Garbo favourite dies, 85

GRAY Gustafson Reisfield, the sole heiress to her aunt Greta Garbo’s estate and a woman who was a long- time companion to the late Swedish- born actress, has died, a family member said on Monday.

Reisfield died on Sunday at her home in Marin County, California, after a bout of pneumonia, said son Derek Reisfield. She was 85.

Reisfield was separated by 27 years from Garbo. But the two bonded over being strong, independent women and enjoyed the lighter side of life together, sitting by the swimming pool, travelling to Caribbean islands and teaching children to do cartwheels in the backyard.

“She viewed ( Garbo) as truly remarkable woman,” Derek Reisfield said. “I think my mother really respected her because she had accomplished so much, and she had done it her way. She was very independent when women were not, and I think that was a real lesson for my mother.”

Born in Stockholm, Sweden, in 1932, Reisfield came to the US with her parents and spent her

INDEPENDENT: Gray Gustafson Reisfield and Bishop Caroline Krook at the tombstone of Greta Garbo after the 1999 service at the Woodland Cemetery, Stockholm. Picture: TOBIAS ROSTLUND