PowerPC :: IMac G3 As VGA Monitor?

Forgive me if this has been discussed on here previously, I didn't see anything in a cursory search, so here I am. I've come into ownership of a discarded iMac G3 (aqua, tray-load) that upon plugging in, starts, and then sits on the gray Apple logo screen for eternity, so I know that the CRT works. What I want to do is this: I currently have an LG flatscreen monitor plugged into a converter box that turns coax cable into a VGA signal, so I'm using the monitor as a TV, with external speakers, in my office. I'd love to be able to use this iMac in the same way, essentially just use the screen and leave all the guts in there spinning all day long. Now, I've seen a bunch of posts around the web about using the iMac G3s as external monitors for MacBooks and whatnot, but that all seems to rely on actually routing information through the computer itself, rather than just the screen. Has anyone done this? If I get one of the converters out there that'll turn the 15-pin monitor connection into a VGA hook-up, will the CRT still have power? Is there another option? Do I have to resort to iMac-quarium (which would still be a cool addition to the office)?