Mikhail Vavich (russian: Михаил Иванович Вавич) was a Russian actor, operetta and singer.

Biography

Mikhail first performed in 1905 on stage at

St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

in a private operetta of Petr Tumpakov. He received recognition in 1906 after performing the role of the Viscount Cascada in the operetta ''

The Merry Widow ''The Merry Widow'' (german: Die lustige Witwe, links=no ) is an operetta by the Austro-Hungarian composer Franz Lehár. The librettists, Viktor Léon and Leo Stein, based the story – concerning a rich widow, and her countrymen's attempt t ...

'' by Lehar. From 1905 thru 1918 he worked in the operetta theaters of St. Petersburg and

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

. From the season of 1908/1909 Vavitch became an actor of a troupe of the Moscow theater, Hermitage. In 1914 he married the drama actress

Tatyana Pavlova Tatyana Pavlova (10 December 1890 – 7 November 1975) was a Russian-born theatre director and stage and film actress who settled in Italy.Cardullo p.75 Her name is sometimes written as Tatania Pavlova. Selected filmography * '' Everybody's Woman ...

, with her he acted in several movies. In 1918, he emigrated to Europe. At the beginning of the 1920s, Vavitch moved to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, living and working in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. Periodically, he appeared in operetta. During the season of 1922–1923, he participated in the famous

revue A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own duri ...

La Chauve-Souris ''La Chauve-Souris'' (French: ''The Bat'') was the name of a touring revue during the early 1900s. Originating in Moscow and then Paris, and directed by Nikita Balieff, the revue toured the United States, Europe, and South Africa. The show consist ...

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

, directed by Nikita Balieff.Credited as: ″Mr. Wavitch″ i
IBDB
/ref> In the middle of the 1920s Vavitch started his Hollywood career by acting in many

silent movies A silent film is a film with no 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, when ...

and soon gained success as a supporting actor. He died from a heart attack in Hollywood on October 5, 1930, on the road in his own car. After a traditional ceremony of the Russian Orthodox funeral service the actor was buried at

Serbian Orthodox The Serbian Orthodox Church ( sr-Cyrl, Српска православна црква, Srpska pravoslavna crkva) is one of the autocephalous (ecclesiastically independent) Eastern Orthodox Christian churches. The majority of the population in ...

Cemetery in Los Angeles.

Partial filmography

* ''

The Swan A swan is a bird of the genus ''Cygnus'' (true swans) or ''Coscoroba'' (coscoroba swans). Swan, swans, or The Swan may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Film and television * ''The Swan'' (1925 film), a 1925 silent film * ''The Swa ...

'' (1925) * ''

Graustark Graustark is a fictional country in Eastern Europe used as a setting for several novels by George Barr McCutcheon. Graustark's neighbors, which also figure in the stories, are Axphain to the north and Dawsbergen to the south. Description Gra ...

'' (1925) * ''

The Crown of Lies ''The Crown of Lies'' is a 1926 American silent romantic drama film directed by Dimitri Buchowetzki and starring Pola Negri. It was produced and financed by Famous Players–Lasky and distributed by Paramount Pictures. Plot As described in a f ...

'' (1926) * '' The Third Degree'' (1926) * '' The Midnight Sun'' (1926) * ''

Valencia Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, Valencia and the Municipalities of Spain, third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is ...

'' (1926) * ''

Her Man o' War ''Her Man o' War'' is a 1926 American silent war drama film directed by Frank Urson and starring Jetta Goudal, William Boyd and Jimmie Adams.Goble p.240 The film's sets were designed by the art director Max Parker. Synopsis After being captur ...

'' (1926) * ''

Hotel Imperial The Hotel Imperial, also known as The Imperial, is a five-star luxury hotel in Vienna, Austria. It is located on the Vienna Ring Road (''Ringstraße'') at Kärntner Ring 16, in the Innere Stadt district. Description The Hotel Imperial's faça ...

'' (1927) * ''

Venus of Venice ''Venus of Venice'' is a 1927 silent film romantic comedy directed by Marshall Neilan and starring Constance Talmadge and Antonio Moreno. Talmadge's own production unit produced with distribution through First National Pictures. Cast *Constance ...

'' (1927) * ''

Two Arabian Knights ''Two Arabian Knights'' (1927) is an American comedy film, directed by Lewis Milestone and starring William Boyd, Mary Astor, and Louis Wolheim. A silent film, ''Two Arabian Knights'' was produced by Howard Hughes and was distributed by United ...

'' (1927) * ''

The Devil Dancer ''The Devil Dancer'' is a 1927 American silent romantic drama film directed by Fred Niblo and produced by Samuel Goldwyn. For his work on this film, '' The Magic Flame'' and '' Sadie Thompson'', cinematographer George Barnes was nominated for ...

