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A surprising number of Silver Screen Legends forwent education and began early careers, although not necessarily in acting. Most were not plucked from obscurity, forced to abandon instruction and thrust into the limelight by their astounding talent. Instead, the reasons behind leaving school were often linked to deaths, financial necessity, expulsion and escape from abuse.

The following is a list of the top 10 screen legend high school dropouts, along with the circumstances surrounding their departure from school and later endeavors. Individuals were ranked in terms of their accomplishments, on-screen and off, along with adversities overcome.

   Greta Garbo (1905 –1990) 葛丽泰•嘉宝

 

Greta Garbo [File photo]

Born in the slums of Stockholm, Greta Lovisa Gustafsson hated school and preferred imaginative playacting with her chums. Her father succumbed to the Spanish flu which ravaged Sweden in 1920, leaving the family destitute. Greta happily left formal education at 14 and began work as a soap-lather girl in a barbershop and later a gofer in a department store. Her unusual beauty was noticed and she began posing for the store's catalogue. This soon led to more lucrative modeling jobs and commercial appearances. She studied acting for two years until her mentor's friend, Louis B. Mayer, placed her under contract and brought Garbo to Hollywood. Despite her Swedish accent, she successfully transitioned from silent film to "talkies" and became known as The Queen of MGM.

Garbomania reached its peak in the 1930s thanks to her roles in Grand Hotel (1932), Queen Christina (1933), Camille (1936) and Ninotchka (1939). After acting in 33 films and receiving 4 Oscar nominations, Garbo's career floundered due to the critical failure of Two Faced Woman (1941)– a film she later refer to as "my grave." Over the next decade, she rejected some movies and others imploded financially. In imposed retirement, she hid from publicity but was not reclusive, noting the difference between "wanting to be alone" and "wanting to be left alone." In 1951, Greta became a naturalized United States citizen and moved to a large Manhattan apartment. She was an avid art collector and could frequently be seen hiding under sunglasses touring the streets of New York until her death at the age of 84.

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