Любовь Петровна Орлова
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Lyubov Petrovna Orlova ( ; – 26 January 1975) was a Soviet and Russian actress, singer, dancer, and
People's Artist of the USSR People's Artist of the USSR, also sometimes translated as National Artist of the USSR, was an honorary title granted to artists of the Soviet Union. The term is confusingly used to translate two Russian language titles: Народный арти ...
(1950).


Life and career

Lyubov Orlova was born to a family of Russian hereditary nobles on her maternal side and
gentry Gentry (from Old French , from ) are "well-born, genteel and well-bred people" of high social class, especially in the past. ''Gentry'', in its widest connotation, refers to people of good social position connected to Landed property, landed es ...
on her paternal side in
Zvenigorod Zvenigorod () is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, town in the Moscow Oblast of western Russia. In 2010 it had a population of about 16,000. History The town's name is based either on a personal name (cf. Zvenislav, Zvenimir) or on a ...
, 60 km from Moscow, then lived with her parents and older sister in
Yaroslavl Yaroslavl (; , ) is a city and the administrative center of Yaroslavl Oblast, Russia, located northeast of Moscow. The historic part of the city is a World Heritage Site, and is located at the confluence of the Volga and the Kotorosl rivers. ...
. Her acting and singing talents were evident very early on, but her noble parents considered acting a disgraceful career and directed her towards classical music. There she began to study music. In 1914, after her father left for the front, her mother Evgenia Nikolaevna and her daughters settled in Moscow, where the sisters entered the gymnasium. The Orlovs spent the difficult years of the
Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...
in
Voskresensk Voskresensk () is the name of several types of inhabited localities in Russia, inhabited localities in Russia. Modern localities ;Urban localities *Voskresensk, Moscow Oblast, a town in Voskresensky District, Moscow Oblast, Voskresensky District of ...
because their mother's sister lived here. The family subsisted on funds from the sale of milk which was given by the aunt's cow. Lyuba and Nonna drove nearly a hundred kilometers to Moscow, and then went home, with heavy cans. Hence comes the legend of the ugly hands which Orlova was so shy about. Her first and last names are meaningful words in Russian: любовь means "love", and Орлова is the feminine form of орлов "eagle's". When she was seven,
Fyodor Shalyapin Feodor Ivanovich Chaliapin ( rus, Фёдор Ива́нович Шаля́пин, Fyodor Ivanovich Shalyapin, ˈfʲɵdər ɨˈvanəvʲɪtɕ ʂɐˈlʲapʲɪn}; 12 April 1938) was a Russian opera singer. Possessing a deep and expressive bass voic ...
predicted her future as a famous actress. In 1919–1922, she studied as a piano student at the
Moscow Conservatory The Moscow Conservatory, also officially Tchaikovsky Moscow State Conservatory () is a higher musical educational institution located in Moscow, Russia. It grants undergraduate and graduate degrees in musical performance and musical research. Th ...
( class) but did not graduate because she had to work as a music teacher and a pianist-illustrator of
silent film A silent film is a film without synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, w ...
s in movie theaters () to support her parents. In 1925, she has graduated from the Moscow Theatre College, choreography department. Her first husband, a Soviet economist,
Andrei Berzin Andrei Gasparovich Berzin (, ; January 23, 1893, Majorenhof, Governorate of Livonia — 1951, Latvian SSR) was a Soviet politician. After the Russian Civil War Berzin remained in Soviet Russia, where he worked as deputy head of the adminis ...
, was arrested in 1930. However, this did not affect her career. Dmitri Shcheglov, a biography author, wrote in ''Love and Mask'' ('Lyubov i maska', 1997): "As an eternal irony and foresight of fate, the best performer of the roles of house servants and enthusiasts of Communist labor was a descendant of ten Russian Orthodox saints. Two of them, Olga, the Grand Princess of Kiev, and Vladimir, the Grand Prince of Kiev, are among the
Equal-to-apostles Equal-to-apostles or equal-to-the-apostles is a special title given to some saints in Eastern Orthodoxy and in Byzantine Catholicism. The title is bestowed as a recognition of these saints' outstanding service in the spreading and assertion of Chri ...
... Red Eagle in an azure-golden field, the
House of Orlov The House of Orlov () is the name of a Russian noble family which produced several distinguished statesmen, scientists, diplomats, and soldiers. The family first gained distinction in the 18th century through the achievements of five Orlov ...
's coat of arms, is also present on the
Bezhetsk Bezhetsk () is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, town and the administrative center of Bezhetsky District in Tver Oblast, Russia, located on the Mologa River at its confluence with the Ostrechina. Population: 20,618 (2024). It was pr ...
clan branch the actress belonged to..." The Orlov family was partly saved from the worst form of repression,
camps Camps may refer to: People *Ramón Camps (1927–1994), Argentine general *Gabriel Camps (1927–2002), French historian *Luís Espinal Camps (1932–1980), Spanish missionary to Bolivia *Victoria Camps (b. 1941), Spanish philosopher and professor ...
or
deportation Deportation is the expulsion of a person or group of people by a state from its sovereign territory. The actual definition changes depending on the place and context, and it also changes over time. A person who has been deported or is under sen ...
, and the Bolshevik "redistribution of property" only because even before the Revolution, her father Peter had lost all three of his estates at cards, and therefore there was practically nothing to take away. However, Orlova's father, an engineer and
class enemy The terms enemy of the people and enemy of the nation are designations for the political opponents and the social-class opponents of the power group within a larger social unit, who, thus identified, can be subjected to political repression. ...
, was officially banned as an employee. In September 1926, she was hired as a choir singer by the Nemirovich-Danchenko Theatre Music Studio finally deciding to become an actress, not a pianist. She received her first solo role in November, the same year. Her quick promotion was fueled by
Olga Baclanova Olga Vladimirovna Baklanova (; 19 August 1893 – 6 September 1974), known professionally as Olga Baclanova, was a Russian-born actress who found success in Hollywood films, as well as stage roles in the US and the United Kingdom, she was mainly ...
's sudden departure from Russia and
Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko Vladimir Ivanovich Nemirovich-Danchenko (; – 25 April 1943) was a Soviet and Russian theatre director, writer, pedagogue Pedagogy (), most commonly understood as the approach to teaching, is the theory and practice of learning, and how t ...
's eye for this type of female beauty. In 1932, she received her first leading roles in ''
La Périchole ''La Périchole'' () is an opéra bouffe in three acts with music by Jacques Offenbach and words by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy. The opera depicts the mutual love of two impoverished Peruvian street singers – too poor to afford a marriage ...
'' and '' Les cloches de Corneville''. Despite her success with the public, vocal and acting training in a theatre with , Orlova wasn't noticed by the press and was criticized by her colleagues for not having a real singing voice (
Faina Ranevskaya Faina Georgiyevna Ranevskaya (, born Faina Girschevna Feldman, — 19 July 1984) was a Soviet actress. She is recognized as one of the greatest Soviet actresses in both tragedy and comedy. She was also famous for her aphorisms. She acted in play ...