'' (1927) * ''

The Gaucho ''The Gaucho'' (the official full title of the film is ''Douglas Fairbanks as The Gaucho'') is a 1927 silent film starring Douglas Fairbanks and Lupe Vélez set in Argentina. The lavish adventure extravaganza, filmed at the height of Fairbanks ...

'' (1927) * '' The Dove'' (1927) * ''

Glorious Betsy ''Glorious Betsy'' is a 1928 silent film with talking sequences. It is based on the 1908 play of the same name by Rida Johnson Young, and it stars Dolores Costello. It was produced by Warner Bros. and nominated for an Academy Award for Best Wr ...

'' (1928) * ''

The Woman Disputed ''The Woman Disputed'' is a 1928 American silent film. Norma Talmadge stars as a good-hearted Austrian prostitute drawn into a romantic triangle on the eve of World War I. Based on a Denison Clift play, the nationalities of the characters had t ...

'' (1928) * ''

A Thief in the Dark ''A Thief in the Dark'' is a 1928 American silent mystery film directed by Albert Ray, written by C. Graham Baker and William Kernell (based on a plot idea from director Ray), and starring George Meeker, Doris Hill, Gwen Lee, Marjorie Beebe, Mic ...

'' (1928) * ''

Wolf Song ''Wolf Song'' is a 1929 American silent Western romance film directed by Victor Fleming and starring Gary Cooper and Lupe Vélez. Based on a story by Harvey Fergusson, the film is about a man who heads out west in 1840 looking for adventure and ...

'' (1929) * ''

The Bridge of San Luis Rey ''The Bridge of San Luis Rey'' is American author Thornton Wilder's second novel. It was first published in 1927 to worldwide acclaim. The novel won the Pulitzer Prize in 1928, and was the best-selling work of fiction that year. Premise ''The Bri ...

'' (1929) * ''

The Divine Lady ''The Divine Lady'' is a 1929 American pre-Code Vitaphone sound film with a synchronized musical score, sound effects, and some synchronized singing, but no spoken dialogue. It stars Corinne Griffith and tells the story of the love affair betwe ...

'' (1929) * '' The Big House'' (1930) * ''

A Devil with Women ''A Devil with Women'' is a 1930 American pre-Code film starring Victor McLaglen, Mona Maris, and Humphrey Bogart, and directed by Irving Cummings. Set in a Central American country, adventurer McLaglen and sidekick Bogart find themselves in a ...

'' (1930) * ''

War Nurse War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular ...

'' (1930) * '' La Sevillana'' (1930) File:Steinberg Vot cto nadelali pesni Mikhail Vavitsch (1906).ogg, " Вот, что наделали песни твои!", romance by Mikhail Steinberg, 1906 File:Glaza Mikhail Vavitch 1909.ogg, " Ах, я влюблён в одни глаза...", music by Aleksandr Vilensky, poem by

Tatiana Shchepkina-Kupernik Tatiana Lvovna Shchepkina-Kupernik (russian: Татья́на Льво́вна Ще́пкина-Купе́рник, in Moscow, Russian Empire – July 27, 1952 in Moscow, USSR) was a Russian and Soviet writer, dramatist, poet and translator. Bio ...

, 1909 File:Grust & toska Mikhail Vavitch 1912.ogg, " Грусть и тоска...", romance by M. Vavitch performed by the author, 1912 File:Steinberg Kolokolciki-Bubenciki Mikhail Vavitsch (1910).ogg, " Bells are ringing… (in Russian)", romance (music) by Mikhail Steinberg, poem by

Stepan Skitalets Stepan Gavrilovich Skitalets (russian: Степан Гаврилович Скиталец, born ''Petrov'', russian: Петров; 9 November 1869 – 25 June 1941) was a Russian/Soviet poet, writer of fiction and folk musician. The name Skita ...

, 1912 File:Mikhail Vavich - On the Hills of Manchuria - 1912.ogg, An early version of the song "

On the Hills of Manchuria Russo-Japanese War "On the Hills of Manchuria" (russian: На сопках Маньчжурии, translit=, links=no) is a waltz composed in 1906 by Ilya Alekseevich Shatrov. The original and orchestral arrangement is written in E-flat minor whi ...

", 1912 File:Utro tumannoe Mikhail Vavitch 1908.ogg, "Utro tumannoye" (romance (music) by Erast Abaza, poem by

Ivan Turgenev Ivan Sergeyevich Turgenev (; rus, links=no, Ива́н Серге́евич Турге́невIn Turgenev's day, his name was written ., p=ɪˈvan sʲɪrˈɡʲe(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ tʊrˈɡʲenʲɪf; 9 November 1818 – 3 September 1883 (Old Style dat ...

), 1908

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Vavitch, Michael 1881 births 1930 deaths American male film actors American male silent film actors 20th-century American male actors Male actors from the Russian Empire Ukrainian male silent film actors Soviet emigrants to the United States