Swedish actress Greta Garbo accomplished in less than two decades what advocates for women's rights had sought for centuries: she showed the American public that feminine sexuality was compatible with intelligence. During the 1920s, when liberated flappers still attracted scorn from mainstream society, Garbo's depiction of independent yet feminine beauties helped convince millions of American women that sexual initiative was not a man's prerogative. Garbo "was allowed the right to have amorous needs and desires," according to biographer Karen Swenson, and her popularity with both sexes enabled her to challenge "traditional roles with few negative consequences." At the same time, Hollywood's highest paid female star eschewed media attention and created a mystical image around her indifference to public opinion. At the age of thirty-six, Garbo retired to a life of almost hermetic seclusion. Film critic David Thomson saliently observed that "in making the journey...