Back in the days before Cable or even- gulp- DIGITAL Broadcasting , back when there were but THREE major television stations, ABC, NBC and CBS, channels used to sign off at the end of the day, and for most of the night, all you saw was a test pattern.
For those insomniacs out there like me, sometimes there’d be a temporary reprieve after all regular programming was done, in the form of “Nite-Owl Theater”…. this was basically the TV station broadcasting old Black and White films in the wee hours of the morning, usually between 12:30 to 2:00 in the morning, and I just loved it!
There is something sort of magical about watching old movies late at night , wrapped up in a blanket, where you feel you’re the only person awake in the world. The movies really come to life, and you almost feel transported to that earlier time. Those days of watching those late night movies still bring back fond memories!
By chance one night I happened to catch a random movie from 1933 starring the incredible Greta Garbo called Queen Christina. Talk about beginners luck, as I was to find later that many regard Queen Christina as one of Garbo’s finest and regularly recommend it to beginning Garbo enthusiasts!
But I didn’t know anything about the movie besides the fact that the story was one of the most interesting and appealing tales I’d seen in a while- and the fact that Greta Garbo was far, far prettier than I ever could have imagined…and that VOICE!!!!
I don’t know, my general image of Greta Garbo was of your usual pin-up platinum blonde…Garbo was just about anything BUT average! Exotic and Moody, from the very first time I laid eyes on her and heard that mesmerizing, husky voice, I knew she was truly something special!
Greta plays a Queen who escapes the crushing responsibilities of royalty to hide out dressed as a boy in a small town tavern. There she meets a man on his way to meet the Queen, who hasn’t the slightest inkling that she’s right there in front of him! One thing leads to another, and they fall in love…but when she assumes her responsibilities once more, they find it is harder that they think to continue the doomed romance.
It’s hard to even pick a favorite scene in this movie, they’re all so good. Each scene with her is a joy to watch, her emotional delivery of every line is captivating, and one of my favorite touching scenes (where she says she is “memorizing the room”) is one where she doesn’t speak at all!
Well, I just flat out loved this movie, (In fact, to this day, it is still one of my very VERY favorite movies of all time!) and I needed to see more, more, more! Fortunately, there was this wonderful Video Rental store in town that specialized in the classic films, and it was through here that I saw almost all of Greta’s major movies and a few lesser ones, too! From Grand Hotel through Susan Lenox, even my very first silent movies Flesh and the Devil and The Temptress, if Garbo was in it, I rented it! In time, I even managed to special order the Laserdisc of Queen Christina, which was, for years, the only copy I had of this beloved movie.
When MGM finally released a selection of Greta’s movies in a Deluxe DVD Box Set, I was thrilled to finally get Queen Christina on DVD , as well as other favorites Ninotchka, Mata Hari and Anna Christie, none of which had ever been given a DVD treatment before!
I’m hoping that they get around to releasing a second Box Set because there are a few other favorites Still to be released on DVD-I’m gonna keep my fingers crossed for these treasures!!!
