HIGH CONTRAST: Little Girls Lost (and Found)

Greta Garbo in Anna Christie. When Marilyn Monroe began taking

acting classes with Lee Strasberg, she performed this scene

(with Maureen Stapleton in Marie Dressler's role.) The 

result was said to have been breathtaking.

In studying the life and career of Greta Garbo, the last person I expected to draw comparisons with was Marilyn Monroe. Certainly, the differences between these two women are easier to identify. Yet, somehow, the more I got to know Garbo, the more I was able to find commonalities between Marilyn and herself-- both in the strange oddities of their behavior and in their mutual effect upon the public.

The greatest commonality between these two cinematic figureheads is their personal drive. Marilyn's determination to become the biggest star in the universe is more obviously recorded, but Garbo too had a hidden, unquenchable desire to become, not necessarily a star, but a success in her craft. Both were arguably found and formed, or aided, in their ascent by important men-- Garbo by director Mauritz Stiller, and Marilyn perhaps most importantly by agent Johnny Hyde (left). Where the two women are divergent is in the impetus behind their agendas. Garbo seemed to seek out acting as a way of transformation, a way of hiding in fantasy. She wanted to control the eye while being hidden from it-- you think you see me, but you don't. The cloak of her characters was a protection, and the emotions she experienced as the vessel of their passions and torments provided a cathartic personal release that she would never have revealed so openly in reality. Marilyn, on the other hand, sought the human eye full stop. She wanted to be swallowed by it. Acting for her was too a method of metamorphosis, but while Garbo alternated personalities in various roles while always maintaining her separate self, Marilyn mutated from Norma Jeane Mortenson into Marilyn Monroe and lost Norma Jeane in the process. Her quest for love and respect made her seek the spotlight, and only after she conquered the gaze of the camera was she able to begin her education in the art of acting in earnest. Garbo's ambition made her refuse all forms of compromise in order to get to her goal; Marilyn made the compromise and paid the forfeit. Thus, one woman enchanted the world by saying, "You can't have me," and the other by saying, "You can have it all." Objectively, one seems to be the User, the other the Used.

Their appeal to the public is thus equal in power and different in effect. It is hard to say who the bigger star truly was within their own timelines, nor who has maintained the greater allure, although the mythic, pop-cultural stature that Marilyn Monroe has reached at this point makes her sacrifice for eternal stardom seem the more obvious winner. Both, in their equal reigns over Hollywood, were considered the pinnacles of female beauty. Garbo, as a skinny, angular, and almost clumsy culmination of an art deco female, totally redefined beauty in her era. Her beauty was in her face, her eyes-- which were at once inviting and closed off. Her sexual enticement was a dare, which was only enhanced by her androgyny (right). Conversely, Marilyn was all woman all the time. She adhered to the general staples of feminine sensuality by possessing the voluptuous, curvaceous, come-hither figure that not only invited but begged for objectification. Her beauty was in her entire demeanor, including her coy movements and soft voice. She became, thus, an answered and expanded upon prayer to the male sex-- the mother, daughter, lover figure.

Both women, whether emotionally open or closed, were equal in their photogenic presences. The camera has loved perhaps no two women in history more, and both were geniuses in the art of being still and invigorating at once. Yet, again, the camera seemed to need to seek Garbo out, as if she was caught almost off guard and haphazardly-- in her perpetual state of gorgeousness-- whenever the shutter clicked. Marilyn on the other hand, used her charisma to charge at the camera, willfully pulling it to her and continuing a lifelong game of follow the leader. She more finitely determined the image she projected, including her approval or disapproval of her proofs. What the camera saw was what she wanted it to see, always and forever. Garbo, therefore, remains hypnotic for her always exhausted lack of effort and hint of disdain, and Marilyn remains hypnotic for her overzealous devotion to fulfilling the American sexual fantasy. The mind wonders when looking at both women, "What is pulling Garbo away from us?" and "What is pushing Marilyn so violently off the page" (left)?

In both cases, there is an inviting allure, although in Garbo's case it is far more dangerous in its temptation. Yet, both figures, in both still photographs and in motion, possess the same emotional quality that renders them somehow non-threatening and, in turn, likable: vulnerability. This word is used frequently in the descriptions of both women in terms of their work. Both are eternally projecting personas, but what they are projecting over is their frail humanity-- their personal weaknesses, their fear. Garbo, so stoic yet so full of emotion, is always the woman putting on a tough impenetrable act to protect her actually breaking heart. Her desire is her greatest weakness, and her passion is so strong that she seems forced to stifle it lest the world explode (right). For women in 1920s-1930s America, who were seeking liberation, the hidden she-wolf within coupled with honest feminine yearning was a quality easily identified and appreciated in Garbo. Her control of her sexuality spoke to them. She may have been a vamp, but she too had a little girl quality that just wanted to be loved. A woman, at last, could be powerful and emotional at once. Our annoying "hysterics" were for once not a malady but a centrifugal force of our character. 

