Full name: Lyubov Petrovna Orlova
Date of birth:
January 29, 1902
Zodiac sign:
Aquarius
Age:
72 years
Place of birth:
Zvenigorod
Date of death:
January 26, 1975
Activities:
Actress, singer, dancer, pianist
Height:
158 cm
Education:
GITIS
Marital status:
Married
Spouse (a):
Grigory Alexandrov, Andrey Gasparovich Berzin
Children:
Had no children
Height, weight, age. How old is Lyubov Orlova
Currently, many fans of the talent of the charismatic actress of black and white films want to know what their starlet’s height, weight, and age are. It is easy to find out how old Lyubov Orlova was at the time of her death, since this data is available on the Internet.
Lyubov was born back in 1902, and died in 1975, so at the time of her death she was seventy-two years old. The cause of the beauty's death was oncology that affected the pancreas. The woman was buried at the Moscow Novodevichy cemetery.
Lyubov Orlova: the photo in her youth and now is the same photo, since throughout her life the actress only changed her hairstyle to a shorter one. The actress's height was one meter and fifty-eight centimeters, and her weight was approximately fifty-eight kilograms.
The Cochin Engineer's Mistake (1939)
Director
: Alexander Macheret
Actors
: Nikolay Dorokhin, Victor Klyucharyov, S. Nikonov, Leonid Kmit, Pyotr Leontyev, Mikhail Zharov, Faina Ranevskaya, Dmitry Orlovsky, Boris Petker, Lyubov Orlova
In this spy film, Lyubov Orlova played the neighbor of the main character, engineer Cochin, Ksenia Lebedeva, who works for Western intelligence services and carries out various assignments for them.
Her immediate supervisor, foreign intelligence agent Trivosh, instructs the liaison to begin a relationship with the engineer who brought home the secret drawings.
An insidious resident enters the Cochin house while he is walking with Ksyusha in the park and, having photographed the drawings, tries to send the resulting pictures to the center as soon as possible. But this will not be so easy to do, because Soviet intelligence is already on Trivosh’s trail.
Biography of Lyubov Orlova
The biography of Lyubov Orlova began its countdown from the moment of her birth in Zvenigorod near Moscow.
His father, Pyotr Orlov, served in the military department, and his mother, Evgenia Sukhotina, was a housewife who devoted herself entirely to raising her beloved daughter.
Sister - Nonna or Anna Orlova - was born in 1897, was the most beloved and closest person in the actress’s life, since in childhood the girls were always together. They went to sell milk several kilometers away, supported each other, and the sister often gave interviews about the famous Lyuba. The woman married Sergei Veselov early, Lyuba had two nieces - Nonna and Natasha, who died in infancy.
The little girl moved in creative circles, since Chaliapin and Tolstoy, who, by the way, was related to her, often visited her house. By the way, the parents did their best to develop the girl’s acting and theatrical talents; she played in home performances so talentedly that Chaliapin himself advised sending Lyubasha to a theater studio, but mother and father did not believe in their daughter’s acting future. The fact is that Orlova was disabled due to Meniere's disease diagnosed in her, so she often suffered from attacks.
Spring (1947)
Director
: Grigory Alexandrov
Actors
: Rina Zelenaya, Georgy Yumatov, Mikhail Troyanovsky, Valentina Telegina, Rostislav Plyatt, Faina Ranevskaya, Tatyana Guretskaya, Nikolai Cherkasov, Boris Petker, Nikolai Konovalov, Lyubov Orlova, Arkady Tsinman, Vasily Zaichikov, Mikhail Sidorkin
In this film, Lyubov Orlova played several roles at once. The plot of the film revolves around the famous director Arkady Gromov, who is preparing for the filming of a future film about scientists.
In order for the film to be reliable and truthful, the man decides to get to know Professor Irina Nikitina, who is working on the problem of using solar energy.
After talking with a talented scientist, the film director decides to make a movie about her, casting the operetta artist Vera Shatrova in the main role, who is also strikingly similar to the prototype.
Filmography: films starring Lyubov Orlova
From the age of seven, the little girl studied at a music school, and then at the capital’s conservatory, which she was unable to graduate due to a sharp decrease in hearing. Soon she became a student at the Lunacharsky Theater College, after which she joined the Moscow Art Theater troupe, but only as a dancer in the corps de ballet.
Since 1933, Lyuba made her debut in the film “Alena’s Love”, and then her filmography included the works “Volga, Volga”, “Jolly Fellows”, “Circus”, “The Artamonov Case”, “Spring”, “One Family”, “Russian” souvenir”, “Battle film collection”, “Starling and Lyra”, “Shining Path”.
One Family (1943)
Directors : Grigory Alexandrov, Mikail Mikailov, Rza Tahmasib, Gamar Salamzade
Actors : Khosrov Melikov, Marziya Davudova, Lyubov Orlova, M. Zharikov, Antonina Filippova, Oleg Zhakov, Okuma Kurbanova, Alisattar Melikov, Kazim Ziya, Victor Sharlakhov
A dramatic and at the same time optimistic film tells about the heroic and at the same time difficult everyday life of the inhabitants of Azerbaijani Baku during the Second World War.
The main character of the film is an Azerbaijani front-line soldier who received a long-awaited vacation. Due to certain circumstances, a man finds himself in a Russian family who greets him warmly.
Together with his newly made acquaintances, the military man is slowly adapting to life in peaceful Baku. Lyubov Orlova in this film played one of the main roles of the cheerful, cheerful girl Ekaterina Andrievskaya.
Personal life of Lyubov Orlova
The personal life of Lyubov Orlova was hidden from prying eyes, since the girl was an example of a Soviet woman and had to be impeccable. The worst thing was that Joseph Stalin himself fell in love with Orlova, who persistently invited the actress to dinner with a sequel, but she steadfastly refused. Lyubov simply asked a question about the fate of her first husband, who was repressed, after which the Generalissimo lost interest in her as a woman.
