Learned Russian for Role

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXIII, Issue 18920, 23 January 1936, Page 10

Learned Russian for Role

PRETA Garbo refuses to be baffled by any lingual barriers. Ten years ago* she went to America, a stranger in a strange land and without a whit of knowledge of its language. She studied ' English laboriously and before she appeared in her first talking picture, "Anna Christie," a sceptical world believed Garbo was through in American films. Then came "Anna Christie," with slogans "Garbo Talks!"

Although Garbo talked, she talked with a decided accent. Yet she would not be discouraged. She continued to study the new language until —in "The Painted Veil" —she had almost completely eradicated any evidence of a foreign accent.

And now another lingual problem recently confronted the Swedish star. In her latest picture, "Anna Karenina," she speaks perfect English—but the host of Russian names offered another obstacle. The names of the characters arc purely Russian. They had to be spoken as true Russians speak them. Thus Garbo returned to school once more to master lingual barriers—to learn to speak Russian names faithfully.