Marilyn too had a bold face covering her inner complexity, though her projection is one of the utmost girlishness and passivity (left). She is the ignorant blonde, harmless in her sexuality, because she doesn't even know who she is. She's projecting what she thinks the world wants. And we do want it, particularly the male sex, who saw in Marilyn the perfect representation of the beautiful, appeasing, non-confrontational female. Yet, because we see the little girl peeking out from inside, we too sense her suffering. This is why she was and is equally embraced by the female population. Women identify with the great effort she put into her appearance, knowing first-hand the exhaustion it causes and the painful stakes one must endure to be an "attractive woman." They recognize the charade, because they all participate in it in the hopes of landing "the guy" who will love them for who they really are inside-- the mess beneath the facade. It is the internal "mess" of both women that still makes them more complicated and thus more fascinating. Garbo's vulnerability lay in the fact that she suffered under the weight of her rebellion, and Marilyn's lay in the fact that she suffered under the weight of her acclimation. Men were drawn to both figures because they represented the combination of both the virgin and the whore-- they were excited by the perfect extremities (whore) and attracted by the endearing internals (virgin).

It is actually the way Garbo and Marilyn's mutual but exclusive allure manifested itself in their private lives that indicates the greatest parallel between the two women. Their vulnerability, their eroticism, their fame... The culmination caused the same reaction. People wanted to be close to them, at first to worship and later to possess. Friends of both Marilyn and Garbo would talk about how "drawn" they were to the stars; how even off-putting behavior-- Marilyn's addictions and Garbo's eccentricities-- could not deter one from their company, at least not for long. Beneath their gorgeous exteriors existed a sadness that one wanted to quell. Everyone wanted to save Garbo from herself; everyone wanted to save Marilyn from herself. Lovers wanted to be saviors and protectors, in the likes of John Gilbert and Arthur Miller. Yet, total submission was never in the cards for either woman, whose independence was in constant conflict with their loneliness or desperation. No man could obtain them nor change them. One could only hope to forge a relationship by becoming somehow indispensable. Garbo came to lean on people like  professional confidante Salka Viertel and harmless friend Sam Green; Marilyn on acting coach Lee Strasberg and psychiatrist Dr. Ralph Greenson. Their uncertainties and little insecurities were played upon and used, most extravagantly in Marilyn's case, in order for the outside party to maintain proximity to their otherworldliness. Like moths to a flame, people were driven toward them, but strangely, it was most often Garbo and Monroe that were burned. In most cases, people flocked to these women not simply to experience excellence by association, but, in some perverted sense, to dominate and conquer the world's greatest star, thus becoming the greater and more supreme being. Their friendships became addictive, like "chasing the dragon" or pursuing the ultimate high.

Naturally, with all this attention cast upon them, both women could be wary of strangers and a bit frightened of fans. Marilyn had a much more open and inviting relationship with her "public," but she too was nervous around large groups of people. Though fans professed to adore her, they too often seemed to be almost out for blood. Marilyn took personal judgments and attacks in the press very personally and when fans became over-eager or predatory, she certainly learned the lesson behind "Be careful what you wish for." Garbo's reaction to this same phenomenon was to remove herself completely. She used her trusted friends as shields from fanatic trespassers, avoided large publicity fueled situations, and de-glamorized herself as much as possible in her private life to detract attention. Marilyn too had an on and off switch that she could flick at will, but she often struggled with whether or not she wanted it on or off. She needed the constant reaffirmation of her worth (Greta avoids the wolves, right).

Both women in turn were suspicious of the new people that entered their worlds, who were certain to have some sort of agenda up their sleeves. Most often, the starlets would find themselves pulled to people who professed ignorance or indifference to their celebrity. Both would also seek out surrogate parental figures to fill the places left vacant by their own absent or deceased parents. Internally, they were both sensitive women, an issue only exacerbated by their feelings that they were intellectually inferior. The more Marilyn tried to improve her mind, the more society seemed to laugh at her (left). Garbo solved the problem by remaining almost universally silent. Mistakenly, people assumed that these ladies were great powers and forces of nature, which in one respect they were, but in truth, they were both evasive and non-trusting, due to vast inferiority complexes. Occasionally, the walls would come down, and the great sadness and personal disappointments that they had would be revealed-- inside, they were outsiders, no matter that they seemed to rule the world.