Another stormy and unexpected romance is Orlova’s relationship with a certain Franz, who served as her impresario at that time. Many attribute this relationship to a civil marriage with an Austrian, but the girl herself called it an ordinary affair with him.
After this, there was a short-term relationship with a relative of Nemirovich-Danchenko named Mikhail, with whom the girl was advised to connect her life, but she did not listen to this advice.
Before this, Orlova had a stormy affair with the German military attache, the famous director Eisenstein, but they were not documented.
Volga-Volga (1938)
Director : Grigory Alexandrov
Actors : Lyubov Orlova, Sergei Antimonov, Anatoly Shalaev, Alexey Dolinin, Maria Mironova, Emmanuil Geller, Nikita Kondratiev, Vsevolod Sanaev, Pavel Olenev, Andrey Tutyshkin, Ivan Chuvelev, Vladimir Volodin, Igor Ilyinsky
Byvalov, the head of the handicraft industry, dreams of serving in Moscow and being an honorable and respected citizen. He is given the task of preparing and sending young and energetic participants in amateur performances.
But Byvalov believes that he has no one to send, despite the fact that in his city there are many candidates for amateur creative activities. As a result, undecided, two groups set off on their own to great Moscow along the Volga River.
Family of Lyubov Orlova
Lyubov Orlova's family came from quite famous families, since her parents were nobles. Lyuba’s maternal grandfather, Nikolai Sukhotin, was a cavalryman and general who headed the Academy of the General Staff of Nikolaev, he was a relative of Leo Tolstoy.
Orlova’s father was awarded by the tsar for valiant military service; he often joked that he was glad that before the revolution he managed to lose three estates at cards, so he did not fall under repression. His daughters never said who their father was, indicating that they came from an intelligent family.
As a child, little Lyubasha sat on Tolstoy’s lap; she received from him as a gift the book “Prisoner of the Caucasus” with the author’s autograph. However, they say that the girl had nothing to do with the letter in which she asked Lev Nikolaevich to send her an interesting book. The fact is that her mother was an incredibly vain woman, so she herself composed family legends and did shocking things on behalf of her daughters.
Parents, by the way, never interfered in the personal life of their daughter Lyuba; they believed that girls should be released from the family on time.
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“Having pricked herself on roses, Lyubov Petrovna received blood poisoning. It turned out that the thorns were saturated with poison. To save Orlova, Stalin sent a personal plane to England for the best doctors,” recall the actress’s relatives...
People tell very different stories about Lyubov Orlova and her husband, director Grigory Alexandrov. This is because people who keep those distant events in their memory come from different “camps”: Orlova’s relatives and Aleksandrov’s relatives. "7D" questioned both parties - Lyubov Petrovna's great-niece Nonna Golikova and friend of the Alexandrov family Ivan Lukashev.
Stalin's personal friend
Military translator Ivan Lukashev says: “In the legendary film “The Cranes Are Flying” there is such a moment: an evacuated artist asks an official: “I really want to go for a ride!” Well, get a car, a fire truck, an ambulance, it doesn’t matter!” This episode is copied from a real case, the heroine of which was Lyubov Orlova. Lyubov Petrovna needed to find a friend in Leningrad - this was in 1943! And she called one marshal with a request to give her his personal plane. The marshal was indignant: “The war is on!” The blockade has not yet been lifted from Leningrad! Orlova paused, and then asked in an insinuating voice: “Should I call Comrade Stalin personally?” As a result, Orlova was provided with a Douglas military transport aircraft. And they also provided fighters for cover.
For her, Stalin's favorite actress, nothing was impossible. As for Stalin, perhaps he was not as close friends with any woman as he was with Orlova! After Nadezhda Alliluyeva shot herself in 1932, there was no permanent woman next to the leader. And he willingly spent time with Lyubov Petrovna. At her dacha she had a direct connection with the Kremlin. Previously, when there were no numbers in Moscow, communication was established through a switch. The telephone operators knew that Lyubov Orlova had to be connected to Stalin instantly in
any time. Sometimes he talked to her for an hour, although he had business to do. And if he wanted to see her, he sent a car, and Lyubov Petrovna disappeared for a day or two. Nobody asked her afterwards what they were doing. Lyubov Petrovna, a lady by birth, lived as a lady all her life, as if for her there had never been any revolution or Soviet power...”
Lyubochka Orlova. 1916 Photo: RIA “NOVOSTI”
Her first car with a driver
Nonna Golikova says: “Lyubov Petrovna is the sister of my grandmother, Nonna Petrovna Orlova. Their father, as the family legend says, came from those same famous Counts Orlovs, and their mother from the old Sukhotin family, who were related to the Tolstoys. Sobinov, Korovin, Chaliapin visited their house... The latter, seeing little Lyuba on
children's party, said: “You will be a great actress!” Like many noble families, in 1917 they found themselves in an extremely difficult situation. Lyuba and Nonna’s father, my great-grandfather, never tired of repeating: “It’s good that I managed to lose three of our estates at cards!” Indeed, they survived only because there was nothing to take from their family. The Orlovs settled in quiet Voskresensk and got a cow. In their profiles, sisters Lyuba and Nonna began to write that they came from “the intelligentsia.” Every morning they transported milk in large and heavy cans to Moscow for sale. 15-year-old Lyuba’s hands hurt from physical work - then all her life she suffered with joints. When she became an actress, she tried to act while wearing gloves or asked her to sew a dress with such long sleeves that her hands were covered.
