née
A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...
Gurchenko; russian: link=no, Людмила Марковна Гурченко; 12 November 1935 – 30 March 2011) was a popular Soviet and Russian actress, singer and entertainer. She was given the honorary title
People's Artist of the USSR
People's Artist of the USSR ( rus, Народный артист СССР, Narodny artist SSSR), also sometimes translated as National Artist of the USSR, was an honorary title granted to artists of the Soviet Union.
Nomenclature and significan ...
in 1983.
Biography
Lyudmila Gurchenko was born in
Kharkiv
Kharkiv ( uk, wikt:Харків, Ха́рків, ), also known as Kharkov (russian: Харькoв, ), is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city and List of hromadas of Ukraine, municipality in Ukraine.USSR
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...
(now
Ukraine
Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
) in 1935 as Lyudmila Gurchenkova to Mark Gavrilovich Gurchenkov (1898–1973) and Yelena Aleksandrovna Simonova-Gurchenkova (1917–1999). Her father came from a
Russian
Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including:
*Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
peasant family, while her mother was from
Russian nobility
The Russian nobility (russian: дворянство ''dvoryanstvo'') originated in the 14th century. In 1914 it consisted of approximately 1,900,000 members (about 1.1% of the population) in the Russian Empire.
Up until the February Revolution ...
— both from around
Smolensk
Smolensk ( rus, Смоленск, p=smɐˈlʲensk, a=smolensk_ru.ogg) is a city and the administrative center of Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located on the Dnieper River, west-southwest of Moscow. First mentioned in 863, it is one of the oldest c ...
.
Before
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
they lived in a single room apartment on the ground floor at Mordvinovsky Lane No. 17 (now Gurchenko Lane #7). At that time, her parents worked at the
Kharkiv Philharmonic Society
The Kharkiv Philharmonic Society ( uk, Харківська обласна філармонія) is a leading musical organization in Ukraine, promoting classical music, contemporary music, and Ukrainian folk music.
The leading group active in th ...
. Mark Gurchenko was known to play the bayan (Russian
accordion
Accordions (from 19th-century German ''Akkordeon'', from ''Akkord''—"musical chord, concord of sounds") are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone type (producing sound as air flows past a reed ...
). Gurchenko spent a part of her childhood with her mom during the time of the German occupation of USSR in her native city, while her father joined the army and, together with his concert brigade, survived the war. After the withdrawal of the German Army from Kharkiv, Gurchenko auditioned for the local Beethoven Music School, where she performed the song ''About Vitya Cherevichkin'' with gestures, after which she was accepted as an acting student.
She moved to Moscow, enrolling in the
Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography
The Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography (russian: Всероссийский государственный институт кинематографии имени С. А. Герасимова, meaning
''All-Russian State Institute of Cinemat ...
. At age 21, after starring in
Eldar Ryazanov
Eldar Aleksandrovich Ryazanov (russian: Эльдар Александрович Рязанов; 18 November 1927 – 30 November 2015) was a Soviet and Russian film director, screenwriter, poet, actor and pedagogue whose popular comedies, satiriz ...
's 1956 directorial debut, the musical ''
Carnival Night
''Carnival Night'' (russian: Карнавальная ночь, Karnavalnaya noch) is a 1956 Soviet musical film. It is Eldar Ryazanov's first big-screen film, Lyudmila Gurchenko's first role and also one of the most famous films starring popular ...
'', Gurchenko overnight achieved fame as well as celebrity status. Throughout the next two years she toured the entire country with her ''Carnival Night''-inspired musical numbers, attracting crowds of fans.«Прощай, Примадонна!» Неопубликованное интервью Людмилы Гурченко /ref>
The Soviet cultural establishment, however, deemed her style too western and too out of line with Soviet standards. She was accused of receiving wages above State-set levels as compensation for her shows. She became the target of highly critical articles in several influential Soviet periodicals, including ''Tap Dance to the Left'' (Чечетка налево, ''
Komsomolskaya Pravda
''Komsomolskaya Pravda'' (russian: link=no, Комсомольская правда; lit. "Komsomol Truth") is a daily Russian tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper, founded on 13 March 1925.