Maurice Chevalier once recalled chatting it up with a surprisingly candid Garbo. She let her guard down with the debonair Frenchman and seemed at ease. She playfully suggested that they go jump in the ocean, to which the conservative Chevalier expressed confusion and politely declined. The course of their entire conversation changed. After his refusal, Garbo looked as if she had been slapped like a naughty child. She withdrew, became silent, and the girlish light of mere moments before vanished. She quickly left. An honest slight or mistaken insult to an already shaky sense of self would always seem to turn the ever-invasive Garbo back inward (right). Carroll Baker recalled a similar interaction with Marilyn. Marilyn had originally hoped to play the lead in Baby Doll, the role that made Carroll a star. At the premiere, Marilyn, with husband Arthur Miller, graciously congratulated Carroll on the film's success. Carroll, who had endured a great deal of controversy and a negative publicity storm due to the subject matter of the film, responded thoughtlessly, "Thanks, but I don't know if congratulations are in order." In a quick moment, the warm, friendly Marilyn was gone. It was as if she had stepped back deep inside herself. In shock that her kindness had been rebuffed, she too turned inward. Indirectly hurt by Carroll's comments, which the latter was kicking herself for, she simply shut down and compartmentalized, as if to keep her pain under wraps. Both Garbo and Marilyn used this survival technique. Thin-skinned and ever-uncomfortable, they seemed to find no solace but in their own isolation-- sacred cocoons.

So similar and so different, both women suffered and triumphed in their different experiences through life and celebrity. Marilyn suffered a much more tragic end simply because the little girl in her cared too much. She had never received the life lessons of what mattered most versus what was superficial. She learned these lessons, of course, on the way, but too late to be protected from the repercussions of her own early misdirection. Garbo was more blessed in this respect, having grown up in a more conventional household and family that instilled in her the values and confidences that would carry her through her most turbulent moments. Garbo had no problem saying "to Hell with it." "It" was all Marilyn believed she had to hold onto, and the weight of this need led to her ruin. Had Garbo not had a strong family unit in her tender years, her endings could perhaps have been just as tragic, since both women seemed to merely hold themselves together through the same tenuous force of will. (Marilyn objectifies herself yet again for our benefit, left).

Both ladies took a final swim in their last films: Greta in

Two-Faced Woman...

There is something fascinating about the parallels and perpendiculars in these artists' relationship to each other. Both are beauties: one hard and one soft. Both are strong personas: one cold, one warm. Both are sexual representatives: one evasive, one inviting. In their comparisons and their separations, there is much to discover about our own desire and what it craves and seeks in others. Would there have been room for Marilyn in Garbo's time, or room for Garbo in Marilyn's? Were their appeals specific to their personal eras, or was their universality equally timeless? Historically, these women are equal artists who were themselves the product of their own art and, in turn, became the artistic statements of their public. There is no best, no ultimate, no winner in the subjective game in which they found themselves the pawns-- the game of our watching. Both are one of a kind creators and creations. We remain enthralled because they were so distinct, quizzical, loved, and hated in their own lifetimes. We responded to their secret depths and continue to swim in them, for in both there is so much more than meets the eye, and so much more we will always want to know.

... and Marilyn in Something's Got to Give.

HOT SPOTS IN CA: San Simeon

The Beautiful Hearst Castle: 

Home Sweet Mansion to visionary William Randolph Hearst.

Ironically, one of the gathering places most representative of the Golden Age of Hollywood is not in Los Angeles but almost 250 miles north. Newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst built his illustrious castle, "San Simeon," as a labor of love, not only for lover Marion Davies, but to art and culture in general. Though it is now best remembered as being the influence for "Xanadu" in the Orson Welles masterpiece Citizen Kane, this house holds none of the movie's dark nature. Basing the construction on the breathtaking architecture he fell in love with on his constant trips abroad, Hearst built quite the collection of structures: the main house, guest houses, swimming pools, tennis courts, not to mention the far reaching exteriors of the outdoor property that included lush gardens and a playground for assorted wildlife. He invited his beloved Marion to finally come and see his new creation in 1924, having refused her admission until it was ready. Of course, it would never really be "ready," as Hearst was always adding to it, improving upon it, and tinkering with it. Bebe Daniels, Ben Lyon, and Constance "Dutch" Talmadge were also invited to this initial visit. As these movie stars' jaws hit the floor at the grandeur before them, it was certain that this place-- this glamorous and expansive "ranch"-- would become a welcoming abode for the Hollywood elite.