, her close friend, used to say "Orlova is a gorgeous actress for sure. But her voice! When she sings it sounds like somebody is urinating in an empty bucket.") However, Orlova had her "trick". Remembering her student years (and she studied at the choreography department of the Moscow Theater College named after A.V. Lunacharsky, now -
GITIS The Russian Institute of Theatre Arts (GITIS) () is the largest and oldest independent theatrical arts school in Russia. Located in Moscow, the school was founded on 22 September 1878 as the Shostakovsky Music School. It became the School of Mu ...
), she decided to bring herself back to her previous form and perform Serpoletta's entrance aria on pointe. Alexander Hort, writer, wrote: "The audience was smitten: while dancing, Serpoletta stood up on pointe shoes, so graceful, airy, romantic! And Orlova made a tactically verified move, she took the bull by the horns: the very first vocal number, Serpoletta's verses 'What a pity that an unsettling case pushed me to a different path!' she performed, dancing on her fingers." In the future, no one was able to repeat this trick, it has stayed as a semi-legendary fact of history. In 1933, she met the then-unknown director
Grigory Alexandrov Grigori Vasilyevich Aleksandrov (23 January 1903 – 16 December 1983, known by artist name Mormonenko) was a Soviet film director who was named a People's Artist of the USSR in 1947 and a Hero of Socialist Labour in 1973. He was awarded the USS ...
, who was looking for actors for his film ''
Jolly Fellows ''Jolly Fellows'' (), also translated as ''Happy-Go-Lucky Guys'', ''Moscow Laughs'' and ''Jazz Comedy'', is a 1934 Soviet musical film, directed by Grigori Aleksandrov and starring his wife Lyubov Orlova, a gifted singer and the first recognize ...
'' (1934). The two began a relationship and later married. Orlova's performance in this comedy, very popular in the USSR, earned the young star the sympathy of
Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...
and the title "Honorable actor of the
RSFSR The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (Russian SFSR or RSFSR), previously known as the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic and the Russian Soviet Republic, and unofficially as Soviet Russia,Declaration of Rights of the labo ...
". It had caused the first wave of the so-called "Orlova syndrome", a Soviet psychiatric term describing women who wanted to be like Orlova. They diligently lightened their hair and self-styled themselves as relatives to the idol. According to her relatives, Orlova secretly loathed
Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...
, reacting to the war-winning dictator's death with the words: "Finally, this scum is dead". Her critics, including
Sergei Eisenstein Sergei Mikhailovich Eisenstein; (11 February 1948) was a Soviet film director, screenwriter, film editor and film theorist. Considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, he was a pioneer in the theory and practice of montage. He is no ...
, had blamed the musician-turned-actress for ruining the serious career of Alexandrov. Despite her efforts, Orlova didn't have a reputation of a serious drama actress, moreover, she was intentionally overplaying her film roles and didn't stop her constant touring as a singer. Her haters credited her success to the marriage of convenience and Stalin protection In the next few years she starred in four popular movies which also became instant Soviet classics: ''
Circus A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicy ...
'' (1936), ''
Volga-Volga ''Volga-Volga'' () is a Soviet musical comedy directed by Grigori Aleksandrov, released on April 24, 1938. It centres on a group of amateur performers on their way to Moscow to perform in a talent contest called the Moscow Musical Olympiad. Mo ...
'' (1938), '' Tanya'' (1940), and '' Springtime'' (1947). She was awarded the Stalin Prize in 1941. In 1950, she became the first woman to receive the title of the
People's Artist of the USSR People's Artist of the USSR, also sometimes translated as National Artist of the USSR, was an honorary title granted to artists of the Soviet Union. The term is confusingly used to translate two Russian language titles: Народный арти ...
exclusively for her cinematic works. After that, she switched to playing in theatre productions of Yuri Zavadsky's company. Her most famous roles included ''
Nora Nora, NORA, or Norah may refer to: * Nora (name), a feminine given name People with the surname * Arlind Nora (born 1980), Albanian footballer * Pierre Nora (1931–2025), French historian * Simon Nora (1921–2006), French politician Place ...
'' - Nora, '' Dear Liar'' - Patrick Campbell, '' Strange Mrs. Savage'' - Mrs. Ethel Savage. But her most acclaimed performance was a title role in '' Lizzie MacKay'' (Russian title for ''The Respectful Prostitute'').
Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (, ; ; 21 June 1905 – 15 April 1980) was a French philosopher, playwright, novelist, screenwriter, political activist, biographer, and literary criticism, literary critic, considered a leading figure in 20th ...
was present on a jubilee 400th show in 1962, saying: "I was especially impressed by Lyubov Orlova's talented performance. After the show, I told her I've been delighted by her performance. It was not an empty compliment. Lyubov Orlova is really the best of all LizzieMacKay performers I know." Since the 1928 till her death, she was constantly touring as a singer with her pianist Leo Mironov (). Her early repertoire included classical songs by Glinka,
Mussorgsky Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky (; ; ; – ) was a Russian composer, one of the group known as "The Five (composers), The Five." He was an innovator of Music of Russia, Russian music in the Romantic music, Romantic period and strove to achieve a ...
, Dargomyzhsky and
Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer during the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music made a lasting impression internationally. Tchaikovsky wrote some of the most popular ...
. * During the war, she toured more than 50,000 kilometers along the front line, with her concerts based on
Isaak Dunayevsky Isaak Osipovich Dunayevsky ( ; also transliterated as Dunaevski or Dunaevskiy; 25 July 1955) was a Soviet film composer and conductor of the 1930s and 1940s, who composed music for operetta and film comedies, frequently working with the film dire ...
songs from her movies. For all of her career, she was banned from making the records of her songs and performing on television, supposedly because of her "backstage war" with
Klavdiya Shulzhenko Klavdiya Ivanovna Shulzhenko (, ; – June 17, 1984) was a Soviet popular female singer and actress. Biography Shulzhenko started singing with jazz and pop bands in the late 1920s. She rose to fame in the late 1930s with her version of Seba ...
,
Leonid Utesov Leonid Osipovich Utesov, also spelled Utyosov or Utiosov, born Lazar (Leyzer) Iosifovich Vaysbeyn or Weissbein (, Odessa – 9 March 1982, Moscow), was a famous Soviet estrada singer, and comic actor, who became the first pop singer to be award ...
's choice of interest for ''
Jolly Fellows ''Jolly Fellows'' (), also translated as ''Happy-Go-Lucky Guys'', ''Moscow Laughs'' and ''Jazz Comedy'', is a 1934 Soviet musical film, directed by Grigori Aleksandrov and starring his wife Lyubov Orlova, a gifted singer and the first recognize ...
''.
Ivan Kozlovsky Ivan Semyonovich Kozlovsky (21 December 1993) was a Soviet lyric tenor and one of the most well known stars of Russian opera, as well a producer and director of his own opera company, and longtime teacher at the Moscow Conservatory. People' ...
especially regretted the absence of recordings of his own duets with Orlova.


