Lyubov Orlova Любо́вь Орло́ва (Russian) |
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Postage Stamp, Russia, 2001
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Born |
Lyubov Petrovna Orlova January 29, 1902 Zvenigorod, Russian Empire, Russia |
Died | January 26, 1975 Moscow, Russian SFSR, USSR |
(aged 72)
Cause of death | Pancreatic Cancer |
Resting place |
Novodevichy Cemetery Moscow, Russia 55°43′29″N 37°33′15″E / 55.72472°N 37.55417°E |
Nationality | Russian |
Occupation | Actor, Pianist, Singer, Dancer |
Years active | 1933-1974 |
Spouse(s) | Andrei Berezin (1926-1930; divorced) Grigori Aleksandrov (1933-1975; her death) |
Parent(s) | Petr Orlov Evgenia Sukhotina |
Lyubov Petrovna Orlova, (Russian: Любо́вь Петро́вна Орло́ва; 29 January [O.S. 16 January] 1902, Zvenigorod – 26 January 1975, Moscow) was the first recognized star of Soviet cinema, famous theatre actress and a gifted singer.
She was born to a family of Russian nobles in Zvenigorod near Moscow and grew up in Yaroslavl. When she was seven, Fyodor Shalyapin predicted her future as a famous actress.
Orlova studied in Moscow Conservatory but did not graduate because she had to work to support her parents. Her first husband, a Soviet economist Andrei Berezin, was arrested in 1930. However, this did not affect her successful career.
In 1933, she held a meeting with the novice director Grigory Alexandrov, who cast actors for his new movie Jolly Fellows (1934) and married him. Orlova's performance in this comedy, very popular in USSR, earned the young star the sympathy of Stalin and the title "Honorable actor of the RSFSR".
In the next years, she starred in four popular movies which also became instant Soviet classics: Circus (1936), Volga-Volga (1938), Tanya (1940), and Springtime (1947). She was awarded the Stalin Prize (1941). In 1950, she became the first woman to receive the title of the People's Artist of the USSR exclusively for her cinematic works. After that, she switched to playing in theatre productions of Yuri Zavadsky's company.