Vera Petrovna Maretskaya (

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 ...

: Вера Петровна Марецкая) was a

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

and

stage and film actress.

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 ...

(1949) and

Hero of Socialist Labour The Hero of Socialist Labour (russian: links=no, Герой Социалистического Труда, Geroy Sotsialisticheskogo Truda) was an honorific title in the Soviet Union and other Warsaw Pact countries from 1938 to 1991. It repre ...

(1976).

Early years

Vera Petrovna Maretskaya was born in

Barvikha Barvikha (russian: Барви́ха) is a village in Odintsovsky District of Moscow Oblast, Russia. It is the site of the Barvikha Sanatorium, the health resort of the President of Russia. During the Soviet era, Barvikha was known as the site of ...

, a suburb of

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 ...

. She helped her father Pyotr, who was a candy bar vendor at Moscow Circus. Maretskaya was auditioned by

Yevgeny Vakhtangov Yevgeny Bagrationovich Vakhtangov (also spelled Evgeny or Eugene; russian: Евге́ний Багратио́нович Вахта́нгов; 13 February 1883 – 29 May 1922) was a Russian-Armenian actor and theatre director who founded the ...

and studied at Vakhtangov Theatre School, from which she graduated as an actress in 1924. That same year she became permanent member of Theatre-Studio led by

Yuri Zavadsky Yuri Aleksandrovich Zavadsky (russian: Юрий Александрович Завадский; 12 July 1894, Moscow — 5 April 1977, Moscow) was a Soviet and Russian theater director, actor and pedagogue. People's Artist of the USSR (1948) and ...

. She soon married him, and they had one son. They remained lifelong friends and stage partners, even after the end of their brief marriage.Биография
/ref>

Life and career

In 1925, Maretskaya made her film debut in ''

The Tailor from Torzhok ''The Tailor from Torzhok'' (russian: Закройщик из Торжка, Zakroyshchik iz Torzhka) is a 1925 Soviet silent comedy film directed by Yakov Protazanov and starring Igor Ilyinsky. The picture was commissioned as publicity for the ...

''. She played roles in fifteen silent films. In 1937 Maretskaya suffered from political execution of her two brothers, journalists Dmitri and Gregori, who were the followers of opposition politician

Nikolai Bukharin Nikolai Ivanovich Bukharin (russian: Никола́й Ива́нович Буха́рин) ( – 15 March 1938) was a Bolshevik revolutionary, Soviet politician, Marxist philosopher and economist and prolific author on revolutionary theory. ...

. Maretskaya appealed to the

government, but her appeal was ignored. Her brothers were executed by gunshots during the purges of the "Great Terror" under the dictatorship of

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secreta ...

. She lost her second husband, a young actor, named Georgi Troitsky, who was killed in action in 1941, during the Second World War. She took care of her own two children, and also adopted the children of her executed brothers. She was supported by Yuri Zavadsky. By 1940, she was made one the faces of Soviet propaganda films. She shot to fame after the leading role in 'Chlen pravitelstva' (Member of the Government 1940) by directors

Aleksandr Zarkhi Aleksandr Grigoryevich Zarkhi (russian: Александр Григорьевич Зархи; 18 February 1908 – 27 January 1997) was a Soviet and Russian film director and screenwriter. People's Artist of the USSR (1969). Hero of Socialist ...

and

Iosif Kheifits Iosif Yefimovich Kheifits ( be, Іосіф Яўхімавіч Хейфіц; – 24 April 1995) was a Soviet film director, winner of two Stalin Prizes (1941, 1946), People's Artist of USSR (1964), Hero of Socialist Labor (1975). Member of t ...

. For that role she was awarded the Stalin's Prize. At that time the Zavadsky's Theatre-Studio merged with the

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 Mos ...

, and in 1940, Maretskaya became permanent member of the Mossoveta Theatre.Вера Марецкая: биография, фильмография, личная жизнь
/ref>

Later years

Maretskaya suffered from breast cancer during the last ten years of her life, and was later diagnosed with brain cancer, but continued her acting career on Moscow Radio. At that time she created popular radio shows based on her adaptations of ''Woman Without Love'' and ''The Art of Living'', both by writer

André Maurois André Maurois (; born Émile Salomon Wilhelm Herzog; 26 July 1885 – 9 October 1967) was a French author. Biography Maurois was born on 26 July 1885 in Elbeuf and educated at the Lycée Pierre Corneille in Rouen, both in Normandy. A member of ...

Honors and awards

In 1976 Maretskaya was designated the

. She was awarded the

Stalin Prize Stalin Prize may refer to: * The State Stalin Prize in science and engineering and in arts, awarded 1941 to 1954, later known as the USSR State Prize The USSR State Prize (russian: links=no, Государственная премия СССР, ...

four times (1942, 1946, 1948, 1951) and was made the

(1949).

Death

Maretskaya died on 17 August 1978, aged 72, and was laid to rest in

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 ...

in Moscow.

