Yevgeny Valerianovich Samoilov (russian: Евгений Валерианович Самойлов) (16 April 1912 in
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 ...
– 17 February 2006 in
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 millio ...
) was a
Soviet
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 nation ...
actor who gained prominence in youthful heroic parts and was named a
People's Artist of the USSR in 1974. He was the father of
Tatiana Samoilova
Tatiana Yevgenyevna Samoilova (russian: link=no, Татья́на Евге́ньевна Само́йлова; 4 May 1934 – 4 May 2014) was a Soviet and Russian film actress best known for her lead role in ''The Cranes Are Flying'' (1957). She ...
.
Life
Samoilov is not related to the famous
Samoilov family that dominated the
Maly Theatre The Maly Theatre, or Mali Theatre, may refer to one of several different theatres:
* The Maly Theatre (Moscow), also known as The State Academic Maly Theatre of Russia, in Moscow (founded in 1756 and given its own building in 1824)
* The Maly Thea ...
in the 19th century. He was educated in
Leningrad
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 ...
, starting his career at a local theatre. In 1934 he was noticed by
Vsevolod Meyerhold
Vsevolod Emilyevich Meyerhold (russian: Всеволод Эмильевич Мейерхольд, translit=Vsévolod Èmíl'evič Mejerchól'd; born german: Karl Kasimir Theodor Meyerhold; 2 February 1940) was a Russian and Soviet theatre ...
who invited him to join his own troupe in
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 millio ...
. Samoilov worked with Meyerhold for four years. He got his most substantial roles in
Meyerhold's theatre playing
Hernani in
Hugo
Hugo or HUGO may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Hugo'' (film), a 2011 film directed by Martin Scorsese
* Hugo Award, a science fiction and fantasy award named after Hugo Gernsback
* Hugo (franchise), a children's media franchise based on ...
's drama and Chatsky in ''
Woe from Wit
''Woe from Wit'' (, also translated as "The Woes of Wit", "Wit Works Woe", ''Wit's End'', and so forth) is Alexander Griboyedov's comedy in verse, satirizing the society of post-Napoleonic Moscow, or, as a high official in the play styled it, "a ...
''.
When Meyerhold was arrested and purged in 1938, Samoilov was in the middle of rehearsing for Pushkin's ''Boris Godunov'' (the role of
Grigory Otrepyev) and Ostrovsky's ''
How the Steel Was Tempered
''How the Steel Was Tempered'' (russian: Как закалялась сталь, ''Kak zakalyalas' stal) or ''The Making of a Hero'', is a socialist realist novel written by Nikolai Ostrovsky (1904–1936). With 36.4 million copies sold, it is ...
'' (the role of Pavka Korchagin). His acting career seemed to be unhampered, however. Samoilov's appearance as the Soviet commander
Shchors in
Alexander Dovzhenko
Oleksandr Petrovych Dovzhenko or Alexander Petrovich Dovzhenko ( uk, Олександр Петрович Довженко, ''Oleksandr Petrovych Dovzhenko''; russian: Алекса́ндр Петро́вич Довже́нко, ''Aleksandr Petro ...
's
film of the same name won him 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, ...
for 1941. He proceeded to become an iconic film actor of the
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 Secretar ...
era, playing against
Lyubov Orlova
Lyubov Petrovna Orlova (russian: link=no, Любовь Петровна Орлова ; – 26 January 1975) was a Soviet and Russian actress, singer, dancer and People's Artist of the USSR (1950).
Life and career
She was born to a family o ...
in ''Bright Path'' and
Marina Ladynina
Marina Alekseyevna Ladynina (russian: Мари́на Алексе́евна Лады́нина; June 24 .s. 11 1908 in Skotinino, Smolensk, Russian Empire – March 10, 2003 in Moscow, Russian Federation) was a popular Soviet film and theatre ...
in ''
Six O'Clock in the Evening after the War'' (1944 film; 1946
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, ...
). One of his favourite film roles was that of
General Skobelev in ''The Heroes of Shipka'' (1955).
After the Meyerhold theatre was disbanded, Samoilov moved to
Nikolay Okhlopkov's Mayakovsky Theatre, where he would work until the director's death in 1967. His role of Oleg Koshevoy in the first stage version of ''
The Young Guard'' won him another Stalin Prize. One of the highlights of his career was
Hamlet
''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...
in Okhlopkov's production of 1954. It was the first post-war production of the play in the country and led to Okhlopkov's joint work with
Peter Brook
Peter Stephen Paul Brook (21 March 1925 – 2 July 2022) was an English theatre and film director. He worked first in England, from 1945 at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre, from 1947 at the Royal Opera House, and from 1962 for the Royal Sha ...
