Mikhail Ulyanov
Encyclopedia
Mikhail Alexandrovich Ulyanov was a Soviet and Russia
n actor
who was one of the most recognizable persons of the post-World War II
Soviet theatre
and cinema
. He was named People's Artist of the USSR
in 1969 and received a special prize from the Venice Film Festival
in 1982.
Mikhail Alexandrovich Ulyanov spent his childhood and youth in the town of Tara, Omsk Region. Although he had failed his exams in Schepkinskoe School and for the Moscow Art Theatre School, he moved to Omsk in 1944 to become an actor. After two years of studies in the studio at Omsk Drama he went to Moscow and entered the Schukin Theatre School in 1946.
Ulyanov worked in the Vakhtangov Theatre from 1950 and directed it from 1987. He played a wide range of characters on stage, with Rogozhin in Dostoevsky’s Idiot being the most remarkable of them. In 1979 he staged Vasily Shukshin
’s epic novel I have come to give you freedom, where he starred as Stepan Razin
. In 1985 Mikhail Ulyanov staged the satirical pamphlet The Child Buyer by the American playwright John Hersey
.
As regards movies, he was frequently cast in the parts of staunch Communist leaders like Vladimir Lenin
and Marshal Zhukov
. His well-known character Yegor Trubnikov in Predsedatel
(Chairman) (1964) became a Soviet classic and his most emblematic role.
The Brothers Karamazov
, a 1969 film he co-directed, was nominated to the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
. He also starred in Tema (1979) and Private Life
(1982), the films that won top awards at the Berlin Film Festival and Venice Film Festival
, respectively.
More recently, he was acclaimed for the roles of Julius Caesar
in the screening of Shakespeare's play (1990), Pontius Pilate
in the film adaptation of The Master and Margarita
(1994), and an avenging veteran marksman in The Rifleman of the Voroshilov Regiment
(1999), directed by Stanislav Govorukhin
. He died on March 26, 2007 of intestinal disease.
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
who was one of the most recognizable persons of the post-World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
Soviet theatre
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
and cinema
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
. He was named People's Artist of the USSR
People's Artist of the USSR
People's Artist of the USSR, also sometimes translated as National Artist of the USSR, was an honorary title granted to citizens of the Soviet Union.- Nomenclature and significance :...
in 1969 and received a special prize from the Venice Film Festival
Venice Film Festival
The Venice International Film Festival is the oldest international film festival in the world. Founded by Count Giuseppe Volpi in 1932 as the "Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica", the festival has since taken place every year in late August or early September on the island of the...
in 1982.
Mikhail Alexandrovich Ulyanov spent his childhood and youth in the town of Tara, Omsk Region. Although he had failed his exams in Schepkinskoe School and for the Moscow Art Theatre School, he moved to Omsk in 1944 to become an actor. After two years of studies in the studio at Omsk Drama he went to Moscow and entered the Schukin Theatre School in 1946.
Ulyanov worked in the Vakhtangov Theatre from 1950 and directed it from 1987. He played a wide range of characters on stage, with Rogozhin in Dostoevsky’s Idiot being the most remarkable of them. In 1979 he staged Vasily Shukshin
Vasily Shukshin
Vasily Makarovich Shukshin was a notable Soviet/Russian actor, writer, screenwriter and movie director from the Altay region who specialized in rural themes. Upon his death, Shukshin was interred at Novodevichy Cemetery in Moscow.-Biography:...
’s epic novel I have come to give you freedom, where he starred as Stepan Razin
Stenka Razin
Stepan Timofeyevich Razin Тимофеевич Разин, ; 1630 – ) was a Cossack leader who led a major uprising against the nobility and Tsar's bureaucracy in South Russia.-Early life:...
. In 1985 Mikhail Ulyanov staged the satirical pamphlet The Child Buyer by the American playwright John Hersey
John Hersey
John Richard Hersey was a Pulitzer Prize-winning American writer and journalist considered one of the earliest practitioners of the so-called New Journalism, in which storytelling devices of the novel are fused with non-fiction reportage...
.
As regards movies, he was frequently cast in the parts of staunch Communist leaders like Vladimir Lenin
Vladimir Lenin
Vladimir Ilyich Lenin was a Russian Marxist revolutionary and communist politician who led the October Revolution of 1917. As leader of the Bolsheviks, he headed the Soviet state during its initial years , as it fought to establish control of Russia in the Russian Civil War and worked to create a...
and Marshal Zhukov
Georgy Zhukov
Marshal of the Soviet Union Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov , was a Russian career officer in the Red Army who, in the course of World War II, played a pivotal role in leading the Red Army through much of Eastern Europe to liberate the Soviet Union and other nations from the Axis Powers' occupation...