Awards and honours

*
Honored Artist of the RSFSR Honored Artist of the RSFSR (, ''Zasluzhenny artist RSFSR'') was an honorary title granted to Soviet artists, including theatre and film directors, choreographers, music performers, and orchestra conductors, who had outstanding achievements in the ...
(1935) *
People's Artist of the RSFSR People's Artist of the RSFSR (, ''Narodnyj artist RSFSR'') was an honorary title granted to Soviet Union artists, including theatre and film directors, actors, choreographers, music performers, and orchestra conductors, who had outstanding achiev ...
(5.11.1947) *
People's Artist of the USSR People's Artist of the USSR, also sometimes translated as National Artist of the USSR, was an honorary title granted to artists of the Soviet Union. The term is confusingly used to translate two Russian language titles: Народный арти ...
(6.03.1950) * Stalin Prize, first class ** 1941 — for the role 'Marion Dixon' in the film ''
Circus A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicy ...
'' (1936) and the role 'Arrow' in the film ''
Volga-Volga ''Volga-Volga'' () is a Soviet musical comedy directed by Grigori Aleksandrov, released on April 24, 1938. It centres on a group of amateur performers on their way to Moscow to perform in a talent contest called the Moscow Musical Olympiad. Mo ...
'' (1938) ** 1950 — for the role 'an American journalist Jeannette Sherwood' in the film ''
Encounter at the Elbe ''Encounter at the Elbe'' (in ) is a Soviet war film released in 1949 from Mosfilm, describing the conflict, spying, and collaboration between the Soviet Army advancing from the east and the United States Army, U.S. Army advancing from the west. ...
'' (1949) *
Order of Lenin The Order of Lenin (, ) was an award named after Vladimir Lenin, the leader of the October Revolution. It was established by the Central Executive Committee on 6 April 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration bestowed by the Soviet ...
(1.02.1939) * Orders of the Red Banner of Labour (1.04.1938, 4.11.1967) *
Medal "For the Defence of the Caucasus" The Medal "For the Defence of the Caucasus" () was a World War II campaign medal of the Soviet Union. Medal history The Medal "For the Defence of the Caucasus" was established on May 1, 1944, by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet o ...
(1944) *
Medal "For Valiant Labour in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" The Medal "For Valiant Labour in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" () was a World War II civilian labour award of the Soviet Union established on June 6, 1945 by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR to recognise the valian ...
(1945) *
Medal "In Commemoration of the 800th Anniversary of Moscow" The Medal "In Commemoration of the 800th Anniversary of Moscow" () was a state commemorative medal of the Soviet Union established by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR on September 20, 1947 and bestowed to prominent Sovie ...
(1947) *
Medal "For the Development of Virgin Lands" The Medal "For the Development of Virgin Lands" () was a civilian award of the Soviet Union established on October 26, 1956 by Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR to recognise individuals who displayed superior performance ...
* For Valiant Labour – Jubilee Medal "In Commemoration of the 100th Anniversary of the Birth of Vladimir Ilyich Lenin" (1970) * Anniversary badge "XX Years of Soviet Cinematography" (1940) * VIII
Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival (, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival held in Venice, Italy. It is the world's oldest film festival and one of the ...
(1947, Special Prize for the best female role in '' Springtime'' (shared with
Ingrid Bergman Ingrid Bergman (29 August 191529 August 1982) was a Swedish actress.Obituary ''Variety Obituaries, Variety'', 1 September 1982. With a career spanning five decades, Bergman is often regarded as one of the most influential screen figures in cin ...
). * IV International Film Festival in
Mariánské Lázně Mariánské Lázně (; ) is a spa town in Cheb District in the Karlovy Vary Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 14,000 inhabitants. Most of the town's buildings come from its Golden Era in the second half of the 19th century, when many c ...
(1949, Peace Prize for the film ''
Encounter at the Elbe ''Encounter at the Elbe'' (in ) is a Soviet war film released in 1949 from Mosfilm, describing the conflict, spying, and collaboration between the Soviet Army advancing from the east and the United States Army, U.S. Army advancing from the west. ...
'') * Certificate of honor from the
Soviet Peace Committee The Soviet Peace Committee (SPC, also known as Soviet Committee for the Defense of Peace, SCDP, ) was a state-sponsored organization responsible for coordinating peace movements active in the Soviet Union. It was founded in 1949 and existed until t ...
(1960) *


