Marriage for life: how the widow of Oleg Yankovsky lives

Oleg Yankovsky married once. While he was a second-year student at the theater school, he met Lyudmila Zorina, who was in the third year. They played a modest wedding. As the artist’s brother Nikolai Yankovsky recalled, they went to Volgograd to feast at the table, since it was difficult to get food in Saratov. The brothers used a suit for two. Oleg got married in the same outfit as Nikolai. There were only a few people at the wedding.

The actor lived with Lyudmila until his death in 2009. In 1968, their son Philip was born, who also became an actor. Lyudmila Zorina, Yankovsky’s wife, worked in the local drama theater after graduation. She played over 50 different roles and became a star. According to some sources, in Saratov Yankovsky was known only as Zorina’s husband. After the actor moved to Moscow, the situation changed. For some time in Lenkom, Lyudmila was known as the wife of Yankovsky. Together they starred in three films. In Roman Balayan’s film “Flights in a dream and in reality” (1983), they played the role of spouses.

Lyudmila Zorina, of course, was told about the artist’s hobbies, but she never thought about divorcing her husband. Oleg Yankovsky valued his wife very much, always spoke of her fondly and emphasized that such things as a wife, son and grandchildren are not scattered.

Read the full biography of Oleg Yankovsky on Thevoicemag.ru.

Lyudmila Zorina and after the death of Oleg Yankovsky fondly remember it. She does not participate in talk shows in which the life of the legendary actor is told, does not comment on his personal life. Occasionally, the artist attends social events, meets her grandchildren and is proud of their success.

Oleg Yankovsky, whose photo in the role of Munchausen still serves as the basis for creating memes, could not find work in the role of Mark Zakharov. It was filmed from the play by writer Grigory Gorin “The Most Truthful”. Gorin wrote the text specifically at the request of actor Vladimir Zeldin, who embodied the image of the protagonist on stage. He was the first contender for the role in the film adaptation. However, Mark Zakharov wanted to see Jankowski as Munchausen. The artistic council opposed it, whose members declared that the actor was too old for the role. Grigory Gorin, accustomed to seeing Oleg in the role of direct and tough characters, also objected to this.

In The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, actor Yankovsky played Stapleton’s killer in an episode about the Hound of the Baskervilles. One day, while resting in Sochi with his son Philip and nephew Igor, Oleg was walking to the beach and heard this movie being watched on TV in one of the houses in the private sector. He quietly scaled the fence, pulled back the curtain, and asked those present if they had seen the Hound of the Baskervilles. The women in the room were shocked when the killer that appeared on the screen appeared in front of them.

At the age of 14, Oleg went to his older brother Rostislav in Minsk. He worked at the local drama theater named after Gorky. The actress who played the role of a character named Edik in the play called “The Drummer” fell ill. Rostislav offered to replace her with his brother. Oleg Yankovsky took part in several performances, but, according to him, did not appreciate the importance of the moment and once even fell asleep backstage, missing his exit.

According to a family legend, Oleg entered the theater institute by chance. After graduating from high school, he dreamed of becoming a dentist. But one day, when I saw an advertisement that the theater institute was recruiting students, I decided to go there and find out about the recruitment conditions. Hearing the surname, the director said he was already enlisted. It turned out that his brother Nikolai had passed the exams without informing the family. Then he gave way to Oleg. Nikolai himself said that was not true. He really went to college, but he got drafted into the army and his brother did it all on his own. However, the family of Oleg Yankovsky is not unanimous on this issue. Rostislav Yankovsky assured that the story was true, and that Nikolai was simply modest, downplaying his merits.

According to family legend, Oleg and his son Philip were on vacation in Sochi. The boy wanted cocoa donuts. They managed to find a cafe near the port, which was not very clean, but which sold sweets. Oleg in a snow-white suit looked strange in this institution. A drunken man approached him with a mug of beer and asked him if he was an artist. Yankovski replied that he was a mechanic, in such a tone that the person questioning him had no doubt as to the veracity of his remarks.

Oleg Yankovsky, whose biography contains many incredible stories, was approved for a role in Igor Maslennikov’s film called Racers (1972). On the site, it turned out that the actor had never been behind the wheel. But he so confidently repeated all the actions of the driver that no one doubted the actor’s experience, and he was not replaced. During the filming of one of the scenes, the car overturned and caught fire. On Yankovsky, who was driving, the jacket burned, but he himself was not injured. Evgeny Leonov told director Mark Zakharov about the lucky man. He wanted to watch Oleg. Their meeting turned into a long and productive collaboration.

Oleg Yankovsky was awarded the title of “People’s Artist of the USSR” in December 1991, a few days before the disappearance of the state. The actor joked about it. He said that Konstantin Stanislavsky was the first to receive the title and offered to compare who they started with and who they finished with.

The actor’s father was called Jan. He was from Warsaw, served in the Semyonovsky regiment and took part in the Brusilovsky breakthrough. In Soviet times, the spelling of his name was changed to Ivan, so his sons became Ivanovich. Rostislav Yankovsky recalled that his father remained Catholic until the end of his life, although his wife and sons were Orthodox, therefore the family celebrated Christmas and Easter twice.

Oleg Yankovsky is an actor about whom there are many legends. But he was not the only interesting character in the family. Her grandmother was no less unique. His family lived in Simbirsk next to the Ulyanovs. In Kazakhstan, therefore, a woman was invited to various events to talk about the leader. Rostislav Yankovsky recalled that at home his grandmother said that Volodya was friends with her older brother. Once a foreign doll broke, Ulyanov offered to fix it, but he deceived and gouged out the eyes of the toy.

Actor Alexander Zbruev recalled that Yankovsky was very kind to his relatives. At the theater, he warned his relatives of birthdays several months in advance and asked that no performances be made for him on those days. He certainly had to go to Samara or Minsk to congratulate the brothers.

Read the full biography of Oleg Yankovsky on Thevoicemag.ru.