History and profile
During the Soviet era, ...
'', 1957 and ''Dositheos Morals'' (Досифеевские нравы, ''
Ogoniok
''Ogoniok'' ( rus, Огонёк, t=Spark, p=ɐɡɐˈnʲɵk, a=Ru-огонёк.ogg; pre-reform orthography: ''Огонекъ'') was one of the oldest weekly illustrated magazines in Russia.
History and profile
''Ogoniok'' has issued since . I ...
'', 1958 devoted to her financial wrongdoing and her alleged lack of patriotism. The year of 1958 saw the release of another musical with Ludmila, '' A Girl with Guitar, Girl with a Guitar'', shot mostly before these articles were published. The musical was not recommended for wide distribution and was a box-office flop.
In the mid 1970s, Gurchenko starred in several films, which, although only moderately successful, helped showcase her dramatic talent. In 1979 she landed a role in director
Andrei Konchalovsky
Andrei Sergeyevich Mikhalkov-Konchalovsky (russian: link=no, Андрей Сергеевич Михалков-Кончаловский; born 20 August 1937) is a Russian filmmaker. He has worked in Soviet, Hollywood, and contemporary Russian ...
's ''
Siberiade
''Siberiade'' (russian: Сибириада, translit. ''Sibiriada'') is a 1979 Soviet historical drama film directed by Andrei Konchalovsky and produced by Mosfilm. The four-part epic spans much of the 20th century.
Themes
The film comb ...
'' and in 1982 in ''
Station for Two
''Station for Two'' (russian: Вокзал для двоих, Vokzal dlya dvoikh) is a 1983 Soviet romantic comedy directed by Eldar Ryazanov. The film became the Soviet box office leader of 1983 with a total of 35.8 million ticket sales. It was ...
'', once again by Eldar Ryazanov, who by then had become one of the USSR's most popular and prolific directors. The role of forty-something waitress Vera in this touching film became her long-awaited comeback as a
superstar
A superstar is someone who has great popular appeal and is widely known, prominent, or successful in their field. Celebrities referred to as "superstars" may include individuals who work as actors, musicians, athletes, and other media-based profe ...
of Soviet film. Subsequently, she starred in
Vladimir Menshov
Vladimir Valentinovich Menshov (russian: Влади́мир Валенти́нович Меньшо́в; 17 September 1939 – 5 July 2021)Love and Pigeons'', among many other movies and TV shows. Her multifaceted talent was recognized on many occasions. She received the title of
People's Artist of the USSR
People's Artist of the USSR ( rus, Народный артист СССР, Narodny artist SSSR), also sometimes translated as National Artist of the USSR, was an honorary title granted to artists of the Soviet Union.
Nomenclature and significan ...
, the highest honour that could be bestowed to a musical artist, in 1983. She carried a leading role in The Burn (Ожог – 1988) with Director Gennady Glagoliev and Director of Photography
Igor Chepusov
Igor Chepusov (russian: Игорь Серге́евич Чепусов, ; 1950-2011) was a Soviet and American producer, script writer, director, artist, architect, photographer, director of photography and cameraman. His photography was utilized i ...
.
Gurchenko wrote a book about her life during German occupation in Kharkiv and about her life in the beginning of her Acting Career.
In 2010, she was awarded an
Order "For Merit to the Fatherland"
The Order "For Merit to the Fatherland" (russian: Орден «За заслуги перед Отечеством», ''Orden "Za zaslugi pered Otechestvom"'') is a state decoration of the Russian Federation. It was instituted on 2 March 1994 by P ...
, 2nd Class (she received the 4th Class of the same Order in 2000 and the 3d Class in 2005), one of the highest civil decorations in post-Soviet Russia (with 3rd and 2nd Degree Orders having been awarded to very few extremely distinguished individuals, and the 1st Degree Order being nominally held by a serving President of Russia). At the age of 70, she still performed and attended galas.