Filmography

*''

His Call ''His Call'' (russian: Его призыв, Yego prizyv) is a 1925 Soviet drama film directed by Yakov Protazanov. It was also released as ''23 January'' (russian: 23 января, italic=yes) in the Soviet Union and as ''Broken Chains'' in the U ...

'' (1925) *''

Don Diego and Pelagia ''Don Diego and Pelagia'' (russian: Дон Диего и Пелагея, Don Diego i Pelageya) is a 1928 Soviet silent comedy drama directed by Yakov Protazanov.Christie & Taylor p.428 The film's art direction was by Sergei Kozlovsky. Plot T ...

'' (1927) *''

The Yellow Ticket ''The Yellow Ticket'' is a 1931 pre-Code American drama film based on the 1914 play of the same name by Michael Morton, produced by the Fox Film Corporation, directed by Raoul Walsh, and starring Elissa Landi, Lionel Barrymore and Laurence Oli ...

'' (1927) *''

The House on Trubnaya ''The House on Trubnaya'' (russian: Дом на Трубной, Dom na Trubnoy) is a 1928 comedy film directed by Boris Barnet and starring Vera Maretskaya. Plot The film is set in Moscow at the height of the New Economic Policy, NEP. The petty ...

'' (1928) *''

The Living Corpse ''The Living Corpse'' (russian: Живой труп, italic=yes, link=no) is a Russian play by Leo Tolstoy. Although written around 1900, it was only published shortly after his death—Tolstoy had never considered the work finished. An immediate ...

'' (1928) *''

Two-Buldi-Two Two-Buldi-Two (russian: Два-Бульди-два) is a 1929 Soviet film directed by Nina Agadzhanova and Lev Kuleshov. Plot The film tells the story of circus performers during the Civil War. Starring * Sergey Komarov * Vladimir Kochetov ...

'' (1929) *''

The Four Visits of Samuel Wolfe ''The Four Visits of Samuel Wolfe'' (russian: Четыре визита Самюэля Вульфа, Chetyre visita Samuelya Vulfa) is a 1934 Soviet drama film directed by Aleksandr Stolper.Rollberg p.669 Plot Not being able to realize his inventi ...

'' (1934) *''

Dawn of Paris ''Dawn of Paris'' (russian: Зори Парижа) is a 1936 Soviet drama film directed by Grigori Roshal. Plot The film tells about the Polish revolutionary democrat, Jaroslav Dombrowski, who led the army of the Paris Commune in 1871. Cast * ...

'' (1936) *''

Member of the Government Member of the Government (russian: Член правительства, Chlen pravitelstva) is a 1939 Soviet drama film directed by Iosif Kheifits and Aleksandr Zarkhi. Plot Aleksandra Sokolova, the wife of a peasant and a former farm laborer ...

'' (1939) *''

The Artamonov Business ''The Artamonov Business'' (russian: Дело Артамоновых, translit=Delo Artamonovykh), also translated as ''The Artamonovs'' or ''Decadence'', is a novel by Maxim Gorky written during his 10-year emigration from Soviet Russia. It was p ...

'' (1941) *'' Kotovsky'' (1942) *''

She Defends the Motherland She Defends the Motherland, (russian: Она защищает Родину) is a 1943 Soviet drama film starring Vera Maretskaya and directed by Fridrikh Ermler. It was distributed in the United States by Artkino Pictures as No Greater Love, also i ...

'' (1943) *'' The Wedding'' (1944) *''

The Village Teacher , image = , caption = , director = Mark Donskoy , producer = , writer = Mariya Smirnova , starring = , music = Lev Shvarts , cinematography = Sergey Urusevsky , editing = A. Soboleva , released = , runtime = 100 min. , country = S ...

'' (1947) *''

They Have a Motherland ''They Have a Motherland'' (russian: У них есть Родина) is a 1949 Soviet drama film directed by Aleksandr Faintsimmer and Vladimir Legoshin. Plot The film tells about the representatives of Soviet intelligence, who are trying to fi ...

'' (1949) *''

Mother ] A mother is the female parent of a child. A woman may be considered a mother by virtue of having given childbirth, birth, by raising a child who may or may not be her biological offspring, or by supplying her ovum for fertilisation in the cas ...

'' (1955) *''

An Easy Life ''An Easy Life'' (russian: Лёгкая жизнь, Lyоgkaya zhizn') is a 1964 satirical Soviet comedy film directed by Veniamin Dorman. It was seen by 24.6 million Soviet moviegoers during its initial release. Plot A chemist by training, Alexand ...

'' (1964)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Maretskaya, Vera 1906 births 1978 deaths 20th-century Russian actresses Actresses from Moscow People from Odintsovsky District Heroes of Socialist Labour Honored Artists of the RSFSR People's Artists of the RSFSR People's Artists of the USSR Stalin Prize winners Recipients of the Order of Lenin Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner of Labour Russian film actresses Russian silent film actresses Russian stage actresses Soviet film actresses Soviet silent film actresses Soviet stage actresses Deaths from brain tumor Deaths from breast cancer Deaths from cancer in the Soviet Union Burials at Novodevichy Cemetery