Anna Christie

Anna Christie (1930) starring Greta Garbo, Marie Dressler, Charles Bickford
When it was learned that Greta Garbo, was cast as a disillusioned prostitute in Anna Christie, even her most devoted admirers were skeptical. Not only was it an unglamourous role for the 24-year-old actress, but it was also to be her first talking picture. Garbo’s answer was to play it with superbly. With her first, and now famous spoken line (“Gimme a whiskey, ginger ale on the side. And don’t be stingy baby”) Garbo conquered the world of sound films.. Based on Eugene O’Neill’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play, Garbo give a fascinating performance as an embittered prostitute who returns home to her father, a barge captain. She finds sympathy in the gruff, but kindly Marthy (Marie Dressler), but when a sailor (Charles Bickford) falls in love with Anna, she is forced to reveal her tarnished past to both him and her father, leading to a riveting climax.