Personal relationships

In 1926 or, according to her grandniece Nonna Golikova, in 1921, Lyubov Orlova married a Soviet economist
Andrei Berzin Andrei Gasparovich Berzin (, ; January 23, 1893, Majorenhof, Governorate of Livonia — 1951, Latvian SSR) was a Soviet politician. After the Russian Civil War Berzin remained in Soviet Russia, where he worked as deputy head of the adminis ...
(1893-1951), the deputy head of the administrative and financial department for the People's Commissariat of Agriculture. Berzin supported not only Orlova, but her parents, and older sister, all of them also moved to his place. Orlova had married to save her relatives from death but she absolutely didn't love her husband and had an abortion or a miscarriage that, highly likely, had left her barren for the rest of her life. Berzin has understood and accepted that asking her to file for divorce and save herself from the inevitable labor camps or deportation, as both the wife of
enemy of the people The terms enemy of the people and enemy of the nation are designations for the political opponents and the social class, social-class opponents of the Power (social and political), power group within a larger social unit, who, thus identified, ...
and the daughter of
class enemy The terms enemy of the people and enemy of the nation are designations for the political opponents and the social-class opponents of the power group within a larger social unit, who, thus identified, can be subjected to political repression. ...
, just before his next arrest by
NKVD The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (, ), abbreviated as NKVD (; ), was the interior ministry and secret police of the Soviet Union from 1934 to 1946. The agency was formed to succeed the Joint State Political Directorate (OGPU) se ...
. She had agreed. After that, Lyubov and all of her relatives had to move from Berzin's gorgeous apartment in the center of Moscow. In 1931, Orlova became a partner of a 'German specialist', engineer or businessman, named Franz. Nothing more is known about him. Their romance developed for about a year. After her performances, a foreign admirer picked the actress in a black Mercedes. Franz bought Orlova expensive foreign outfits that arouse the envy of all women, especially in a theatre. Orlova moved to her beloved in the Metropol hotel, where he lived in a luxurious room. When Lyubov Orlova was invited to shoot ''Jolly Fellows'', which took place in
Gagra Gagra ( ka, გაგრა; Russian language, Russian and ) is a town in Abkhazia/Georgia (country), Georgia, sprawling for 5 km on the northeast coast of the Black Sea, at the foot of the Caucasus Mountains. Its subtropical climate made Ga ...
, Franz went with her. At that time, Lyuba was already familiar with
Grigory Alexandrov Grigori Vasilyevich Aleksandrov (23 January 1903 – 16 December 1983, known by artist name Mormonenko) was a Soviet film director who was named a People's Artist of the USSR in 1947 and a Hero of Socialist Labour in 1973. He was awarded the USS ...
, then separated for many years from his wife, actress Olga Ivanova. Olga and Grigory had a son named Douglas (1925-1978) but at that time she was in relationships with the famous actor Boris Tiomkin. In Gagra, Orlova's affection for Aleksandrov became obvious. She had explained the situation to Franz and he left, first for Moscow and then for his homeland.
Faina Ranevskaya Faina Georgiyevna Ranevskaya (, born Faina Girschevna Feldman, — 19 July 1984) was a Soviet actress. She is recognized as one of the greatest Soviet actresses in both tragedy and comedy. She was also famous for her aphorisms. She acted in play ...
remembered in 1982: "Don't you know how handsome Aleksandrov, Lyubochka's director, friend, husband, used to be? He was handsome like
Antinous Antinous, also called Antinoös, (; ; – ) was a Greek youth from Bithynia, a favourite and lover of the Roman emperor Hadrian. Following his premature death before his 20th birthday, Antinous was deified on Hadrian's orders, being worshippe ...
even though I've never seen Antinous personally. Like Philemon and Baucis, they loved each other.". In January 1934, or, according to a different archive source, in 1937, Orlova married Aleksandrov. However, because of the couple's suspicious lack of children and Aleksandrov's unclear relationships and painful breakup with
Sergei Eisenstein Sergei Mikhailovich Eisenstein; (11 February 1948) was a Soviet film director, screenwriter, film editor and film theorist. Considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, he was a pioneer in the theory and practice of montage. He is no ...
, for the many decades, a lot of researchers have perceived Orlova as " a beard" to conceal Aleksandrov's bisexuality in exchange for the richer career opportunities. Later in life, Aleksandrov had answered about his wife's lack of children, according to his relative, the following: "In the beginning, she didn't want, and later she couldn't". After Aleksandrov ex-wife Olga's death during childbirth in June 1941, when she was already married to Boris Tiomkin, Orlova has adopted his son Douglas (forcefully renamed to 'Vasili' during the next purges, arrested in 1952, had his first heart attack in prison, was liberated after
Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...
's death the next year). In 1975, Orlova died and in 1978, Vasili died. In 1979, Vasili's widow Galina Krylova married the mentally sick Grigori Aleksandrov to serve as his maid in exchange for a subsequent property and archive. She loathed Lyubov Orlova for arrogance towards her and her previous husband, and towards her son, Aleksandrov's grandson. Grigori Aleksandrov died in 1983, his documentary about his wife ''Lyubov Orlova'' was released in 1984. The wide has buried his corpse on the same line, the opposite side, of
Novodevichy Cemetery Novodevichy Cemetery () is a cemetery in Moscow. It lies next to the southern wall of the 16th-century Novodevichy Convent, which is the city's third most popular tourist site. History The cemetery was designed by Ivan Mashkov and inaugurated ...
as Lyubov Orlova's grave. For many decades, Orlova-Aleksandrov's archive had been plundered before being bought from Aleksandrov's descendants by the Russian-Jewish lawyer Aleksandr Dobrovinsky.