. In 1961, he was cast as
Jason
Jason ( ; ) was an ancient Greek mythological hero and leader of the Argonauts, whose quest for the Golden Fleece featured in Greek literature. He was the son of Aeson, the rightful king of Iolcos. He was married to the sorceress Medea. He ...
in the first-ever Russian production of ''
Medea
In Greek mythology, Medea (; grc, Μήδεια, ''Mēdeia'', perhaps implying "planner / schemer") is the daughter of King Aeëtes of Colchis, a niece of Circe and the granddaughter of the sun god Helios. Medea figures in the myth of Jason an ...
'' by
Euripides
Euripides (; grc, Εὐριπίδης, Eurīpídēs, ; ) was a tragedian of classical Athens. Along with Aeschylus and Sophocles, he is one of the three ancient Greek tragedians for whom any plays have survived in full. Some ancient scholars a ...
. Six years later, he appeared in the role opposite
Aspasia Papathanassiou of
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...
.
In 1967 Samoilov rejoined his colleagues from the Meyerhold Theatre in the
Maly Theatre The Maly Theatre, or Mali Theatre, may refer to one of several different theatres:
* The Maly Theatre (Moscow), also known as The State Academic Maly Theatre of Russia, in Moscow (founded in 1756 and given its own building in 1824)
* The Maly Thea ...
. The greatest success of his declining years was the role of Prince
Ivan Shuisky
The Princes Shuisky (russian: Шуйские, Shuyskiye) was a Rurikid family of Boyars descending from Grand Duke Dimitri Konstantinovich of Vladimir-Suzdal and Prince Andrey Yaroslavich, brother to Alexander Nevsky. The surname is deriv ...
in ''Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich'' (1973). "It was a genuine Christian man, living in Christ; I have never seen anything like this", says
Georgy Sviridov
Georgy Vasilyevich Sviridov (Russian: Гео́ргий Васи́льевич Свири́дов ; 16 December 1915 – 6 January 1998) was a Soviet and Russian neoromantic composer. He is most widely known for his choral music, strongly influ ...
, who composed music for the production. Samoilov's last film roles came in the movies directed by
Sergei Bondarchuk, such as ''
Waterloo'' and ''Boris Godunov''. The actor celebrated his 90th birthday acting on the stage of the Maly Theatre in 2002.
Partial filmography
* ''
Accidental Meeting'' (1936) - Grigoriy Rybin
* ''Tom Soyer'' (1936) - Doctor Robinzon
* ''
Shchors'' (1939) - Nikolay Shchors
* ''V poiskakh radosti'' (1940) - Kirill Zhdarkin
* ''
Tanya'' (1940) - Aleksei Nikolaevich Lebedev
* ''
Four Hearts'' (1941) - Don Pablo (segment "Nebo i ad" / "Heaven and Hell")
* ''
Invisible Jan'' (1942) - Jani
* ''Is kidev dabrundeba'' (1943)
* ''
David Bek
Davit Bek or David Beg (; died 1728) was an Armenian military commander and the leader of an Armenian rebellion against invading Ottoman forces and implanted Safavid Muslim tribes in the mountainous region of Zangezur (today the Armenian provin ...
'' (1944) - Kasyanov
* ''
Six P.M.'' (1944) - Lieutenant Vasili Ivanovich Kudryashev
* ''Four Hearts'' (1945) - First Lieutenant Pyotr Nikitich Kolchin
* ''Sinegoriya'' (1946) - Amalgama
* ''
Admiral Nakhimov'' (1947) - Lt. Burunov
* ''Novyy dom'' (1947) - Captain Ivan Veshnyak
* ''Malchik s okrainy'' (1948) - Andrey Skvortsov
* ''
Boy from the Outskirts
Boy from the Outskirts (russian: Мальчик с окраины, Malchik s okrainy) is a 1947 Soviet drama film directed by Vasily Zhuravlyov.
Plot
In the family of the engineer Skvortsov, on one of the outskirts of Moscow, Andrey's son, the ...