Lyuba began her artistic career by entering the conservatory. True, I didn’t finish it - it was too difficult to combine classes with the need to help my family. She gave dance lessons, worked as a performer in cinemas... In the early 1920s, Orlova married Andrei Berzin, who held a position in the People's Commissariat of Agriculture. He had a huge apartment in Khokhlovsky Lane, and he gave Lyuba the opportunity to live there with her family and take care of herself: take vocal, dance, and acting lessons. But, alas, in 1929 Berzin was arrested. Orlova and her family were immediately evicted and moved to a communal apartment. By this time, Lyubov Petrovna became an actress of the Musical Theater under the direction of Nemirovich-Danchenko. Even then she attracted attention. Managed to look stunning! The same black
the dress served her for many years. Either she will sew on the collar, or change the length... Elegant, with a chiseled figure, with a soft, deep voice. At the same time, there was always a feeling of a core in her - indestructible and reliable.
In 1933, Lyubov Petrovna had a serious affair with a German citizen named Franz. Thanks to him, she got a car with a driver. Franz wanted to take Orlova to his homeland and promised to make her a movie star on a European scale. But having met Alexandrov, Lyubochka forgot to think about Franz. After “Jolly Fellows” and “Circus” Alexandrov said: “I have found my directorial happiness!” And not only the director’s – after all, Grigory and Lyuba got married.”
“It was Alexandrov who came up with the idea to dye Orlova blonde and brought her a hairdresser, who
gave Lyubov Petrovna the appearance of a Hollywood film star,” says Ivan Lukashev. - After all, Alexandrov knew what a movie star should look like! I remember how he told me about his affair with the legend of American cinema Greta Garbo. This was during his internship in Hollywood. At the expense of the film studio, he, Eisenstein and Tisse rented a small villa to live in, but when Grisha managed to win the heart of the magnificent Greta, the comrades, out of delicacy, vacated the living space. And Alexandrov and his breathtaking lover lived in the villa together. True, the romance did not last long - the time had come for Alexandrov to return to the USSR. As a reminder of all this, Grigory Vasilyevich still has a photograph of Garbo with an inscription written in lipstick:
“To my only love Grigoriy. Hollywood 1930." But still, the main woman in his life was not she, but Lyuba Orlova, from whom Aleksandrov himself molded into a movie star no worse than Garbo.”
Arrest for fun
“The fame and success of Alexandrov and Orlova grew from film to film,” Ivan Lukashev continues his story. “And they lived in full accordance with their superstar status.” They had a lot of money. They twice received the Stalin Prize of the first degree: Lyubov Petrovna - as an actress and Grigory Vasilyevich - as a director. The first - for the films "Circus" and "Volga-Volga", and the second - for the film "Meeting on the Elbe". But each such award amounted to 100 thousand rubles! For comparison, the average salary in the country was then 500 rubles, Stakhanovites were paid a thousand.
While the rest of the country’s population had no idea what was happening abroad, Orlova and Alexandrov had permanently valid foreign passports. They easily flew to France, then to Switzerland, or somewhere else. Alexandrov received such a passport back in the late twenties, when he was interning in Hollywood. And Lyubov Petrovna began traveling while working on the film “Spring” - after all, the picture was shot at the Czechoslovak film studio “Barrandov”. Then the couple began to travel abroad regularly.
Grigory Alexandrov with his son Douglas and grandson Grisha. 60s Photo: From the archive of Grigory Alexandrov
It was rumored that Orlova and Alexandrov were so easily released abroad because they were KGB agents. In fact, as the Soviet intelligence officer writes in his memoirs
Pavel Sudoplatov, it was called differently: “agents of influence.” Using the special trust of the authorities, such people carried out orders to introduce Soviet spies among the European elite. It was impossible to get there without recommendations, and Orlova and Alexandrov, thanks to their friendship with Charlie Chaplin, were considered their own there. They often stayed with Chaplin for the whole summer - he even paid for Orlova’s plastic surgery. However, she and Alexandrov also had their own accounts in foreign banks. Of course, secretly from the Soviet leadership, they were helped in these matters by the same Chaplin, who became the guarantor of their contributions. Alexandrov was very savvy in financial matters and wanted to have guarantees for any turn of events. For the same reasons, he also bought an apartment in France - in Paris, near the Bois de Boulogne.
Well, in their homeland, Alexandrov and Orlova had a house and a hectare of land in a prestigious village in Vnukovo, where the Moscow elite settled in the 30s. The house was built according to Alexandrov's design. He took as a model the villa where he once lived in Hollywood. A Swedish architect brought this idea to life, and the house turned out to be unusual. For example, there was a cinema hall: in the living room one wall was plastered and left empty, creating a movie screen. A film projector was placed on the piano, and films were shown in the house in the evenings. There was also a dance floor in the house: it was arranged on the roof of the terrace, and there was even a small stage for an orchestra for five people. True, almost no one ever danced there, because Orlova did not like guests. At their dacha, everything was arranged for only two people: a small sofa, two armchairs, a small table. There are no guest rooms, just two bedrooms upstairs, each with its own fireplace. But Alexandrov’s only son, Douglas, when he lived in Vnukovo, was given a cramped closet, which was originally planned as a servant’s room.
Even when they came to Alexandrov on business, to discuss the script, Lyubov Petrovna could come in and say: “It’s time for Grigory Vasilyevich to have dinner!” And this was not an invitation to the guest to the table, but a signal that it was time to leave. Alexandrov recalled: “Lyubovka dispersed all the companies, so I didn’t have any friends in the house...” However, relatives of Lyubov Petrovna herself were in the house.”
After the film "Volga-Volga" Orlova became Stalin's favorite actress. Meanwhile, Beria dreamed of destroying both her and Alexandrov Photo: MOSFILM-INFO
And again Nonna Golikova takes the floor: “Next to her plot in Vnukovo, Lyuba procured another one -
for my sister, my grandmother. And from then on, I began to often visit Lyubov Petrovna and Grigory Vasilyevich. Their house was luxurious! A piano, a fireplace, cozy armchairs... One day, sinking into such an armchair, I lit a cigarette for the first time. They didn’t tell me anything - Lyubov Petrovna herself sometimes smoked. Moreover, expensive cigarettes imported from abroad. I know that they talk about Orlova, what a great housewife she was. This is partly a myth. For example, she absolutely did not know how to cook, she could not even break eggs. But she did needlework with pleasure - she sat for hours sewing some kind of patchwork quilt.”
