Vladimir Vysotsky

About

Singer-songwriter, poet, and actor widely known for his lasting effect on Soviet art and culture. His lyrics often presented social/political commentary by way of humorous expression. He also rose to fame as a distinguished actor on both the stage and screen before his untimely passing at the age of 42 following a lengthy battle with addiction. He appeared in more than 30 on-screen roles during his acting career. He was in films such as Two Comrades Were Serving and Dangerous Tour. He also authored more than 600 songs of varying topics, in which he took on the perspective of criminals, war veterans, inanimate objects, and even mountain climbers. This led to an ongoing public argument regarding his real-life past.

Before Fame

He spent part of his childhood living with his stepmother Yevgenya Stepanovna Liholatova, whom he referred to as "Aunt Zhenya." He showed an interest in poetry and theatre at a young age. He joined drama courses and received his first guitar in 1953. He initially attended the Moscow State University of Civil Engineering. However, after one semester, he dropped out to pursue a career in acting and enrolled at the Moscow Art Theatre Studio-Institute.

Trivia

He was not officially recognized as a poet or singer by Melodiya, the company which held a monopoly on Soviet music during his lifetime. His songs were first shared through low-quality recordings on vinyl discs. His music became so popular that it was even brought into orbit by Russian Cosmonauts.

Family Life

He was the son of Soviet army colonel Semyon Volfovich and German language translator Nina Maksimovna. His grandmother was named Dora Bronshteyn and he had one brother named Alexey. He married his first wife and MAT classmate Iza Zhukova in 1960. The following year, he met his second wife Lyudmila Abramova while on the set of 713 Requests Permission to Land, whom he married in 1965. They had two sons named Arkady and Nikita. While still married to Abramova, he became romantically involved with an actress named Tatyana Ivanenko, and later with another actress named Marina Vlady. He eventually married Vlady in 1969.

Associated With

His influence in Russia is frequently compared to that of Bob Dylan in the United States and Jacques Brel in France. In July of 2015, Vladimir Putin and Sergey Sobyanin officially reorganized the former Upper and Lower Tagansky Dead-Ends of Moscow into Vladimir Vysotsky Street.