Greta Garbo than $1 million at the box office, becoming one of the studio's biggest failures of the decade. Garbo's popularity had considerably dropped, and when her contract expired soon thereafter, she returned briefly to Sweden. On 3 May 1938, Garbo was among the many stars—including Joan Crawford, Norma Shearer, Luise Rainer, Katharine Hepburn, Mae West, Marlene Dietrich, Fred Astaire, Dolores del Río and others—dubbed to be "Box Office Poison" in an article published by Harry Brandt on behalf of the Independent Theatre Owners of America. After the box office failure of "Conquest", MGM decided a change of pace was needed to
Greta Garbo "Romance" (1930). After filming ended, Garbo—along with a different director and cast—filmed a German-language version of "Anna Christie" that was released in December 1930. The film's success certified Garbo's successful transition to talkies. In her follow-up film, "Romance" (1930), she portrayed an Italian opera star opposite Lewis Stone. She was paired opposite Robert Montgomery in "Inspiration" (1931), and her popularity was used to boost the career of the relatively unknown Clark Gable in "Susan Lenox (Her Fall and Rise)" (1931). Although the films did not match Garbo's success with her sound debut, she was ranked as the most popular female