“With all the obvious prosperity and special disposition of Stalin towards Lyubov Petrovna, the life of the spouses was still darkened by something, namely, fear! - Ivan continues the story
Lukashev. “They knew that Beria, who did not tolerate people who had influence on the “master,” dreamed of destroying them. And indeed, one day a “black funnel” came for Grigory Vasilyevich. Lyubov Petrovna immediately rushed to call Stalin - that’s when the connection with the Kremlin came in handy! As a result, the car with Aleksandrov turned around before reaching Lubyanka. And although Stalin assured Orlova that he had personally ordered Beria to leave their family alone, Aleksandrov still did not feel protected. Just in case, he kept a “arrest suitcase” ready with the necessary things - in those years many people had such things. And indeed, the day came when I had to take this suitcase out of the pantry again...
It happened like this: Grigory Vasilyevich was taken at night, put in a car with curtained windows, and taken somewhere. Orlova failed to reach Stalin this time. The car drove into an underground garage, after which the director was dropped off and led along the corridor under escort. They took me into a room, and there were Stalin, Molotov, Beria... It turned out that this was the Kremlin. Stalin says: “You are corresponding with a foreigner in wartime. This is punishable by execution." Naturally, Alexandrov began to mentally say goodbye to life. But then Joseph Vissarionovich smiled and continued: “Don’t be afraid, I’m joking. Your friend Charlie Chaplin sent you a letter with opportunity. Here it is, read it." The US Secretary of State brought a letter from Chaplin to Alexandrov to the Union. These are the jokes...
Another time, Stalin made Grigory Vasilyevich turn cold at one Kremlin reception, where Aleksandrov and Orlova arrived after filming.
Tired Lyubov Petrovna did not look well, and Stalin noticed this: “Lyubochka, you look bad... Comrade Alexandrov! If you overload your wife with work like that, we will shoot you.”
Poisoned roses in a funeral bouquet
“Anyone had to travel a lot around the country,” recalls Nonna Golikova. — She often gave two concerts a day. But such loads were contraindicated for her: Lyuba suffered from incurable Meniere’s disease, accompanied by attacks of dizziness, vomiting... This is a congenital disease of the vestibular system, when it sometimes becomes difficult for a person to even walk in a straight line. This condition was usually caused by bright light or simply a yellow-orange color.
As luck would have it, many respectable hotels in those days had red velvet curtains. In this case, Orlova’s administrator exchanged them for black curtains, which he specially carried with him. Lyubov Petrovna was embarrassed to ask the tour organizers about such things. I remember she said: “How can I dictate the color of the curtains to the hotel? They will say that these are my crazy whims!
The majority of the country's population had no idea what was behind the Iron Curtain, but Orlova and Aleksandrov had permanent international passports. During a trip to Venice Photo: MOSFILM-INFO
She had countless fans. Lyuba was tired of the intrusive attention and still always tried to smile, accepted the bouquets herself, and thanked her. And then one day on tour it turned into a real disaster for her! In 1952, a planned assassination attempt was made on Lyubov Petrovna. This happened in one of the border cities of Western Ukraine. At this time, anti-Soviet sentiments flourished there. Orlova was perceived as a symbol of Soviet cinema, and it was no secret that she was the leader’s favorite actress. To harm her meant to challenge Stalin personally... Having finished her performance, Lyubov Petrovna went out to bow to the audience. And among other bouquets, she was presented with an unusual one. Lyuba herself later told us: “It stood out among the others, it was mainly composed of white roses, but in the middle there were absolutely black roses! I've never seen anything like this and was very surprised. Then I realized that it was a funeral bouquet...” The strange flowers were wrapped in paper, torn on one side. And Lyuba, taking them, immediately injected herself. That same evening, blood poisoning began - it turned out that the thorns of the roses were saturated with poison. Having learned about what had happened, Stalin ordered Orlova to be taken to the Kremlin hospital on Granovsky Street, and even sent his personal plane for
famous English professor, specialist in the treatment of poisoning. Lyubov Petrovna was barely saved by giving her several blood transfusions. I remember how my mother and grandmother with worried faces were returning from the hospital, and Grigory Vasilyevich did not leave there at all!
Of course, they were looking for those responsible for the assassination attempt. Many people were arrested in that city, but, as far as I know, the person who gave Lyuba the poisoned flowers was never found. For the rest of her life, Lyuba was afraid to accept gifts from strangers. And when her car drove through the crowd, it actually lay on the floor! Just in case…"
“In general, the most golden time for Orlova and Alexandrov was under Stalin. But even after his death, no one oppressed them or deprived them of benefits.
It’s just that Lyubov Petrovna was already old; she couldn’t look as good on the screen as before. It was at her request that Alexandrov’s last film with her participation, “Starling and Lyra,” was put on the shelf. And she completely refused to film an autobiographical film about herself. There was only one reason - worries about age. Although she had great opportunities, she used the latest advances in cosmetology. For example, she made a magic mask, and for forty minutes her face became absolutely youthful. But these funds were not suitable for filming films, and Orlova took up work in the theater. She and I never talked about Stalin, about the debunking of his cult. This is a complex topic. Alexandrov, if he remembered Stalin, it was something good, and sometimes funny. For example, how on Budyonny’s 55th birthday the leader arranged
“bachelor party” from the highest ranks of power, at which everyone sang and performed obscene ditties. When the “master” ordered, everyone had to drink, and a lot! If someone made an excuse: “I have a stomach ulcer,” after two weeks this person disappeared, he was arrested and could be shot. So people preferred not to refuse the glass from the hands of the leader.”
Lyubov Orlova with Faina Ranevskaya in a play at the Mossovet Theater Photo: MOSFILM-INFO
Why did Orlova kick out her stepson?