Personal life
Gurchenko was married six times, including a short-lived marriage to
Joseph Kobzon
Iosif (Joseph) Davydovich Kobzon (russian: link=no, Ио́сиф Давы́дович Кобзо́н; 11 September 1937 – 30 August 2018) was a Russian singer, known for his crooner style.
Early life
Kobzon was born to Jewish parents in the ...
between 1967 and 1970. She had one daughter, Maria (5 June 1959 — 8 November 2017) from her second marriage, and two grandchildren as well as one great-granddaughter.
On 14 February 2011, Gurchenko fell near her house and broke her hip. She was taken to the hospital and underwent an operation the following day. On 30 March her condition worsened due to a
pulmonary embolism
Pulmonary embolism (PE) is a blockage of an pulmonary artery, artery in the lungs by a substance that has moved from elsewhere in the body through the bloodstream (embolism). Symptoms of a PE may include dyspnea, shortness of breath, chest pain p ...
and she died that evening. She was buried at the
Novodevichy Cemetery
Novodevichy Cemetery ( rus, Новоде́вичье кла́дбище, Novodevichye kladbishche) 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 ...
(Moscow) after a civil funeral a few days later.
Selected filmography
* ''
The Road of Truth
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...
Carnival Night
''Carnival Night'' (russian: Карнавальная ночь, Karnavalnaya noch) is a 1956 Soviet musical film. It is Eldar Ryazanov's first big-screen film, Lyudmila Gurchenko's first role and also one of the most famous films starring popular ...
'' (1956) as Lena Krylova
* ''
A Girl with a Guitar
''A Girl with Guitar'' (russian: Девушка с гитарой) is 1958 Soviet musical comedy film directed by Alexander Feinzimmer.
After the success of the film '' Carnival Night'' starring Lyudmila Gurchenko the script of the film ''A Gi ...
'' (1958) as Tanya Fedosova
* ''
Baltic Skies
''Baltic Skies'' (russian: Балтийское небо) is a 1960 Soviet drama film directed by Vladimir Vengerov.
Plot
The film tells about military pilots defending Leningrad during World War II.
Cast
* Pyotr Glebov as Lunin (as P. Glebo ...
'' (1961) as Sonya Bystrova
* '' Roman and Francesca'' (1961) as Francesca
* '' The Man from Nowhere'' (1961) as Lena
* '' Sluttish'' (1961) as Khristina
* ''Jalgrattataltsutajad'' (1964) as Rita Laur
* ''
Balzaminov's Marriage
''Balzaminov's Marriage'' (russian: Женитьба Бальзаминова, Zhenitba Balzaminova) is a 1964 Soviet comedy film directed by Konstantin Voynov and loosely based on three plays by Alexander Ostrovsky: "Celebratory Daydream is Onl ...
'' (1964) as Ustinka
* '' Workers' Settlement'' (1966) as Mariya, Leonid's wife
* ''
The Bridge Is Built
''The Bridge Is Built'' (russian: Строится мост) is a 1965 Soviet drama film directed by Gavriil Egiazarov and Oleg Efremov.
Plot
The film tells about the Moscow correspondent who goes to Saratov, where the construction of a highway ...
'' (1966) as Zhenya
* ''
Blasted Hell
''Spring on the Oder'' (russian: Взорванный ад) is a 1967 Soviet action film directed by Ivan Lukinsky
Ivan () is a Slavic male given name, connected with the variant of the Greek name (English: John) from Hebrew meaning 'God i ...
'' (1967) as Greta
* ''No and Yes'' (1967) as Lyusya Korablyova
* ''
White Explosion
''White Explosion'' (russian: Белый взрыв) is a 1969 Soviet action film directed by Stanislav Govorukhin.
Plot
The film takes place in 1942, when Soviet climbers saved the inhabitants of the Caucasus foothills by sacrificing themselves ...