San Simeon was a representation of Hearst himself (right), with design and decor of impeccable taste and worldy knowledge but also an assortment of eccentricities. The interior and exterior of the buildings were filled with historical relics and priceless antiques. Genuine pieces of ancient European structures were dismantled, shipped across the Atlantic, and implemented into every corner and crevice of San Simeon. Authentic tapestries, famous paintings and sculptures, and only the grandest of furniture filled the lush rooms. Though the architecture would at first appear intimidating, with the main building resembling a chapel more than a home, the warmth and color applied to the rooms provided a very welcoming vibe. Because of this, Star of the Month William Haines was tongue tied and fascinated when he was invited up for the first time. In fact, Billy would become a frequent visitor to San Simeon, as he was close friends with Marion. Since he had a keen eye for interior design and a great love of antiques, he took to Hearst's artistic knowledge like a moth to a flame. Hearst loved sharing what he knew with Billy, indulging him like a son, answering his questions, and in turn taking his suggestions too. Certainly, the possibilities of design became apparent to Billy during his frequent trips, wherein he soaked in every nuance, every shade, every corner of Hearst's famous home.

The Neptune Pool

The Assembly Hall is exemplary of the rest of the main building. It includes Flemish tapestries, a genuine 16th-century French fireplace, and an extravagant ceiling comprised of transported pieces of the Palazzo Martinengo in Brescia, Italy. One of the most delightful aspects of "Hearst Castle" is its heated Neptune Pool, which contains 345,000 gallons of water. Surrounded by the impeccably tailored gardens of the grounds and decorated with marble replicas of some of Hearst's favorite sculptures, the pool itself was mesmerizing to visitors. Should they prefer to swim out of the sun, the indoor pool was available was well, complete with a diving platform and floor tiles bearing genuine gold flakes. Cary Grant was known to "get his swim on" quite often at either pool, and certainly enjoyed sunning himself by Neptune and keeping up his token tan.

Indoor pool, complete with gold tile.

However, for every luxury, there was also an absurdity. Hearst was a powerful, knowledgable, but eccentric man in many ways. Thus, despite the fact that San Simeon was Party Palace as far as Hollywood was concerned, he allowed no liquor on the premises. While many honored this rule, let's be honest, the majority found ways to break it, including Marion (left), who had many crafty hiding places for her booze. Her niece, Pepi Lederer, was also a frequent guest, and got into many scrapes with Hearst when her behavior indicated that she and her friends, including Louise Brooks, had been imbibing. Marion always got them off the hook, though.

However, Marion couldn't always have everyone's back, and people would quickly learn how close they were to being kicked out by how far they were seated from Hearst at his huge dinner table. If you were seated next to or across from Hearst, you knew you were in good. If you found yourself nearing the end, it was either because you had done something to tick Hearst off, or else he was getting sick of you and trying to tell you to move along. One person that even Hearst couldn't stay mad at was the lovely Jean Harlow, though she did make him blush on one occassion. She came to dinner in one of her typical, slinky dresses-- also typically lacking her undergarments. Hearst asked Marion to suggest that Jean put on something more "appropriate." Jean complied, went upstairs, and returned to dinner with a coat on over her dress, which she jokingly refused to remove. Dinner was an interesting experience for all invited, because it also indicated Hearst's attitude toward germs. He found linen napkins unsanitary, so there was no tablecloth at the lengthy table and paper napkins were used with the rest of the dinnerware. A ketchup bottle was also always handy.

The Table of Judgment

Another interesting story involving Hearst's penchant for oddities involves one of the many trees on the property. Billy Haines (right) would remember walking with Marion Davies down a pathway when the petite woman was forced to duck under an intruding tree branch. The next day, Hearst had uprooted the tree and moved it several feet out of the way. However, there is another story, which claims that Hearst moved the tree when the obstructive branch knocked his own hat off. Whether this indicated Hearst's eccentricities (moving a tree rather than walking around it), his love of the screwball queen Marion (whom he would never allow to suffer any kind of discomfort), or his simple use of power, (using resources to move a tree simply because he could), remains a topic of much speculation and bemusement.

Though Hearst could at times come off as imposing, most close to him looked on him as a little boy. Though his eyes could become piercing when his anger was (rarely) evoked, in general he was shy and fun-loving. He too had a great love of animals. One day, Marion came upon him in a distraught state: he had discovered that a mouse he was nursing back to health had died. The grounds of San Simeon also supplied a home for various wildlife, and Hearst had essentially created his own zoo. However, the majority of the animals were running free, so he wouldn't let his guests wander off onto the property alone. On his land, one could find lions, tigers, elephants, deer, zebras, etc. He eventually had to put up a sign telling visitors "Don't Tease the Monkeys," for after Marie Dressler (left) did so, a monkey threw a little... something in her face.

