Oleg Yankovsky

Oleg Ivanovich Yankovsky was a Soviet and Russian actor who excelled in psychologically sophisticated roles of modern intellectuals. In 1991, he became, together with, the last person to be named a People's Artist of the USSR.

Biography

Early life

Oleg Ivanovich Yankovsky was born on 23 February 1944 in Jezkazgan, Kazakh SSR. His family was of noble Russian, Belarusian and Polish ancestry. His father, Ivan Pavlovich, was Life-Guards Semenovsky regiment's Stabskapitän. Yankovsky's father was arrested during the purges in the Red Army after the Tukhachevsky case and was deported with his family to Kazakhstan, where he died in the camps of the Gulag system.
After the death of Stalin, the Yankovsky family was able to leave Central Asia for Saratov. Oleg's eldest brother, Rostislav, after graduating from the Saratov Theater School, went to Minsk to play at the Russian Theater. He took 14-year-old Oleg with him due to financial concerns, as in the family there was only one breadwinner – middle brother Nikolay. In Minsk, youngest Yankovsky made his debut on the stage – it was necessary to substitute the sick performer of the episodic role of the boy in the play The Drummer.

Career

After leaving school, Yankovsky returned to Saratov, where in 1965 he graduated from the Saratov Theater School. After graduation, he was accepted into the troupe of the Saratov Drama Theater, where for eight years of work he played a number of leading roles. After success in the role of Prince Myshkin in the play The Idiot in 1973, he was invited to the Lenkom Theatre.
Yankovsky's film career was launched when he was cast in two movies The Shield and the Sword by director Vladimir Basov about World War II and Two Comrades Were Serving by Yevgeny Karelov about Russian Civil War.
During his prolific screen career, Yankovsky appeared in many film adaptations of Russian classics, notably A Hunting Accident and The Kreutzer Sonata. A leading actor of Mark Zakharov's Lenkom Theatre since 1975, he starred in the TV versions of the theatre's productions, An Ordinary Miracle and The Very Same Munchhausen being the most notable. For his role in Roman Balayan's Flights in Dreams and Reality, Yankovsky was awarded the USSR State Prize. He has been better known abroad for his parts in Tarkovsky's movies Mirror and Nostalghia.
In the early 1990s, Yankovsky also played quite different roles in Georgiy Daneliya’s tragic comedy Passport and in Karen Shakhnazarov’s historical and psychological drama The Assassin of the Tsar. In 1991, he was the president of the jury at the 17th Moscow International Film Festival.
Starting in 1993, Yankovsky ran the Kinotavr Film Festival in Sochi. He continued to receive awards for his work with several Nika Awards from the Russian Film Academy for his directorial debut Come Look at Me and Valery Todorovsky's Lyubovnik. He appeared as Count Pahlen in Poor Poor Paul and as Komarovsky in a TV adaptation of Doctor Zhivago, directed by Oleg Menshikov.
The last film Yankovsky appeared in was Tsar, which was released in 2009 and screened at the Cannes Film Festival on 17 May 2009, just three days before his death. Yankovsky played the sophisticated role of Metropolitan Philip in his last film.

Death

On 20 May 2009, Yankovsky died from pancreatic cancer in Moscow, aged 65. A civil funeral took place at Lenkom theater. His burial was held on 22 May 2009 at Novodevichy Cemetery in the presence of his close relatives only.

Personal life

Wife – Lyudmila Zorina, actress, Merited Artist of the Russian Federation.
Son – Filipp, actor and film director.
Daughter-in-law – Oksana Fandera, actress.
Grandchildren – Ivan, actor; Elizaveta.
Brothers – Rostislav Yankovsky, actor, People's Artist of the USSR; Nikolai Ivanovich Yankovsky, deputy director of the Saratov Puppet Theater "Teremok".
Nephew – Igor Yankovsky, actor and media manager.