'' (1969) as Vera Arsenova
* '' My good Dad'' (1970) as Valentina Ivanova
* ''Experiment'' (1970)
* ''One of us'' (1971) as Klara Ovcharenko
* '' Road to Rübezahl'' (1971) as Shura Solovyova
* ''
Shadow
A shadow is a dark area where light from a light source is blocked by an opaque object. It occupies all of the three-dimensional volume behind an object with light in front of it. The cross section of a shadow is a two-dimensional silhouette, o ...
'' (1971) as Yulia Juli
* ''
The Crown of the Russian Empire, or Once Again the Elusive Avengers
''The Crown of the Russian Empire, or Once Again the Elusive Avengers'' (russian: Корона Российской Империи, или Снова Неуловимые; translit. ''Korona Rossiyskoy Imperii, ili Snova Neulovimye'') is a 1 ...
'' (1971) as Agrafena Zavolzhskaya
* ''
What Is to Be Done?
''What Is to Be Done? Burning Questions of Our Movement'' is a political pamphlet written by Russian revolutionary Vladimir Lenin (credited as N. Lenin) in 1901 and published in 1902. Lenin said that the article represented "a skeleton plan t ...
'' (1971) as woman in black
* ''Karpukhin'' (1973) as Ovsyannikova
* ''Summer dreams'' (1973) as Galina Sakhno
* ''Dacha'' (1973) as Lera
* ''Open Book'' (1973) as Glafira Rybakova
* '' Old Walls'' (1973) as Anna Smirnova
* '' Vanyushin's Children'' (1974) as Klavdiya Shchyotkina
* ''
The Straw Hat
''The Straw Hat'' (russian: Соломенная шляпка, translit. ''Solomennaya shlyapka'') is a 1974 Soviet musical comedy television film directed by Leonid Kvinikhidze based on a play by Eugène Marin Labiche and Marc-Michel. Th ...
'' (1974) as Clara Bocardon
* ''
Diary of a School Director
, image =
, caption =
, director = Boris Frumin
, producer =
, writer = Anatoli Grebnev
, starring =
, music = Viktor Lebedev
, cinematography = Aleksei Gambaryan
, editing = T. Denisova
, released =
, studio=
, runtime =
, coun ...
'' (1975) as Nina Sergeyevna
* ''
Step Forward
Step Forward was a Swedish hardcore punk band founded in 1989 in Umeå, Sweden by Dennis Lyxzén and his friends, Toft Stade, Jens Nordén and Henrik Jansson. Step Forward was one of the first hardcore punk bands in Sweden that held on to the ...
'' (1976) as Valentina Stepanovna
* ''Prestuplenie'' (1976) as Lyuba
* '' Ma-ma'' (Мама, 1976) as Goat-Mom
* ''
Sentimental Romance
''Romance sentimentale'' is a 1930 French film directed by Grigori Aleksandrov and Sergei M. Eisenstein. The film is also known as ''Sentimental Romance'' (International English title).
Synopsis
The film opens with a montage of scenes of ...
'' (1976) as Mariya Petruchenko
* ''
Heavenly Swallows
''Heavenly Swallows'' (russian: Небесные ласточки, Nebesnye lastochki) is a 1976 Soviet two-part musical-comedy television film directed by Leonid Kvinikhidze, based on the vaudeville-opérette Mam'zelle Nitouche.
First part. " ...
'' (Небесные ласточки, 1976) as Korina
* '' Family Melodrama'' (1976) as Valentina Barabanova
* ''
Twenty Days Without War
''Twenty Days Without War'' (russian: Двадцать дней без войны, translit=''Dvadtsat' dney bez voyny'') is a 1976 Soviet film based on a story by Konstantin Simonov, directed by Aleksey German and starring Yuri Nikulin and Lyudmi ...
Wrong Connection
''Wrong Connection'' (russian: Обратная связь) is a 1977 Soviet drama film directed by :ru:Трегубович, Виктор Иванович, Viktor Tregubovich.
Plot
The film tells about the problems of construction: premature co ...