Most notorious, however, are those expensive, extravagant San Simeon parties. Quite often, WRH and Marion would decide to randomly throw a costume-themed party, and they would thus invite all of their favorites up to the ranch to partake. Cowboys and Indians, Favorite Historical Figures, Circus Clowns... there was no telling what characters a random night would introduce. Actors, directors, politicos, royalty, anyone who was anyone would hop on a train to San Simeon for the chance to rub elbows and cut a rug. At these fetes it was common to see Clark Gable and Carole Lombard, Jean Harlow and William Powell, Norma Shearer and Irving Thalberg, Gary and Rocky Cooper, Charlie Chaplin, John Gilbert, Leslie Howard, etc, etc, etc. While on one corner of the room Hedda Hopper and Norma Shearer would be getting into a fight over Norma's obtrusive Marie Antoinette costume-- which was so wide that she had to be accomodated with extra seats-- Hearst would be tap dancing up a storm on the other. While Billy Haines and Clara Bow made out under the piano, Gloria Swanson would be playing her infamous pranks on the assorted male guests, which usually ended with them being hit in the face with a bag of ice. Anything and everything went, for as long as people could stand... But they had better know that if they weren't up and ready for breakfast the next morning at Hearst's specified time, they weren't eating! Most just stayed up all night so as not to miss the grub, then passed out by the pool until the next round of parties started again. Others, like Harpo Marx, hitchhiked home.

Walter Winchell gives Clark Gable lessons on "How to Woo" 

his own wife, Carole Lombard, during a country/western party.

Hearst's expenditures didn't end here. He also built Marion a beach house-- beach mansion, more like-- in Santa Monica where more of the same continued. It contained 10 guest rooms complete with 10 living rooms, 15 bathrooms, 12 staff rooms, and a pool with a bridge. Erected in 1926, it lasted until 1960, when it sadly became a parking lot. Her dressing room at MGM was equally impressive, being more of a bungalow: it possessed 14 rooms and cost $70,000 all told to build. When her contract at MGM was up, her bungalow was simply moved to her new studio, Warner Bros. San Simeon, however, remains right were it was.

 

The usual suspects, including Greta Garbo, center, John Gilbert, lying center, 

Buster Keaton, squatting, and Norma Shearer and Irving 

Thalberg holding up the right side.

Now property of California State Parks, this sophisticated pleasure dome is open for viewing to the general public. I had the great pleasure of visiting in the summer of 2009, and it must be said that none of this structure's grandeur has diminished. I took tons of pictures (as seen above) as I ambled about in a near daze. I must say, that even the great Biltmore Mansion in Asheville, NC was not as impressive to me as San Simeon, (but perhaps that is because of its Hollywood ties, which I clearly prefer). Different tours are available, so one trip won't do it. Upon your first visit, I recommend that you do the standard tour, which takes you through the first floor of the house and gardens, but definitely go back for a more thorough glimpse of the upstairs rooms. They don't make 'em like this anymore, which I guess is good considering that it would be considered a viscious waste of money. Yet the beauty is definitely worth your appreciation, and the nostalgia you feel for a time left behind remains as poignant as the still startling architecture. As you wander the hallways, it is easy to see why so many of the celebrity elite were drawn here-- to this distant house upon a hill, far away from the glaring Hollywood lights, where they could roll up their sleeves, relax, and laugh easily with their friends. San Simeon provided devilish fun that was still somehow innocent and offered a getaway for those in the spotlight who normally could never seem to find escape. I recommend you try to escape here too.

One of the fancy guest bedrooms.

When Hearst fell on hard times, he was forced to give up San Simeon. It was one of the hardest things he ever did. The home held such memories, but even moreso it held so much of Hearst himself-- his greatest dreams and his greatest loves. He put his heart and soul into it, and never quite finished what he set out to do. Indeed, certain areas are still not completed, and windows lacking glass have been filled in with cement. Upon his final day at San Simeon, he packed up his last belongings and made the trek down the long hill and back to reality. Pausing halfway down, he stopped to gaze up at his silent creation, once so alive and brimming with excitement. San Simeon now stands up in the distance, looking down on the Pacific, and winking at passers by. A mystery swirls around it, beckoning drivers to make the voyage up and recapture some of the high times and misdemeanors the golden age of Hollywood has left behind.

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