms.

Garbo inspired and yet 17)defied interpretation 13, on screen and off. For the final shot of Queen Christina, Mamoulian gave his 18)inscrutable leading lady her most brilliant direction. He asked her to think of nothing.

Garbo’s era had passed. She had outlived most of her lovers and costars. Greta Garbo’s screen legend had become Greta Garbo urban legend. In 1970’s New York, a Garbo sighting as she marched through the streets of Manhattan stopping only to browse 14 through 19)junk shops and 20)antique stores was recorded the same status as a UFO. She became a 21)cult 15 figure and showed up in unlikely places. On Friday April 28, 1990, she went for her regular 22)dialysis treatment but did not return. She died on Easter Sunday.

They say the only thing an actor owes the public is a performance. That much Garbo gave. Whether she had nothing to say or simply said nothing doesn’t matter. Hers was a perfect face. A blank screen on to which the world projected what it needed to see. Her silence told us what we wanted to hear.

冰雪美人--葛丽泰·嘉宝

嘉宝，二十世纪最著名的人物之一，如仙女般的神秘，超凡脱俗。银幕上她飘渺撩人，银幕外她的爱情传闻成为传媒争相报道的对象。沉默使她成为传奇人物，五十年的遁世更是一个传奇。嘉宝到底有何神秘之处？真相尽在她的脸庞上、声音里和人们对神秘的好奇之中。

1905年9月18日，葛丽泰·洛维萨·格斯塔夫森出生于斯德哥尔摩市苏打街的一个工人家庭。

十九岁的嘉宝告别斯德哥尔摩的家，拿着396号签证，于1925年7月5日抵达纽约市。当时，米高梅的广告总经理霍华德·迪兹对嘉宝的评价是“我讨厌嘉宝这个名字，它让我想到垃圾。”美国人对葛丽泰也没有丝毫印象，但有一群业余摄影师准备要推动嘉宝的事业前进。

经过三个月的演出之后，制片主任欧文·撒尔伯格指定嘉宝参与《激流》的演出。嘉宝自然的气质使她在众多的无声电影演员中脱颖而出。米高梅发现了嘉宝的独特之处。银幕外，嘉宝很少说英语。有次她想笑称自己是一个“进口明星”时，却不小心说成了“重要明星”，那令工作人员取笑她虚荣。银幕上，米高梅通过给她配备最好的摄影师和造型师来增加这位新星的神秘感。

克拉伦斯 ·辛克莱·布尔被指派负责她所有正式场合的摄影工作。他因为给嘉宝拍摄而名声鹊起。而他则把嘉宝比作是二十世纪的蒙娜丽莎。

嘉宝展现了一种全新的魅力，那就是集性感、时尚与神秘于一身。观众想知道更多关于她的幕后故事，但嘉宝拒绝透露。她的沉默似乎让人们对这个瑞典女神越来越着迷，而电影公司也竭力给予配合。这样她接下来的一部影片的潜台词就不言而喻了。《瑞典女王》讲述的是十七世纪瑞典女王宁愿放弃王位而不愿屈服于一个男子的传奇故事。

嘉宝（影片《瑞典女王》中的台词）：等我们再见时，我想你会明白这一切的。做一名女人就这么诱人吗？皇太后——不过是在男人怀里的一个女人。

嘉宝富有表现力，但她很反感旁人的指手划脚，银幕内外皆是如此。在《瑞典女王》的最后一个镜头中，马蒙利亚给予他那难以捉摸的女主角无以伦比的指导。他叫她什么都不要想。

现在，嘉宝的时代已经过去了。她比她的爱慕者和合作过的明星都要长寿。嘉宝的银幕神话转变成了嘉宝的都市童话。在二十世纪七十年代的纽约，一个拍摄嘉宝穿过曼哈顿街道，驻足浏览便宜店和古董店的录像，其价值等同于发现不明飞行物的镜头。她是人们顶礼膜拜的人物，并且常出现在意想不到的地方。1990年4月28日星期五，她去进行常规的透析治疗，但再也没能回来。她于星期天复活节逝世了。

都说演员贡献给公众的只有表演。嘉宝尽力了。她究竟是无话可说或者只是不发一言，这些都不重要了。她那完美无缺的脸孔正如一块白幕，投影了全世界想要看到的一切。她的不语恰恰道出了我们最想聆听的声音。

注释:

1) reclusive [riklu:siv] a. 隐遁的，隐居的

2) raw sexuality: 性感撩人

3) captivate [5kAptiveit] v. 迷住，迷惑

4) mall [mC:l] n. 商业街，林荫路

5) publicity [pQb5lisiti] n. 宣传，广告

6) garbo还有“垃圾工人”的意思。

7) amateur [5AmEtjuE] n. 业余爱好者

8) vanity [5vAniti] n. 虚荣

9) mystique [mis5ti:k] n. 神秘性，奥秘

10) glamour [5^lAmE] n. 魅力，魔力

11) reticence [5retisEns] n. 沉默寡言

12) sphinx [sfiNks] n. [希神]斯芬克斯（有翼的狮身女怪，传说她常叫过路行人猜谜，猜不出者即遭杀害）

13) subtext [sQb5tekst] n. 潜在意思

14) veil [veil] v. 戴面纱，隐藏

15) abdicate 10 [5Abdikeit] v. 退位，放弃

16) subjugate [5sQbdVu^eit] v. 屈服

17) defy [di5fai] v. 抵抗，抵触

18) inscrutable [in5skru:tEbl] a. 难以了解的，不能理解的

19) junk [dVQNk] n. 垃圾

20) antique [An5ti:k] n. 古董，古物

21) cult [kQlt] n. 礼拜

22) dialysis [dai5Alisis] n. [化]  透析，分离