Political views

Orlova was never a member of the Communist Party, even when her husband has joined it in 1954, following
Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...
's death. In the 1960s, another Soviet actress was unsuccessfully recruited by the
KGB The Committee for State Security (, ), abbreviated as KGB (, ; ) was the main security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 to 1991. It was the direct successor of preceding Soviet secret police agencies including the Cheka, Joint State Polit ...
, in order for her to inform the authorities about the luminaries of
Mossovet Theatre Mossovet State Academic Theatre (Государственный академический театр имени Театр Моссовета) is one of the oldest theatres of Moscow, opened in 1923 and based at Bolshaya Sadovaya, 16. History Mo ...
: Lyubov Orlova, Rostislav Plyatt, and Gennadi Bortnikov. Orlova's movies include a decent amount of plot-defining
in-jokes An in-joke, also known as an inside joke or a private joke, is a joke with humour that is understandable only to members of an ingroup; that is, people who are ''in'' a particular social group, occupation, or other community of shared interest. I ...
about the composers, (Beethoven in ''Jolly Fellows'', ''
Volga-Volga ''Volga-Volga'' () is a Soviet musical comedy directed by Grigori Aleksandrov, released on April 24, 1938. It centres on a group of amateur performers on their way to Moscow to perform in a talent contest called the Moscow Musical Olympiad. Mo ...
'',
Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (German: Help:IPA/Standard German, joːhan zeˈbasti̯an baχ ( – 28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque music, Baroque period. He is known for his prolific output across a variety ...
in ''Starling and Lyre''), and a-la virtuoso grand piano performances (''Circus'', about virtuosity as a word with the previous meaning 'virtue', ''Springtime'').
Grigori Aleksandrov Grigori Vasilyevich Aleksandrov (23 January 1903 – 16 December 1983, known by artist name Mormonenko) was a Soviet film director who was named a People's Artist of the USSR in 1947 and a Hero of Socialist Labour in 1973. He was awarded the S ...
credited his second wife Orlova, she was fluent in both French and German, as a co-editor of his scripts. In the autobiography, he wrote: "It was enough for her to try by ear a piece of the script which had previously was lying on my desktop in a state of blissful well-being. All the imperfections of the material that was not completely written out were personally revealed to me. Lyubov Petrovna unusually sensed the slightest falsity". On a contrary, the Russian upper-class has historically preferred
Italian opera Italian opera is both the art of opera in Italy and opera in the Italian language. Opera was in Italy around the year 1600 and Italian opera has continued to play a dominant role in the history of the form until the present day. Many famous ope ...
and
French ballet In the French courts during the 17th Century, ballet first begins to flourish with the help of several important men: King Louis XIV, Jean-Baptiste Lully, Pierre Beauchamps, and Molière. The combination of different talents and passions of these ...
, as brands, a lot more than anything else and these facts were concluded, by Aleksandrov and Orlova in '' The Composer Glinka'' and ''
Mussorgsky Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky (; ; ; – ) was a Russian composer, one of the group known as "The Five (composers), The Five." He was an innovator of Music of Russia, Russian music in the Romantic music, Romantic period and strove to achieve a ...
'', in a still popular statement about Russian political elites, House of Romanov especially, being historically
Russophobic Anti-Russian sentiment or Russophobia is the dislike or fear of Russia, Russian people, or Russian culture. The opposite of Russophobia is Russophilia. Historically, Russophobia has included state-sponsored and grassroots mistreatment and dis ...
. In 2018, ''
The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British newspaper published weekly in printed magazine format and daily on Electronic publishing, digital platforms. It publishes stories on topics that include economics, business, geopolitics, technology and culture. M ...
'' has also pointed out the significant role of Russian Orthodox Church and "the ghost of the Romanovs" in Putin's Russia. Feodor Nikitich Romanov (1553-1633, Patriarch Filaret of Moscow, de facto ruler of Russia during the reign of his son, Mikhail) descended from the Rurik dynasty through a female line, his mother, Evdokiya Gorbataya-Shuyskaya was a Rurikid princess from the
Shuysky The House of Shuysky (Shuisky; ) was a Russian family of boyars and tsars, a cadet branch of the Rurikids. The surname is derived from the town of Shuya, of which the Shuiskys gained ownership in 1403. From 1606 to 1610, Vasili Shuisky ...
branch, daughter of
Alexander Gorbatyi-Shuisky Prince Alexander Borisovich Gorbatyi-Shuisky (; died 1565) was a Russian general during the reign of Ivan the Terrible. Life He belonged to the powerful Shuisky family, being the last scion of its junior branch. His father was one of the success ...
. The last tsar
Nicholas II Nicholas II (Nikolai Alexandrovich Romanov; 186817 July 1918) or Nikolai II was the last reigning Emperor of Russia, King of Congress Poland, and Grand Duke of Finland from 1 November 1894 until his abdication on 15 March 1917. He married ...
was described as "limited, stupid" and "degenerate" even by the usually polite first Russian Nobel Prize winner, physiologist
Ivan Pavlov Ivan Petrovich Pavlov (, ; 27 February 1936) was a Russian and Soviet experimental neurologist and physiologist known for his discovery of classical conditioning through his experiments with dogs. Pavlov also conducted significant research on ...
. In 1936, following her role of a young mother in ''
Circus A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicy ...
'', Orlova was given an order to participate, among the best-known women in the country, in the discussion, and, practically, in the approval of the law banning the abortion. According to M. Kushnirov, the executive editor of the radio who prepared a text for her to read, in general, welcoming, of course, the wise project of the Stalin government "On mother and child, on family and abortion", the actress "has allowed herself to make some amendments and additions to it". On alimony, Orlova added: "It is irrational to punish a father-defaulter with prison, he must be forced to work." On abortion: "There should be no doom in the abortion clause. In Soviet society, there are many independent women, many professions in which a woman successfully competes with a man... Pregnancy will tear a woman out of her job, maybe at the very moment when she completes a grandiose project or prepares for a heroic flight, or finishes work over a big role for which she has spent several years of her life, and, perhaps, at this crucial moment of her life, her social and political biography, she is forced to give up everything and lose a year of time. In such cases, let the woman give birth a little later. Let abortion be allowed in these cases. Let the woman know the law is not fatal. It seems to me, lately, all women want to give birth, everyone wants to have a child. I myself want a child, and I will certainly have one. And it is natural. Life is getting more and more joyful and more fun. The future is even more wonderful. Why not give birth?" In 1939, Orlova also perceived the annexation of Polish territories of Ukraine and Belarus through the eyes of a musician. She wrote in
Komsomolskaya Pravda ''Komsomolskaya Pravda'' (; ) is a daily Russian tabloid newspaper that was founded in 1925. Its name is in reference to the official Soviet newspaper '' Pravda'' (English: 'Truth'). History and profile During the Soviet era, ''Komsomolskaya ...
the following: "Once these lands were the lands of the Belarusian and Ukrainian people. The same rains watered them, the same sun shone on them, and the same winds swept over their valleys and hills. But two decades ago, a border passed through these lands. For one part of the Belarusian and Ukrainian people, the land was shrouded in grave gloom, for another it blossomed with extraordinary colors which only the land of happy people can shine with." Orlova continued: "In one part of the land, in the West, people have even forgotten how to sing, they were forbidden to sing. The oppressors saw the sounds of a Ukrainian or Belarusian song as a danger for themselves. These songs could remind the disadvantaged of another world that began so disturbingly close, there behind this fishing line, there behind this village... Now the song broke free. Millions of lips have recently been looking for words of a curse to express their hatred towards the Polish landlords. Now, these millions of lips are looking for the words of happiness that are unusual for them in order to glorify a new life, the Red Army, the Soviet government, the wise Stalin." Orlova not only responded in writing to the annexation of the "old" new lands to the USSR. The Soviet press reported in October 1939: "In Western Ukraine and Western Belarus there are concert brigades of the USSR State Academic
Bolshoi Theater The Bolshoi Theatre ( rus, Большо́й теа́тр, r=Bol'shoy teatr, p=bɐlʲˈʂoj tʲɪˈat(ə)r, t=Grand Theater) is a historic opera house in Moscow, Russia, originally designed by architect Joseph Bové. Before the October Revoluti ...
and the All-Union Concert and Touring Association, including I. Kozlovsky, M. Reizen, R. Zelyonaya, S. Obraztsov, L. Orlova, . In 1952, according to the witnesses, there was a failed attempt to assassinate Orlova for her political views. Her grandniece Nonna Golikova wrote: "In 1952, Lyubov Petrovna gave a concert in some border town in Western Ukraine, where, as we know, active anti-Russian sentiments and political movements have always existed. Orlova in the final of the concert went to bows. Someone from the audience gave her an extraordinary bouquet of roses. 'I immediately drew attention to it,' Lyubochka told us later. - 'Now I understand that it was for mourning. White roses, and in the middle are completely unusual - black ones. I've never seen such people.' She took the bouquet. The paper it was wrapped in was torn from the side facing it. Lyubochka pricked her finger, the thorns were soaked in poison. Rapid blood poisoning began, Orlova's life was in danger." File:Волга-Волга. (1938).webm, ''
Volga-Volga ''Volga-Volga'' () is a Soviet musical comedy directed by Grigori Aleksandrov, released on April 24, 1938. It centres on a group of amateur performers on their way to Moscow to perform in a talent contest called the Moscow Musical Olympiad. Mo ...
'',
Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...
's favourite film, with Orlova's solo
lezginka The Lezginka () is a folk dance of the Lezgin people, common throughout the North Caucasus. It uses a fast rhythm, and can be either a solo male or a pair dance. According to ''Encyclopædia Britannica The is a general knowledge, g ...
and " death drop" (24:51) File:Odna-semya-a-family-1943-film-song-music-lesson.webm, Lyubov Orlova character teaching an Azerbaijani soldier about music's ability to communicate without words, in '' A Family'', 1943 Baku Cinema Studio film banned by Stalin from theatrical release