“Before meeting Lyubov Orlova, Grigory Vasilyevich had another wife, Olga,” recalls Ivan Lukashev. “It was she who gave birth to his only son, Douglas, whose son, Gregory, later became my friend. Why did Alexandrov choose such a strange name for his son? This came out because of one conversation between Grigory Vasilyevich and the American actor Douglas Fairbanks. When he was on a visit to the USSR, he laughed at the widespread
In the 20s in the Soviet Union, the manner of giving everything and everyone industrial names, he joked: “What will you, Grigory, name your son? Tractor? To which the wounded “Westerner” Alexandrov, a big fan of the Hollywood style, replied: “No, Douglas, in honor of you!” And he kept his word. But the star name did not bring an easy fate for Douglas Alexandrov.
In 1929, Alexandrov, together with director Sergei Eisenstein and cameraman Eduard Tisse, went for an internship in Hollywood. This internship lasted for three years, during which time Olga found a replacement for Grigory Vasilyevich - actor Boris Tenin. He was an idol - a very handsome and charming man, who later became famous for his leading role in
"The Adventures of Schweik." At that time, Tenin was an even better player than Alexandrov, who was still just showing promise. In a word, having returned to the USSR, Grigory Vasilyevich got divorced. Douglas stayed with his mother. But, having married Tenin, Olga did not want to take care of her son and soon sent him to an orphanage. In this whole story, Douglas remained out of work and was of no use to anyone. Over time, Alexandrov, however, became interested in the fate of his son, introduced him to cinema - Douglas Alexandrov received the profession of a cinematographer and during the war he filmed newsreels on the front lines, worked for Konstantin Simonov himself. And one day his father gave him a role in his film “Meeting on the Elbe.” Orlova played an American spy there, and Douglas played an American officer. He really looked like an American - a bright, almost Hollywood appearance.
At first, Lyubov Orlova provided patronage to the young man. And when Douglas wanted to live separately from them, she herself found him a housekeeper, a simple woman Galina. Orlova always had housekeepers, this was in the order of things for her. So for her stepson, she found, on the basis of a recommendation, a hardworking woman who had previously worked for someone she knew. Who could have foreseen that Douglas would fall in love with Galina and want to marry her? But that's exactly what happened. Orlova was furious. Either the noble class feeling leaped up, or the status of a star made itself felt. In a word, she told Douglas: “If you want to live with servants, live! But then you won’t have anything in common with me!” The son rushed to his father, but from him he heard: “Lyubov Petrovna is absolutely right!” So Douglas lost support for many years, and even just communication with his father...” “Some accuse Lyubov Petrovna of showing her stepson the door because of the wrong choice of his wife,” Nonna Golikova continues the topic. “But as far as I know, that wasn’t the case at all.” Lyubov Petrovna really refused to give up the house to Douglas, but this happened after he, taking advantage of his father and stepmother’s departure abroad, organized a riotous party in the house without permission. Although I promised not to invite guests! Of course, the young guys ruined some furniture, but most of all Lyubov Petrovna was outraged by the fact that her stepson broke his word. She herself, if she promised something, always fulfilled it. Douglas's family then hated Lyuba for many years and took revenge on her as best they could. It was they who, as soon as they received the inheritance, first of all took out the entire archive of Lyubov Orlova, along with bags of letters from fans who came to her from all over the country...
Orlova died in 1975. On January 23, Lyuba called her husband from the hospital - by this time she was already seriously ill. That day, Alexandrov visited Lyuba, and barely had time to return home when the phone rang. He realized what this meant and rushed back to the hospital. When he ran into his wife’s room, Lyubov Petrovna only had the strength to say: “How long have you been?” - this was the only reproach for all their 42 years of marriage! After that, she lost consciousness and never came to her senses again. The actress was buried on January 29..."
Priceless rarities for a bottle of cognac
Ivan Lukashev recalls what happened next: “It cannot be said that Alexandrov did not participate in the fate of his “guilty” son. Back in the sixties he built it
operator in the KGB. Douglas filmed secret operations, for example, how one spy was exchanged for another. He eventually died of heart failure in 1978. Leaving his wife, the same Galina, and a little son named after his grandfather Grisha.
True, they managed to improve relations with their father, because Douglas outlived Orlova by three years.
Lyubov Orlova visiting Una and Charlie Chaplin. 1960 Photo: RGBI
After the death of his wife, and then his son, Grigory Vasilyevich felt lonely in the big house. It was then that he remembered his grandson and daughter-in-law and invited them to live with him. Galina surrounded Alexandrov with the same care as she did under Lyubov Petrovna. He took his medications on time again, slept on starched sheets, ate dinner on good dishes, with proper serving - everything was as he was used to. So all the old man could do was rest and watch his films with Orlova. While watching, he became animated and had fun like a child, told different stories from the filming, all you could hear from him was: “Lyubochka... Lyubochka...” Yes, he really loved her.
And then Grigory Vasilyevich stunned everyone by marrying Galina. From the outside it looked really wild! After Lyubov Orlova - suddenly a new wife, and even his own daughter-in-law, who, moreover, was the reason for a many-year quarrel between Alexandrov and his son and is significantly younger than the almost 80-year-old director! In fact, there is nothing particularly scandalous or romantic in this story. Grigory Vasilyevich rightly feared that his grandson would not be able to inherit his property. The situation was further aggravated by the fact that next to
Alexandrovsky was the site of Leonid Utesov, with whom the director parted on rather tense terms after filming “Jolly Fellows.” They said that Utesov, by hook or by crook, wants to annex Alexandrov’s plot to his own... In a word, marrying his son’s widow was a pragmatic step for Grigory Vasilyevich. But how Galina changed after that! If earlier she preferred a sporty style, now she began to wear dresses and diamonds by Lyubov Orlova. And I even learned to drive a car! According to her order, the plant assembled an improved Volga with genuine leather seats and a tinned body - supposedly for Grigory Vasilyevich, although it was Galina who drove it. I even remember what numbers the car had: 0033.