. His well-known character Yegor Trubnikov in Predsedatel
The Chairman (1964 film)
The Chairman is a 1964 Soviet film directed by Aleksei Saltykov and starring Mikhail Ulyanov, Nonna Mordyukova and Ivan Lapikov. This film was honored with a Second Prize at All-Union Film Festival in Kiev .-Plot:...
(Chairman) (1964) became a Soviet classic and his most emblematic role.
The Brothers Karamazov
The Brothers Karamazov (1969 film)
The Brothers Karamazov is a 1969 Soviet film directed by Kirill Lavrov, Ivan Pyryev and Mikhail Ulyanov. It is based on the eponymous novel by the famous Russian author Fyodor Dostoevsky...
, a 1969 film he co-directed, was nominated to the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
The Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film is one of the Academy Awards of Merit, popularly known as the Oscars, handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
. He also starred in Tema (1979) and Private Life
Private Life (film)
Private Life is a seldom seen 1982 Soviet film directed by Yuli Raizman. It was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1982....
(1982), the films that won top awards at the Berlin Film Festival and Venice Film Festival
Venice Film Festival
The Venice International Film Festival is the oldest international film festival in the world. Founded by Count Giuseppe Volpi in 1932 as the "Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica", the festival has since taken place every year in late August or early September on the island of the...
, respectively.
More recently, he was acclaimed for the roles of Julius Caesar
Julius Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar was a Roman general and statesman and a distinguished writer of Latin prose. He played a critical role in the gradual transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire....
in the screening of Shakespeare's play (1990), Pontius Pilate
Pontius Pilate
Pontius Pilatus , known in the English-speaking world as Pontius Pilate , was the fifth Prefect of the Roman province of Judaea, from AD 26–36. He is best known as the judge at Jesus' trial and the man who authorized the crucifixion of Jesus...
in the film adaptation of The Master and Margarita
The Master and Margarita
The Master and Margarita is a novel by Mikhail Bulgakov, woven around the premise of a visit by the Devil to the fervently atheistic Soviet Union. Many critics consider the book to be one of the greatest novels of the 20th century, and one of the foremost Soviet satires, directed against a...
(1994), and an avenging veteran marksman in The Rifleman of the Voroshilov Regiment
The Rifleman of the Voroshilov Regiment
The Rifleman of the Voroshilov Regiment is a 1999 Russian action and drama film directed by Stanislav Govorukhin based on the book Woman on Wednesdays by Viktor Pronin.-Plot:World War II veteran Ivan Afonin lives with his granddaughter Katya...
(1999), directed by Stanislav Govorukhin
Stanislav Govorukhin
Stanislav Sergeyevich Govorukhin has been one of the most popular Soviet and Russian film directors since the 1960s...
. He died on March 26, 2007 of intestinal disease.
Selected filmography
- The Alive and the DeadThe Alive and the DeadThe Alive and the Dead is a 1964 Soviet film directed by Aleksandr Stolper based on the eponymous novel by Konstantin Simonov.-Cast:* Kirill Lavrov - Ivan Sinzov* Viktor Avdyushko* Anatoli Papanov - General Serpilin* Aleksei Glazyrin - Malinin...
(1964) - The ChairmanThe Chairman (1964 film)The Chairman is a 1964 Soviet film directed by Aleksei Saltykov and starring Mikhail Ulyanov, Nonna Mordyukova and Ivan Lapikov. This film was honored with a Second Prize at All-Union Film Festival in Kiev .-Plot:...
(1964) - Frozen FlashesFrozen Flashes (film)Die gefrorenen Blitze is a two-part 1967 East-German film...
(1967) - LiberationLiberation (film series)Liberation is an epic five-part film series considered the most large-scale World War II film ever made in the Soviet Union. Filmed from 1967 to 1971, the first part was released during 1970 for the 25th anniversary of Victory Day...
(1969-71) - Soldiers of FreedomSoldiers of FreedomSoldiers of Freedom is a 1977 film directed by Yuri Ozerov and starring Mikhail Ulyanov, Yevgeny Matveyev, Vasily Lanovoy. Soldiers of Freedom is the World War II historical drama.-Plot:...
(1977) - Battle of MoscowBattle of Moscow (film)The Battle of Moscow is a 1985 Soviet two-part film, presenting a dramatized account of the 1941 Battle of Moscow and the events preceding it. The films were a Soviet-East German-Czechoslovak-Vietnamese co-production directed by Yuri Ozerov who also wrote the script...
(1985) - StalingradStalingrad (1989 film)Stalingrad is a 1989 two-part Soviet-East German-Czechoslovak-American co-production directed by Yuri Ozerov, who also wrote the script. The film revolves around the Battle of Stalingrad.-Film I:...
(1989) - The ThemeThe ThemeThe Theme is a 1979 Soviet film directed by Gleb Panfilov. It tells the story of an egotistical playwright who thinks of himself as an artist, but who allows the system to make him write conformist plays....
(1987)