Filmography

O lyubvi as AndreiThe Shield and the Sword as Heinrich SchwarzkopfTwo Comrades Were Serving as Andrei NekrasovWait For Me, Anna as Sergei NovikovThose Who Have Kept the Fire as SemenI Am Francysk Skaryna as Francysk SkarynaAbout Love as Andrew, a friend of NicholasAtonement as Alexis PlatovOperation "Holtsauge" as Frank RitterRacers as Nikolai SergachevWrath as Leonte ChebotaruUnder a Stone Sky as Jasjika, soldatUnexpected Joy as Alexei Kanin Police Sergeant as Criminal nicknamed PrinceMirror as the fatherBonus as Lev SolomahinThe Captivating Star of Happiness as Kondraty RyleyevTheater - this is my home as Dmitri A. Gorev, provincial tragedianTrust as Georgy PyatakovOther people's letters as Zhenya PriakhinSentimental Romance as Ilya GorodetskySeventy-two degrees below zero as navigator Sergey PopovRetired colonel as Alexei, son of colonelWord for protection as Ruslan ShevernevLong criminal case as attorney Vladimir VorontsovSweet Woman as Tikhon SokolovWrong Connection as Leonid Aleksandrovich SakulinA Hunting Accident as Sergey KamyshevAn Ordinary Miracle as The WizardTurnabout as Victor VedeneevThe Very Same Munchhausen as Baron MunchausenOpen book as RaevskiWe are the undersigned as Gennady SemenovThe Belkin Tales. The Shot as CountThe Hound of the Baskervilles as Jack StapletonHat as Dmitri DenisovLove by Request as Igor BraginThe House That Swift Built as Jonathan SwiftFlights in Dreams and Reality as Sergey MakarovNostalghia as Andrei GorchakovKiss as staff captain Michael RyabovitchTwo hussar as Count Fyodor TurbinKeep me, my talisman as AlexeyThe Kreutzer Sonata as Vasily PozdnyshevTracker as VorobyovTo Kill a Dragon as DragonMy 20th Century as ZMado, Hold for Pick Up as director Jean-MariePassport as BorisThe Assassin of the Tsar as Dr.Smirnov / Tsar Nicholas IIDreams of Russia as Erik LaxmannDark as TerroristMe Ivan, You Abraham as PrinceTerra incognita as Odi AtragonMute Witness '''' as Larsen...Pervaya lyubov The Government Inspector as Judge Lyapkin-TyapkinThe Fatal Eggs as Vladimir Ipat'evich PersikovMuzhchina dlya molodoy zhenshchiny Milyy drug davno zabytykh let... Alissa as KosiczRayskoye yablochko as ZhoraParadise apple as GeorgeChinese Tea Set as Count StroganovThe Man Who Cried as FatherTown Musicians of Bremen&Co as Old TroubadourCome Look at Me as IgorPatul lui Procust as George LadimaThe Lover as Dmitry CharyshevPoor Poor Paul as Count PahlenDoctor Zhivago as KomarovskyGuilty Without Fault as Gregory MuroffStilyagi as Fred's fatherBirds of Paradise as NicholasTsar as Metropolitan Philip KolychevAnna Karenina as Alexei Karenin

Honours and awards

;Soviet and Russian awards

1977 – Honored Artist of the RSFSR
1984 – People's Artist of the RSFSR
1987 – USSR State Prize – for his role in "Flights in dream and reality"
1989 – Vasilyev Brothers State Prize of the RSFSR – for role in "The Kreutzer Sonata"
1991 – People's Artist of the USSR
28 December 1995 – Order "For Merit to the Fatherland", 4th class – for services to the state, many years of fruitful work in the arts and culture
1996 – State Prize of the Russian Federation – the main role in Anton Chekhov's play "The Seagull" at the Moscow State Theatre,
2002 – State Prize of the Russian Federation – the main role in the play "Jester Balakirev" of the Moscow State Theatre
11 August 2007 – Order "For Merit to the Fatherland", 3rd class – for his great contribution to the development of theatrical art, and many years of fruitful activity
23 February 2009 – Order "For Merit to the Fatherland", 2nd class – for outstanding contributions to the development of domestic theatrical and cinematic arts

;Cinematic and public awards

1977 – Lenin Komsomol Prize – "for talented contemporary incarnation of the images in the movie"
1983 – Best Actor of the Year – for starring in the film Love by Request
1983 – Winner of the category "Best actor" of the All-Union Film Festival
1988 – Prize for Best Actor at Valladolid International Film Festival
1989 – Award "for outstanding contributions to the profession" at the "Constellation" (Sozvezdie) film festival for his role in To Kill a Dragon
1991 – Nika Award, three times; in the "Actor", for Best Actor in the film "Regicide" and for Best Actor in the film "Passport"
2001 – Award for Best Actor at the Sochi Open Russian Film Festival Kinotavr – for the film "Come Look at Me"
2001 – Prize of the Russian Cultural Foundation at ORFF Kinotavr in Sochi
2001 – Grand Prix "Gold" Listapad at the Minsk International Film Festival "Listapad" – for his role in "Come look at me"
2001 – First place in the competition "Vyborg Account" at the film festival "Window to Europe" in Vyborg – for the film "Come Look at Me"
2001 – Stanislavsky Theatre Prize – for the main role in the play "Jester Balakirev" of the Moscow State Theatre, "Lenk"
2002 – Nika Award – for Best Actor in the film "The Lover"
2002 – The award "Golden Aries" – for Best Actor in the film "The Lover"
2002 – Award for Best Actor at the ORFF "Kinotavr" in Sochi – for his role in "The Lover"
2002 – Award for Best Actor at the festival "Constellation" – for his role in the movie "The Lover"
2002 – Winner of "Idol" in the "Idol of the Year" – for the main role in the play "Jester Balakirev" of the Moscow State Theatre, "Lenk" and for his role in "Come look at me"
2003 – Golden Eagle Award – for Best Supporting Actor in the film "Poor, Poor Pavel"
2003 – Special Award from the Administration of Krasnodar Krai ORFF "Kinotavr" in Sochi
2005 – Theatre Prize "Hit of the Season" – for the play "Tout payé", or "Paid by all"
2006 – Golden Eagle Award – for Best Actor on Television
2006 – Prize of the Russian Television Academy TEFI – for best actor on television
2007 – Award "Triumph"
2008 – Public award – the Order of St. Alexander Nevsky, "For Fatherland and work"
2009 – Award "Triumph"
2009 – Stanislavsky Award
2009 – Prize "long-term President" Kinotavr – for outstanding contribution to Russian cinema"
2009 – Award for Best Actor at the "Constellation" (Sozvezdie) film festival – a starring role in "Anna Karenina"
2010 – Golden Eagle Special Prize for his contribution to the development of national cinema
2010 – Nika Award for 2009 – "Best Actor", for the combination of roles in the film "Anna Karenina" and "King"