Well, Grisha... I remember he once whispered to me, pointing to the clay
a dish sculpted and painted by Pablo Picasso himself especially for Alexandrov: “When grandfather dies, you and I will drink this dish for a week!” That's what he finally did. When Alexandrov died, Galina and Grisha became the owners of the huge inheritance, as planned. The grandson settled in his grandfather’s Moscow apartment on Pushkin Square, while Galina remained in the house in Vnukovo, little by little selling Orlova’s jewelry. On Pushkinskaya, Grisha began to gather bohemians - actors from nearby theaters. I remember how they fooled around. One day I came to see Grisha, and there were girls on the stairs - apparently and invisibly! It turns out that Alexandrov Jr. and Alexander Abdulov arranged an “audition at VGIK.” They introduced themselves as teachers, fooling provincial girls... They told me: “If you want, we will introduce you as a director! And then choose any one for yourself - they are ready to do anything to get into the movies!” I refused. And yet, in fairness, it must be said that these gatherings at Grisha’s were not a banal riot. In the apartment on Pushkinskaya, poems were read, intellectual debates were held, and if women were seduced, they were presented with armfuls of flowers and kneeling declarations of love... Everything happened mischievously and with talent.
Lyubov Orlova with a delegation of Soviet artists in France at a meeting with Pablo Picasso. 1954 Photo: RGBI
From time to time Grisha came up with the idea of creating a museum in his grandfather’s apartment. It didn’t work out... Instead, the grandson gradually sold off all the relics kept in the house. Either a portrait of his grandfather, or Orlova’s service, or drawings by Fernand Léger - they were given away to art speculators for a bottle of cognac. One of the last letters Chaplin wrote (until it reached Alexandrov in
Moscow, the great comedian died), Grisha, however, sold it for more - for several thousand dollars...
When Grisha had a family, there was hope that the careless revelry would end. But here, what is most striking, Galina intervened. Just like Lyubov Petrovna had done in her time, she decided that her daughter-in-law was not worthy of her son. And she left the house unwanted with her little grandson. And for her son, Galina looked for a resident of Paris, Lyudmila, the daughter of the first wave of emigrants. Having gone to France, Grisha met her, then they got married. Since then, to Galina’s joy, Tolstoy’s great-granddaughters and Pushkin’s descendants began to appear in his circle. Only when news came from Moscow that his mother was seriously ill, Grisha could not come. As a result, Galina was buried by his first wife - the same one who survived from home. By the way, Galina was not allowed to be buried next to Alexandrov, as she wanted. Then Grisha sold everything, and together with Lyudmila they bought an apartment in Dubai. But Grisha did not have the chance to live in them - he died, a little short of his sixtieth birthday...
Now nothing remains of the huge inheritance of Alexandrov and Orlova: neither a city apartment, nor a dacha in Vnukovo - everything has long been sold and lived out. But the Alexandrov family still hasn’t dried up: Grishin’s eldest son, Vasily, lives in Russia from his first wife, former Bolshoi Theater ballerina Natasha Grishina. And in France - two younger from the second. So Grigory Vasilyevich Alexandrov has three great-grandchildren. As for Lyubov Orlova, she never wanted to have children and, as far as I know, she got rid of pregnancy more than once. This happens to great actresses who are fanatically devoted to art and themselves. True, Lyubov Petrovna Orlova, in addition to art and herself, also had a beloved director husband, who in Stalin’s Russia managed to make her a star equal to Hollywood.”
There was nothing left of the huge inheritance of Alexandrov and Orlova - everything was sold and lived long ago... Photo: RIA "NOVOSTI"
Angelika Pakhomova 7 Days https://7days.ru/article/privatelife/pochemu-khotel...kty-izzhizni-velikoy-aktrisy/1
Children of Lyubov Orlova
The children of Lyubov Orlova were never born, but there was no clear version of why this happened. Fans said that Orlova became hypothermic on the set and therefore could not give birth to an heir to either partner.
However, after the death of the famous actress, it became known that Lyuba had at least two abortions from Grigory Alexandrov, and was also the first in the USSR to install an IUD to protect herself from pregnancy.
Orlova said that she has many children, even if they are not related by blood. She doted on her niece Nonna (Maria), whom she often called daughter, spoiled and nurtured. Now the woman has become a famous playwright and theater critic, who has prepared many radio programs and documentaries about her grandmother.
Lyuba often called her “on-screen” son in the film “The Circus” by black actor James Patterson her son. On the set, Orlova often tinkered with two-year-old Dzhimka; she simply adored the boy and rejoiced at his success in creativity along with his own mother Vera Ippolitovna.
As soon as family or creative anniversaries were planned in the Orlova and Alexandrov families, Patterson appeared on the guest list and invariably came to them from the States. Lyuba often visited her film son at the Nakhimov School; he was a welcome guest in their home.
Orlova often brewed strong tea for the guy and treated him to homemade cakes; she was close to James until her death.
But Lyuba never recognized her stepson, Douglas Alexandrov, as her own son, who belonged to the representatives of the “golden youth” and constantly broke the law, ending up in prison. By the way, the guy hated his name, which he got from the actor Fairbanks, which he changed to Vasily. The guy got married early, but died just as early from alcoholism, leaving his son Grisha. Gregory also abused alcohol, he quickly squandered the entire fortune of his famous grandfather and died at fifty-nine years old.
The Artamonov case (1941)
Director
: Grigory Roshal
Actors
: Mikhail Pugovkin, Georgy Svetlani, Evgeny Teterin, Grigory Shpigel, Mikhail Derzhavin, Tatyana Barysheva, Vladimir Balashov, Alexander Smirnov, Nina Zorskaya, Vera Maretskaya, Boris Shukhmin, Lyubov Orlova, Sergey Romodanov, T. Chistyakova
An action-packed and thought-provoking film after viewing, the film is an adaptation of the historical novel of the same name by Maxim Gorky, the action of which unfolds from the reforms of 1861 to the October Revolution.