'' (1948) - father of Andrey
* ''Sud chesti'' (1949) - Nikolay
* ''
Taras Shevchenko
Taras Hryhorovych Shevchenko ( uk, Тарас Григорович Шевченко , pronounced without the middle name; – ), also known as Kobzar Taras, or simply Kobzar (a kobzar is a bard in Ukrainian culture), was a Ukrainian poet, wr ...
'' (1951) - Nikolay Aleksandrovich Speshnev
* ''
The Unforgettable Year 1919
''The Unforgettable Year 1919'' (russian: Незабываемый 1919 год, Nezabyvaemyy 1919 god) is a 1951 Soviet historical drama film directed by Mikheil Chiaureli.
Plot
May 1919. The city of Petrograd, the Bolsheviks' stronghold in Rus ...
'' (1951) - Nekhlyudov's son
* ''
Adventure in Odessa'' (1953) - Nikolay Yefanov, otets Gleba
* ''
Heroes of Shipka
''Geroite na Shipka'' ( bg, Героите на Шипка, links=no; russian: Герои Шипки, links=no, ''Geroi Shipki''; in English: ''Shipka heroes''; US title: ''Heroes of Shipka'') is a 1955 Soviet Union/Bulgarian co-production drama f ...
'' (1955) - Gen. Skobolov
* ''Krushenie emirata'' (1955) - M. V. Frunze
* ''Neokonchennaya povest'' (1955) - Aleksandr Aganin
* ''K Chyornomu moryu'' (1957) - Konstantin Aleksandrovich Kokhlov
* ''Oleko Dundich'' (1958) - Bodrov
* ''Zare navstrechu'' (1960) - Savych
* ''Bessonnaya noch'' (1960) - Pavel's father
* ''Lyudi moey doliny'' (1961) - Yevgeniy Burchak
* ''Parqi oghakner'' (1962) - Vasilyev
* ''
The Alive and the Dead
''The Alive and the Dead'' (russian: Живые и мёртвые, Zhivye i myortvye) is a 1964 Soviet film directed by Aleksandr Stolper based on the eponymous 1959 novel ''The Living and the Dead'' by Konstantin Simonov.
Plot
The film tak ...
'' (1964)
* ''
The Enchanted Desna
''The Enchanted Desna'' ( uk, Зачарована Десна, Zacharovana Desna) is a 1964 Soviet fantasy film, directed by Yuliya Solntseva, based on an autobiographical story by a Ukrainian national writer and cinematographer Oleksandr Dovzhen ...
'' (1964) - Colonel Aleksandr Petrovich
* ''
Waterloo'' (1970) - Cambronne
* ''Zvyozdy ne gasnut'' (1971) - G.V. Chicherin
* ''Krusheniye imperii'' (1971) - Savva Abramovich Petrushin
* ''Dlinnaya doroga v korotkiy den'' (1972) - Mikhail Petrovich
* ''
They Fought for Their Country'' (1975) - Marchenko
* ''
Boris Godunov'' (1986) - monk Pimen
* ''Caccia alla vedova'' (1991) - Priest
* ''V nachale bylo slovo'' (1992) - Father Superior (final film role)
Honours and awards
*
Order of Merit for the Fatherland 3rd class
*
Order of Merit for the Fatherland 4th class
*
Order of the October Revolution
The Order of the October Revolution (russian: Орден Октябрьской Революции, ''Orden Oktyabr'skoy Revolyutsii'') was instituted on October 31, 1967, in time for the 50th anniversary of the October Revolution. It was conferr ...
*
Order of the Red Banner of Labour
The Order of the Red Banner of Labour (russian: Орден Трудового Красного Знамени, translit=Orden Trudovogo Krasnogo Znameni) was an order of the Soviet Union established to honour great deeds and services to th ...
*
*
Medal "For the Defence of Moscow"
The Medal "For the Defence of Moscow" (russian: Медаль «За оборону Москвы») was a World War II campaign medal of the Soviet Union awarded to military and civilians who had participated in the Battle of Moscow.
History
T ...
*
*
Medal "Veteran of Labour"
The Medal "Veteran of Labour" (russian: медаль «Ветеран труда») was a civilian labour award of the Soviet Union established on January 18, 1974 by Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR to honour workers ...
*
Medal "For the Development of Virgin Lands"
*
References
Biography on the site of Maly Theatre
Further reading
*N. Barskaya. ''Ye. V. Samoilov''. Moscow, 1951.
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Samoilov
1912 births
2006 deaths
Male actors from Saint Petersburg
People's Artists of the USSR
Stalin Prize winners
Soviet male actors