Filmography


Theatre roles

Stanislavski and Nemirovich-Danchenko Theatre The Stanislavski and Nemirovich-Danchenko Moscow Academic Music Theatre () is a music theatre in Moscow. The Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko Moscow Academic Music Theatre was founded in 1941 when two companies directed by the legendary ...
* 1926 — Hersillie, Babet (''
La fille de Madame Angot ''La fille de Madame Angot'' (, ''Madame Angot's Daughter'') is an opéra comique in three acts by Charles Lecocq with words by Clairville (Louis-François Nicolaïe), Clairville, Paul Siraudin and Victor Koning. It was premiered in Brussels in ...
'') * 1927 — Georgette (Russian adaptation name)/ Virginie ('' The Italian Straw Hat'') * 1932 — Serpolette ('' Les cloches de Corneville'') * 1932 — La Périchole (''
La Périchole ''La Périchole'' () is an opéra bouffe in three acts with music by Jacques Offenbach and words by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy. The opera depicts the mutual love of two impoverished Peruvian street singers – too poor to afford a marriage ...
'')
Mossovet Theatre Mossovet State Academic Theatre (Государственный академический театр имени Театр Моссовета) is one of the oldest theatres of Moscow, opened in 1923 and based at Bolshaya Sadovaya, 16. History Mo ...
* 1947 — Jessie (''The Russian Question'' by
Konstantin Simonov Konstantin Mikhailovich Simonov, born Kirill Mikhailovich Simonov (, – 28 August 1979), was a Soviet author, war poet, playwright and wartime correspondent,Константин Михайлович Симонов // " Литературна ...
) * 1953 — Lydia (''Somov and Others'' by
Maxim Gorky Alexei Maximovich Peshkov (;  – 18 June 1936), popularly known as Maxim Gorky (; ), was a Russian and Soviet writer and proponent of socialism. He was nominated five times for the Nobel Prize in Literature. Before his success as an aut ...
) * 1955 — Lizzie (''Lizzie McKay'' / Russian adaptation of ''
The Respectful Prostitute ''The Respectful Prostitute'' () is a French play by Jean-Paul Sartre, written in 1946, which observes a white woman, a prostitute, caught up in a racially tense period of American history. The audience understands that there has been an inciden ...
'' by Jean-Paul Sartre) * 1958 — Nora (''Nora'' / Russian adaptation of ''
A Doll's House ''A Doll's House'' (Danish language, Danish and ; also translated as ''A Doll House'') is a three-act Play (theatre), play written by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. It premiered at the Royal Danish Theatre in Copenhagen, Denmark, on 21 De ...
'' by Henrik Ibsen) * 1963 — Patrick Campbell ('' Dear Liar'' by Jerome Kilty) * 1972 — Ethel Savage (''Strange Mrs Savage'' / Russian adaptation of '' The Curious Savage'' by John Patrick)


Popular songs

* From ''
Jolly Fellows ''Jolly Fellows'' (), also translated as ''Happy-Go-Lucky Guys'', ''Moscow Laughs'' and ''Jazz Comedy'', is a 1934 Soviet musical film, directed by Grigori Aleksandrov and starring his wife Lyubov Orlova, a gifted singer and the first recognize ...
'' (1934) ** "Anyuta's song" ** " Such a lot of nice girls", featuring on
Leonid Utesov Leonid Osipovich Utesov, also spelled Utyosov or Utiosov, born Lazar (Leyzer) Iosifovich Vaysbeyn or Weissbein (, Odessa – 9 March 1982, Moscow), was a famous Soviet estrada singer, and comic actor, who became the first pop singer to be award ...
performance ** "Tyuh-tyuh" ("Our iron is on fire...", ), trio with Leonid Utesov and Fyodor Kurikhin * From ''
Circus A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicy ...
'' (1936): ** "Song on a Cannon" ("Mary believes in miracles...") ** "Moonlight Waltz" ** "Lullaby" ** " Song of the Motherland" * From ''
Volga-Volga ''Volga-Volga'' () is a Soviet musical comedy directed by Grigori Aleksandrov, released on April 24, 1938. It centres on a group of amateur performers on their way to Moscow to perform in a talent contest called the Moscow Musical Olympiad. Mo ...
'' (1938): ** "Song about the
Volga The Volga (, ) is the longest river in Europe and the longest endorheic basin river in the world. Situated in Russia, it flows through Central Russia to Southern Russia and into the Caspian Sea. The Volga has a length of , and a catchment ...
" ** "Youth" (), noted for its similarity to a 1950s song "
If You're Happy and You Know It "If You're Happy and You Know It" is a popular traditional repetitive children's song, folksong, and drinking song. The song has been noted for its similarities to "Molodejnaya", a song appearing in the 1938 Soviet musical film '' Volga-Volga'' ...
" * From '' Tanya'' (1940) ** "Song-Bird", featuring on performance ** "
Chastushka Chastushka ( rus, частушка, , tɕɪsˈtuʂkə, plural: chastushki) is a traditional type of short Russian humorous folk song with high beat frequency, that consists of one four-lined couplet, full of humor, satire or irony. It may be descr ...
s", with vocal trio Abramyan-Dmitrieva-Anikeeva ** "Enthusiasts' March" * From ''Fighting Film Collection '' (1941) ** "March of the
Jolly Fellows ''Jolly Fellows'' (), also translated as ''Happy-Go-Lucky Guys'', ''Moscow Laughs'' and ''Jazz Comedy'', is a 1934 Soviet musical film, directed by Grigori Aleksandrov and starring his wife Lyubov Orlova, a gifted singer and the first recognize ...
(Military)" * From '' Springtime'' (1947) ** "Spring is coming" According to the official credits, all the music is by
Isaak Dunayevsky Isaak Osipovich Dunayevsky ( ; also transliterated as Dunaevski or Dunaevskiy; 25 July 1955) was a Soviet film composer and conductor of the 1930s and 1940s, who composed music for operetta and film comedies, frequently working with the film dire ...
Lyubov Orlova had been sistematically trained as a pianist from 1907 to 1922 (with 3 courses at the
Moscow Conservatory The Moscow Conservatory, also officially Tchaikovsky Moscow State Conservatory () is a higher musical educational institution located in Moscow, Russia. It grants undergraduate and graduate degrees in musical performance and musical research. Th ...
), and, from 1920 to 1926, she worked professionally as a musician. In 1961, Orlova strongly implied her collaborative efforts in songwriting weren't credited, highly likely, because of the strict rules about the non-members of the
Union of Soviet Composers The Union of Russian Composers (formerly the Union of Soviet Composers, Order of Lenin Union of Composers of USSR () (1932– ), and Union of Soviet Composers of the USSR) is a state-created organization for musicians and musicologists created in 1 ...
. There is a story about a conversation between Dunaevsky (nicknamed Dunya) and
Dmitry Shostakovich Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich, group=n (9 August 1975) was a Soviet-era Russian composer and pianist who became internationally known after the premiere of his First Symphony in 1926 and thereafter was regarded as a major composer. Shostak ...
: Dunaevsky to Shostakovich: "You and me, Mitya, are the most popular composers". "Yes, Dunya," Shostakovich answers. "The only difference is that everyone knows my name but no one knows a single note of mine. Just like everyone knows your tunes but nobody knows who they belong to..."