Five Evenings
Five Evenings (russian: Пять вечеров, Pyat vecherov) is a Soviet drama film by Nikita Mikhalkov in 1978 based on the same name play by Aleksandr Volodin.
Plot
Tamara lives with her nephew Slavik, whose mother died in the war. Tamara ...
'' (1979) as Tamara Vasilyevna
* ''
Siberiade
''Siberiade'' (russian: Сибириада, translit. ''Sibiriada'') is a 1979 Soviet historical drama film directed by Andrei Konchalovsky and produced by Mosfilm. The four-part epic spans much of the 20th century.
Themes
The film comb ...
'' (1979) as Taya Solomina in 1960s
* ''
Particularly Important Task
''Particularly Important Task'' (russian: Особо важное задание) is a 1980 Soviet drama film directed by Yevgeny Matveev.
Plot
The film tells about the employees of a large aircraft factory, who even in the evacuation did not st ...
'' (1980) as Elvira Lunina
* ''
An Ideal Husband
''An Ideal Husband'' is a four-act play by Oscar Wilde that revolves around blackmail and political corruption, and touches on the themes of public and private honour. It was first produced at the Haymarket Theatre, London in 1895 and ran for ...
Station for Two
''Station for Two'' (russian: Вокзал для двоих, Vokzal dlya dvoikh) is a 1983 Soviet romantic comedy directed by Eldar Ryazanov. The film became the Soviet box office leader of 1983 with a total of 35.8 million ticket sales. It was ...
'' (1983) as Vera Nikolayevna Nefedova
* ''
Highway
A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It is used for major roads, but also includes other public roads and public tracks. In some areas of the United States, it is used as an equivalent term to controlled-access ...
'' (1983) as Gvozdeva
* ''Shurochka'' (1983) as Raisa Peterson
* '' Recipe of Her Youth'' (1983)
* ''
A Rogue's Saga
, image =
, caption =
, director = Viktor Tregubovich
, producer =
, writer = Anatoli Grebnev
, starring =
, music = Alexey Rybnikov
, cinematography = Valeri Myulgaut
, editing ...
'' (1984) as Ekaterina Ivanovna
* '' Love and Pigeons'' (1985) as Raisa Zakharovna
* '' Applause, Applause...'' (1985)
* ''Dreamers'' (1987) as Grafinyata
* ''Scorch'' (1988)
* ''A byl li Karotin'' (1990)
* ''Nelud, ili V rayu zapreshchena okhota'' (1990) as Zoya Sherstobitova - predsedatel gorispolkoma
* ''Our Dacha'' (1990)
* ''
My Seawoman
''My Seawoman'' (russian: Моя морячка) is a 1990 Soviet comedy film written and directed by Anatoly Eiramdzhan.
Plot
The film takes place in a resort town in the Crimea (the shooting took place in Koktebel), where the competition ''Wh ...
'' (1990) as Lyudmila Pashkova
* ''Imitator'' (1990) as singer
* ''
Viva Gardes-Marines!
''Viva Gardes-Marines!'' or (russian: Виват, гардемарины!, Vivat, gardemariny!) is a 1991 Soviet two-series television film (mini-series), the second of a series of films about Russian Gardes-Marines of the 18th century, directed ...
'' (1991) as
Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp
Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp (24 October 1712 – 30 May 1760) was a member of the German House of Holstein-Gottorp, a princess consort of Anhalt-Zerbst by marriage, and the regent of Anhalt-Zerbst from 1747 to 1752 on behalf of her minor ...
* ''Sekskazka'' (1991)
* ''Prosti nas, machekha-Rossiya'' (1991) as Natalya Fyodorovna Zimina
* '' Gardemarines-III'' (1992) as Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp
* ''Prokhindiada 2'' (1994) as Yekaterina Ivanovna
* ''
Old Hags
''Old Hags'' (russian: Старые клячи, translit. ''Starye klyachi'', ''Old nags'', "Old useless horses") is a 2000 Russian comedy film directed by Eldar Ryazanov.
Plot
Four middle-aged women with different fates live in Moscow. On ...