Roman Kartsev’s monologues about “big crayfish, but five each” and “small, but three each” make us laugh even today, although such prizes are no longer available.
In the USSR, during the performances of this funny duo – little Roman Kartsev and big Viktor Ilchenko – the audience cried. The comedians were known throughout the Union, and in the 1970s young Alla Pugacheva performed as the opening act. Vladimir Vysotsky himself was a fan of Kartsev.
Unusual marriage
Despite his ordinary appearance, women loved Roman: few could resist his charm. But the artist had a frightening peculiarity: he almost immediately proposed… to marry her. Most of the girls were indignant: how is this possible, this is the third time in your life you’ve seen me!
But there was one who accepted: Victoria Kassinskaya, a 17-year-old corps de ballet dancer, agreed to accept the hand and heart of 27-year-old Kartsev. True, Roman had to wait a year until the girl came of age. Friends were sure that such a hasty marriage would not last long.
But everyone was wrong: Roman and Victoria lived together until the artist’s death in 2018. In one of his last interviews, Kartsev admitted that he considers his family his main success and that he was always happy that he had opposed his mother, who wanted her son to marry a Jewish woman.
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