Legacy

A minor planet, 3108 Lyubov, discovered by Soviet astronomer
Lyudmila Zhuravlyova Lyudmila Vasilyevna Zhuravleva (, ; born 22 May 1946) is a Soviet, Russian and Ukrainian astronomer, who worked at the Crimean Astrophysical Observatory in Nauchnij, where she discovered 213 minor planets. She also serves as president of the Cr ...
in 1972, is named after her. A cruise ship named after her was built by the
Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
in
Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...
in 1976 for expeditions to Antarctica and the Arctic Circle. In a 1999
VCIOM Russian Public Opinion Research Center (, , VCIOM) is a state-owned polling institution established in 1987, known as the All-Union Center for the Study of Public Opinion until 1992. VCIOM is the oldest polling institution in post-Soviet Russia ...
poll, Orlova was voted as the greatest "Russian Idol of the 20th Century" by 10%, the highest-rated woman, and 10th place overall with
Yuri Gagarin Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin; Gagarin's first name is sometimes transliterated as ''Yuriy'', ''Youri'', or ''Yury''. (9 March 1934 – 27 March 1968) was a Soviet pilot and cosmonaut who, aboard the first successful Human spaceflight, crewed sp ...
atop with 30%. Ten years later, in 2010, she finished 3rd with 7% of votes, behind figure-skater
Irina Rodnina Irina Konstantinovna Rodnina ( rus, Ирина Константиновна Роднина, p=ɪˈrʲinə kənstɐnˈtʲinəvnə rədʲnʲɪˈna; born 12 September 1949) is a Russian politician and retired figure skater, who is the only pair s ...
(9%) and ballerina
Maya Plisetskaya Maya Mikhailovna Plisetskaya (; 20 November 1925 – 2 May 2015) was a Soviet and Russian ballet dancer, choreographer, ballet director, and actress. In post-Soviet times, she held both Lithuanian and Spanish citizenship.
(8%) only, on a 15th place overall with Yuri Gagarin atop with 35%. In 2016, a monument of Orlova in
Zvenigorod Zvenigorod () is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, town in the Moscow Oblast of western Russia. In 2010 it had a population of about 16,000. History The town's name is based either on a personal name (cf. Zvenislav, Zvenimir) or on a ...
was established near the Lyubov Orlova Cultural Centre (est. 2007). In 2019, she was featured as a
Google Doodle Google Doodle is a special, temporary alteration of the logo on Google's homepages intended to commemorate holidays, events, achievements, and historical figures. The first Google Doodle honored the 1998 edition of the long-running annual Bu ...
on what would have been her 117th birthday. File:Patterson1936cirk.jpg, According to the official art history version, the unfading controversial film ''
Circus A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicy ...
'' had inspired
Vera Mukhina Vera Ignatyevna Mukhina (; ; – 6 October 1953) was a Soviet sculptor and painter. She was nicknamed "the queen of Soviet sculpture". She was one of the members of the art association ‘ The Four Arts’, which existed in Moscow and Leningrad ...
to create the sculpture ''
Worker and Kolkhoz Woman ''Worker and Kolkhoz Woman'' () is a sculpture of two figures with a Hammer and sickle, sickle and a hammer raised over their heads. The concept and compositional design belong to the architect Boris Iofan. It is 24.5 metres (78 feet) h ...
'' (1937), especially the male part played by Orlova's partner
Sergei Stolyarov Sergei Dmitrievich Stolyarov (; – 9 December 1969) was a Russian and Soviet film and theater actor. The winner of the Stalin State Prize, Stalin Prize of the first degree (1951) and People's Artist of the RSFSR (1969), he was a member of the ...
, 10 years younger than Orlova. File:Lyubov Orlova screenshot from Volga-Volga (1938).png, Lyubov Orlova character screams "Follow Me" (За мной!) in ''
Volga-Volga ''Volga-Volga'' () is a Soviet musical comedy directed by Grigori Aleksandrov, released on April 24, 1938. It centres on a group of amateur performers on their way to Moscow to perform in a talent contest called the Moscow Musical Olympiad. Mo ...
'' (1938). Despite rumors, it has no direct connection to ''
The Motherland Calls ''The Motherland Calls'' () is a colossal neoclassicism, neoclassicist and socialist realism, socialist realist war memorial sculpture on Mamayev Kurgan in Volgograd, Russia. Designed primarily by sculptor Yevgeny Vuchetich with assistance fro ...
'' monument apart from the propaganda poster "Fascism is the most vicious enemy of women. All rise to fight fascism!", as according to the official Soviet art history version. Just like Orlova, as "a symbol of totalitarism", the 1967 statue was also criticised as "an empty and inhuman display of Stalinist kitsch". File:Springtime 1947.JPG, Orlova's two title roles, a famous female scientist and an actress, in Springtime (1947). In 1990s, it was revisited by the German critic Uve Schpilman as "a forerunner of postmodernism". Other critics argue the movie is an undoubted harbinger of F. Fellini's '' 8 1/2'', films by
Antonioni Michelangelo Antonioni ( ; ; 29 September 1912 – 30 July 2007) was an Italian film director, screenwriter, and editor. He is best known for his "trilogy on modernity and its discontents", ''L'Avventura'' (1960), ''La Notte'' (1961), and '' ...
and Wenders. The first film to use Mukhina's most famous statue as an official
Mosfilm Mosfilm (, ''Mosfil’m'' , initialism and portmanteau of Moscow Films) is a film studio in Moscow which is among the largest and oldest in the Russian Federation and in Europe. Founded in 1924 in the USSR as a production unit of that nation's fi ...
logo.