The events of the film unfold around the former clerk Ilya Artamonov, who managed to open a factory in his hometown. The film follows the dramatic moments of the aforementioned clerk, including events related to his children.
As for Orlova, in this film the actress played the foreign singer Paula Menotti.
Former husband of Lyubov Orlova - Andrei Berzin
Lyubov Orlova’s ex-husband, Andrei Berzin, was nine years older and, according to the actress, became her only great love. The young people met in 1926 behind the scenes of the theater, and the romance quickly turned into marriage, which was approved by Orlova’s father and mother.
Berzin held a high position in the People's Commissariat of Agriculture of the USSR, he began to financially support the entire Orlov family, so gossipers often called the marriage fictitious. The fact is, the wedding was quiet because they wanted to enjoy peace in the family and true love.
After the wedding, the couple moved into their husband’s huge apartment; they enjoyed life, although they were often late at work, which did not spoil the relationship. For four years they lived in perfect harmony, until Berzin was arrested in 1930 on a far-fetched pretext, namely, for participation in an opposition party.
Andrei was exiled to Kazakhstan, and then to the Gulag, returned home in 1946, but never saw his wife again and died of cancer in 1951.
Orlova experienced real stress when her husband was pulled out of the marriage bed and taken to an unknown direction. After this, the woman could not sleep with her second husband in the same bed, even in hotels.
Jolly Fellows (1934)
Director
: Grigory Alexandrov
Actors
: Fyodor Kurikhin, Lyubov Orlova, G. Arnold, Robert Erdman, Emmanuel Geller, Elena Tyapkina, Maria Strelkova, Leonid Utesov, Maria Ivanova
Events of the cult musical comedy film with Leonid Utesov and Lyubov Orlova. The main character of the film is the talented shepherd-musician Konstantin Potekhin.
Kostya's musical abilities amaze all his fellow villagers. Moreover, they all tell Kostya that he needs to become a famous musician. One day, by pure chance, he was mistaken for a famous foreign guest performer, who in turn became a sensation in the capital’s music hall.
As a result, the gifted young man is hired as a conductor in a jazz orchestra. At the same time, the housekeeper Anya, performed by Orlova, becomes a famous singer.
Lyubov Orlova's husband - Grigory Alexandrov
Lyubov Orlova's husband, Grigory Alexandrov, appeared in her life in 1933, when he was looking for a heroine for his film. After this, Lyuba became his wife, muse and constant heroine of Alexandrov’s films.
Orlova often said that as soon as she saw Grigory, she fell head over heels in love with him, and Alexandrov decided to divorce for her sake. The woman became not only a wife, but also a mother for her husband, who was not adapted to life, like all creative people.
She never asked questions about who he had affairs with before her, which served as the key to a happy family life. Orlova and Aleksandrov lived separately at the dacha until Lyuba’s death.
Illness and death
Lyubov Orlova had long suffered from insomnia and osteochondrosis, which was later supplemented by terrible pain in her kidneys.
Doctors diagnosed pancreatic cancer, but Alexandrov asked not to tell his wife about it: “Let him think that these are just kidney stones.” He surrounded her with touching care and did not leave her bedside in the Kuntsevo hospital. Orlova was discharged and seemed to be on the mend, but on January 23, 1975, at her husband’s birthday party, she lost consciousness. Three days later she was gone. The actress died on January 26, 1975 from pancreatic cancer. Thousands of Muscovites came to say goodbye to their beloved actress at the Mossovet Theater, and then to the Novodevichy Cemetery. Alexandrov was led by the arms - it seemed that he had completely lost the will to live.
Soon Grigory Vasilyevich suffered another blow - at the age of 50, his son Douglas died of a heart attack. Nevertheless, Alexandrov had enough strength to make the documentary “Lyubov Orlova.” After that, he decided that his mission was completed, and in December 1983 he departed for a better world, where, as he repeatedly told his loved ones, he hoped to meet his wife.
Shortly before this, Douglas’s widow Galina arranged a fictitious marriage with him so as not to lose a huge inheritance - apartments, cars, antiques and an archive with documents of prominent cultural figures. The director’s grandson Gregory sold all this to collectors and got lost with the proceeds somewhere in the vastness of Europe.
All that remains of the great actress are her films and a small planet named in her honor on her 70th birthday. Nobody celebrated this date - Lyubov Orlova asked not to send her congratulations that would mention her age. It was the fear of age (“I’m not at all afraid of dying,” she said) that in recent years has forced her to refuse to communicate with people, even those closest to her. Just before her death, having briefly regained consciousness, she called Alexandrov from the hospital: “Grisha, why don’t you come to me? Come, I’m waiting.”
Photo by Lyubov Orlova in Maxim magazine
Photos of Lyubov Orlova naturally never appeared in Maxim magazine, but secret candid photos of the Soviet beauty were found after her death. In them, an almost naked Lyuba sits against the wall and shyly hides herself from her husband, who takes this photo.
Apart from these photos, no more candid ones were seen, but there were photos of Orlova in a swimsuit. They were taken on the beach in Gagra, when Lyuba was sunbathing between filming; by the way, in the photo the girl incredibly looked like actress Marlene Dietrich.
At the same time, Lyubov Orlova tried to look younger than her age, so she was the first in the USSR to resort to the services of a plastic surgeon. Lyubov Orlova: plastic surgery before and after photos were often leaked to the press and discussed by fans. The fact is that the actress had six anti-aging surgeries and eyelid lifts, which left scars on her face. Since the sixties, the woman used ordinary creams, which she mixed with herbs for masks, and also replaced her natural teeth with porcelain ones.
Orlova constantly hid her hands, which were prone to arthritis and revealed the actress’s real age.