Contradictory facts

Lyubov Orlova didn't provide any information about her personal life during her rare interviews, and there were no
yellow journalism In journalism, yellow journalism and the yellow press are American newspapers that use eye-catching headlines and sensationalized exaggerations for increased sales. This term is chiefly used in American English, whereas in the United Kingdom, ...
in the USSR or tabloids that could have revealed a piece of dangerous information about her non-proletarian background and first marriage to
Andrei Berzin Andrei Gasparovich Berzin (, ; January 23, 1893, Majorenhof, Governorate of Livonia — 1951, Latvian SSR) was a Soviet politician. After the Russian Civil War Berzin remained in Soviet Russia, where he worked as deputy head of the adminis ...
,
Gulag The Gulag was a system of Labor camp, forced labor camps in the Soviet Union. The word ''Gulag'' originally referred only to the division of the Chronology of Soviet secret police agencies, Soviet secret police that was in charge of runnin ...
prisoner. According to her unpublished autobiography, she was accepted, at the age of seven, at the
Yaroslavl Yaroslavl (; , ) is a city and the administrative center of Yaroslavl Oblast, Russia, located northeast of Moscow. The historic part of the city is a World Heritage Site, and is located at the confluence of the Volga and the Kotorosl rivers. ...
Music College and her education at the
Moscow Conservatory The Moscow Conservatory, also officially Tchaikovsky Moscow State Conservatory () is a higher musical educational institution located in Moscow, Russia. It grants undergraduate and graduate degrees in musical performance and musical research. Th ...
had started before 1919. Orlova wrote: "Before 1919, I studied piano at the Moscow Conservatory, Profs. A. P. Ostrovskaya and K. A. Kipp. And, probably, my parents were slightly disappointed when it turned out the art form I've mastered didn't give me a great success, or recognition, or fame, but... just a modest opportunity to accompany the films that were shown in cinema with my piano playing". The official Moscow Conservatory cites 1919 as a year of start for her studies with Kipp and explains Orlova's drop: "...due to the difficult financial situation, her conservatory studies weren't completed". Other biographies, including her grandniece's book, also don't mention Orlova's rare
Ménière's disease Ménière's disease (MD) is a disease of the inner ear that is characterized by potentially severe and incapacitating episodes of vertigo, tinnitus, hearing loss, and a feeling of fullness in the ear. Typically, only one ear is affected in ...
as a reason for the career focus change. In March 2016, the Channel One TV-series '' Orlova and Alexandrov'' was released. In this biopic, Lyubov Orlova has graduated from
Moscow Conservatory The Moscow Conservatory, also officially Tchaikovsky Moscow State Conservatory () is a higher musical educational institution located in Moscow, Russia. It grants undergraduate and graduate degrees in musical performance and musical research. Th ...
, Prof. Alexander Goldenweiser. The series also implies, through an explicit display of that kind of torture on a female character, Orlova's music hands, her right hand especially, were seriously damaged during
Cheka The All-Russian Extraordinary Commission ( rus, Всероссийская чрезвычайная комиссия, r=Vserossiyskaya chrezvychaynaya komissiya, p=fsʲɪrɐˈsʲijskəjə tɕrʲɪzvɨˈtɕæjnəjə kɐˈmʲisʲɪjə, links=yes), ...
, or
OGPU The Joint State Political Directorate ( rus, Объединённое государственное политическое управление, p=ɐbjɪdʲɪˈnʲɵn(ː)əjə ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)əjə pəlʲɪˈtʲitɕɪskəjə ʊprɐˈv ...
(the previous titles for
NKVD The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (, ), abbreviated as NKVD (; ), was the interior ministry and secret police of the Soviet Union from 1934 to 1946. The agency was formed to succeed the Joint State Political Directorate (OGPU) se ...
) tortures for interrogation. However, the official profile of Prof. Kipp lists Lybov Orlova (as a famous actress) among the best of his students, just like Prof. Ostrovskaya's (junior courses). Another biography, the 1987 ''Lyubov Orlova in Art and Life'' book, listed her as a conservatory graduate with Prof.
Felix Blumenfeld Felix Mikhailovich Blumenfeld (; – 21 January 1931) was a Russian and Soviet composer and conductor of the Imperial Opera St-Petersburg, pianist, and teacher. He was born in Elisavetgrad, which was in 2016 renamed to Kropyvnytskyi (in pr ...
as her senior piano class teacher, in addition to Kipp. Blumenfeld began his Moscow Conservatory career in 1922. A source of Orlova's pre-conservatory music education isn't clear. Yaroslavl Music College was founded in 1904 on a foundation of the existing Yaroslavl
Russian Musical Society The Russian Musical Society (RMS) () was the first music school in Russia open to the general public. It was launched in 1859 by the Grand Duchess Elena Pavlovna and Anton Rubinstein, one of the few notable Russian pianists and composers of th ...
classes. Education at the conservatory during the Civil War was provided as usual, even in unheated classrooms. Since July 1918, the education at Moscow Conservatory has become state-sponsored, free of charge for domestic students. The full training period was 9 years, junior department from I to V course, and senior department from VI to IX course, and the minimum age of enrollment was 10 years. From 1910 till his death in 1925, Prof. Kipp taught at the senior department. According to Orlova-Aleksandrov's archive holder, layer Aleksander Dobrovinsky, Orlova was voluntarily childless. Dobrovinsky said: "I've found her correspondence with a professor, gynecologist No. 1 in the USSR. There are mainly things of a physiological nature, but they indicate that Lyubov Orlova, one of the first women in the USSR, had inserted a spiral or something like that for contraception. Lyubov Orlova's year of birth was debatable. Her only friend
Faina Ranevskaya Faina Georgiyevna Ranevskaya (, born Faina Girschevna Feldman, — 19 July 1984) was a Soviet actress. She is recognized as one of the greatest Soviet actresses in both tragedy and comedy. She was also famous for her aphorisms. She acted in play ...
stated: "Nobody will say how old she is. She is generally brilliant: when they issued passports in the early thirties, no documents were required. You could name any date of birth and any name too ... So Lyubochka did not lose her head and immediately knocked off a dozen years! It was me, the idiot, who hesitated: is it worth it? Then I calculated that I have spent two years at resorts, so the resorts, as they say, do not count, and a new date of birth has appeared in my passport: instead of 1895, 1897. So little that I still cannot forgive myself for such frivolity!" According to Lyubov Orlova's grandniece Nonna Golikova, her grandmother Nonna Orlova (1897-1960), was "two or three years older" than her famous sister. Lyubov Orlova's mother, Evgenia Sukhotina, has changed her passport year of birth from 1863 to 1878, 'nullifying' fifteen years.


Gallery

File:Lyubov Orlova in 1904 by Ivan Varenik, Orel.jpg, Lyubov Orlova in 1904 File:Люба Орлова в 1916 году.jpg, Lyubov Orlova in 1916 File:На съемках Боевого киносборника № 4 в августе 1941 года.jpg, During the filming of ''Fighting Film Collection #4'' in August 1941. Orlova is standing next to Viktor Talalikhin. File:Любовь Орлова выступает перед солдатами на фронте.jpeg, Singing for the Soviet soldiers during WWII File:RIAN archive 63047 Actress Lyubov Orlova sees off Soviet troops departing to the front.jpg, Lyubov Orlova sees off Soviet troops departing to the front File:Russia-2001-stamp-Lyubov Orlova.jpg, Postage Stamp, Russia, 2001 File:RR5110-0039R 100-летие со дня рождения Л. П. Орловой.gif, 2002,
Bank of Russia The Central Bank of the Russian Federation (), commonly known as the Bank of Russia (), also called the Central Bank of Russia (CBR), is the central bank of the Russian Federation. The bank was established on 13 July 1990. It traces its beginnin ...
, Series: "Outstanding Personalities of Russia", 100th Anniversary


See also

* MV Lyubov Orlova *
Cinema of the Soviet Union The cinema of the Soviet Union includes films produced by the constituent republics of the Soviet Union reflecting elements of their pre-Soviet culture, language and history, albeit they were all regulated by the central government in Moscow. ...


Notes


References


External links

* *
lubov-orlova.ru
*
Lyubov Orlova on Russian Genealogy Foundation Website
*
Records of Lyubov Orlova
on websit
The Encyclopedia of Russian recordings Russian-Records.com
*
"Ее советское сиятельство"
''("Her Soviet Serenity")'' an article in
Kommersant (, , ''The Businessman'' or Commerce Man, often shortened to Ъ) is a nationally distributed daily newspaper published in Russia mostly devoted to politics and business. The TNS Media and NRS Russia certified July 2013 circulation of the daily ...
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