Circus (1936)
Director
: I. Simkov, Grigory Alexandrov
Actors
: Vladimir Kandelaki, Fedor Kurikhin, Lyubov Orlova, Alexander Komissarov, Lev Sverdlin, Sergei Antimonov, Pavel Geraga, Jim Patterson, Nikolai Orlov, Nikolai Otto, Solomon Mikhoels, Evgenia Melnikova, Sergei Stolyarov, Emmanuel Geller, Vladimir Volodin
The plot of the cult musical film takes place in the USSR in the mid-30s of the last century. A popular overseas circus attraction called “Flight to the Moon” comes to the Soviet Union on tour, along with its main star Marion Dixon.
Naturally, the performance with the participation of the above-mentioned artist enjoys unprecedented popularity among the Soviet public. But the immediate supervisor and creator of the program, the boorish and arrogant Franz von Kneischitz, bullies the actress in every possible way, not allowing her to breathe freely. And, nevertheless, Marion will do everything possible just to put the insolent man in his place.
Instagram and Wikipedia Lyubov Orlova
Instagram and Wikipedia of Lyubov Orlova were only half official, because the Internet had not yet been invented at the time of her death. The fact is that on Instagram you can find at least two groups in which fans post photos and videos that are associated with the actress, but are not responsible for their authenticity.
From the article dedicated to Orlova on Wikipedia, you can clarify only relevant and reliable facts that relate to childhood, disability, education, years of life, spouses. By the way, it is possible to find a lot of data about the actress’s roles in films or theaters, as well as about what awards Lyubov received for them.
Nationwide love
The whole country adored her, both men and women alike. Orlova herself, her love story, her personal biography, films, beauty, gait, smile, clothes - they loved all this about her. And they tried to imitate her in everything, which led to the emergence of a new diagnosis of those times, which was called “Lyubov Orlova syndrome.”
She embodied, by her very existence, the dream of Soviet citizens about a different life, happier, more beautiful, better... Because, looking at her, it was impossible to assume that she was born and raised in the USSR. The actress stood out very much with her special beauty and behavior.
In those years when everyone was afraid of their neighbor, in a country mired in repressions and executions, in a time when hopelessness ruled the roost, leaving its own special stamp on the Soviet people, Lyubov Petrovna became simply “a ray of light in the kingdom of darkness.” All her films had a good ending, truth and justice triumphed, which people of that era so lacked.
Stalin admired her, and this can explain that her career reached simply dizzying heights.
They say that when the war began, some smart guy posted posters of the actress around Moscow, and this had a magical effect and calmed the panicked residents. They connected it so much with a bright future and, in general, with everything good.
Starling and Lyra (1974)
Director
: Grigory Alexandrov
Actors
: Peter Velyaminov, Boris Zaidenberg, Varvara Soshalskaya, Vyacheslav Gostinsky, Janis Grantins, Nina Agapova, Yuri Volkov, Svetlana Svetlichnaya, Natalia Gitserot, Boris Ivanov, Nikolai Grinko, Alla Budnitskaya, Rina Zelenaya, Galix Kolchitsky, Ella Nekrasova, Pavel Makhotin, Lyubov Orlova, Rimma Markova, Yakov Lenz, Emilia Milton
The plot of the dramatic film unfolds during the difficult times of the Second World War and tells about the fate of two married couples of intelligence officers Lyudmila, nicknamed “Lyra” and Fyodor, who received the call sign “Starling”.
At the very beginning of the war, the residents, who had seen a lot in their lifetime, arrived in Germany, where they not only settled, but also infiltrated high Nazi society, supplying Soviet intelligence with the necessary data.
The film is the last in Orlova’s career and, alas, was never released in wide distribution. For the first time, mass audiences saw the film only in the 90s of the last century.
Mussorgsky (1950)
Director
: Grigory Roshal
Actors
: Lyubov Orlova, Lydia Sukharevskaya, Georgiy Georgiou, Lev Fenin, Valentina Ushakova, Alexander Borisov, Ivan Dmitriev, Konstantin Adashevsky, Lydia Shtykan, Vladimir Balashov, Bruno Freundlich, Nikolay Cherkasov, Andrey Popov, Fedor Nikitin
In an autobiographical film about the life and work of the Russian composer Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky, Lyubov Orlova embodied on the screen the image of the actress of the Imperial St. Petersburg Opera, Yulia Platonova.
As we know from history, it was the actress who was friends with the great artist and, together with other admirers of Mussorgsky’s talent, sought from the emperor the production of his opera “Boris Godunov,” which was received with hostility by many critics.
In addition, Yulia Platonova was subsequently the first opera singer to play the main character of the above-mentioned opera, Marina Mnishek.
Awards and titles
The actress has 2 Stalin Prizes, as well as:
- The order of Lenin;
- Order of the Red Banner of Labor;
- Peace Prize for the film “Meeting on the Elbe”;
- Medals “For the development of virgin lands” and “For the defense of the Caucasus.”
In 1935, Orlova was proclaimed Honored Artist of the RSFSR, in 1947 she was awarded the title of People's Artist of the RSFSR, and in 1950 already the title of People's Artist of the USSR. Awards and titles did not pass her by.
Russian souvenir (1960)
Director
: Grigory Alexandrov
Actors
: Erast Garin, Lyubov Orlova, Alexander Barushnoy, Natalya Krachkovskaya, Mikhail Orlov, Viktor Avdyushko, Nikolay Kuznetsov, Ivan Kashirin, Zoya Isaeva, Elina Bystritskaya, Nikolay Beldy, Nikolay Yudin, Vladimir Yakovlev, Pavel Kadochnikov, Alla Budnitskaya
The events of the fascinating film unfold in Soviet times, like the early 60s of the last century, on the territory of Lake Baikal.
It is in these picturesque places that the plane en route Moscow - Vladivostok makes an emergency landing. Passengers, including foreigners, are forced to spend several days in a new city under construction in Siberia, marveling at the new power plants and structures.
Lyubov Orlova in this comedy film played the main role of the optimistic engineer Varvara Komarova, who became a tour guide for passengers in the city.
