Edward Radzinsky: biography
Edward Stanislavovich Radzinsky, the famous Soviet and Russian historian, was born in Moscow at the end of September 1936. Father Stanislav Adolfovich Radzinsky was a Soviet playwright of Polish origin. And mother Sofya Yuryevna Zhdanova, originally from the Yaroslavl region, worked as a senior investigator.
Since childhood, Edward showed great academic ability, especially literature, and he also played several sports. In 1952, the first work of the novice author was published.
Edward Radzinsky in his youth
After graduating from school, Edward chose to continue his education at the Moscow Institute of History and Archives, where at that time one of the leading specialists in the field of history, A. A. Zimin, taught.
Dramaturgy
Edward studied with enthusiasm; for his diploma work he chose the topic of the work and biography of Gerasim Lebedev, who lived in the 19th century. This scientist worked a lot in India, where he studied the languages and dialects of the local population.
Radzinsky created not only a scientific work, he wrote his first play on historical grounds, which was called “My Dream... India.” Within two years, this work was staged on the stage of the capital's Youth Theater, the performance was a great success with the public. Since then, in addition to documentary works, Edward also begins to write plays.
Edward Radzinsky in his youth
The second play that made the playwright’s name known throughout the country was the work “104 Pages about Love.” In 1964, it was staged on the stage of the Lenk Theater by Anatoly Efros. At the same time, the play was released on the stage of the Leningrad Bolshoi Drama Theater, which was headed at that time by Georgy Tovstonogov. Many theater groups in the USSR followed the example of popular directors, and within six months the play was performed in all big cities.
Four years later, based on Radzinsky’s work, Georgy Nathanson’s film “Once More About Love” with Tatyana Doronina and Alexander Lazarev in the lead roles was released. In 2003, another film based on the script of this play will appear - “Sky, Plane, Girl”.
Edward Radzinsky at work
Performances staged based on the works of the young author every time become events in the theatrical life of the country. The plays “Conversations with Socrates”, “The Seducer Kolobashkin”, “Tour Base”, “A Little Bit About a Woman”, “The Continuation of Don Juan”, “Theater of the Times of Nero and Seneca” are staged not only in the USSR, they also win the sympathy of Western audiences . In the 70s, these works were translated into different languages and were performed with success at the Royal Theater in the capital of Denmark, at the Paris Theater of Europe, and in theaters in New York.
Edward Radzinsky in the theater
In the 80s, Edward Radzinsky mastered a new area of application for his talents: he became a film and television screenwriter. With his light hand, such film works as “Moscow - My Love”, “Every Evening at Eleven”, “Wonderful Character”, “Newton Street, Building 1”, “Day of Sun and Rain”, “Olga Sergeevna” appear.
An interesting plot, subtle psychological drama, an unexpected denouement - all this characterizes Radzinsky as an experienced and talented master. In addition to cinema, the author continues to work with leading theater groups in the capital.
Radzinsky: “It was my fault that my son was imprisoned and then thrown out of the country”
Edward Radzinsky's first wife was actress Alla Geraskina, daughter of the famous children's writer Liya Geraskina. From this marriage a son, Oleg, was born. Now he lives in the USA. Radzinsky at one time did everything to save him from prison.
Writer and playwright Edward Radzinsky became famous at the age of 25. His play “104 pages about love” was approved by the Minister of Culture Furtseva herself after the scandal. And it was later staged in 120 theaters across the country. The film “Once More About Love” was also produced, where the role of the main character was played by Tatyana Doronina, his wife.
They lived in an official marriage with the People's Artist for seven years. And this is how Edward Radzinsky spoke about their relationship in the program “The Fate of a Man.”
“This is a great actress. This is incredibly human luck. We had already separated, but I wrote for her, she acted in my plays. I have a dangerous character, so we separated. But few people understood her; she has the character of a creative person. She devoted herself entirely to art, and did not understand that there are ordinary people who cannot do this,” the writer explained the reason for the separation.
I remember actress Natalya Gundareva said this about their marriage: “Tatyana Vasilievna hurt him, he hit him very hard, and then began to convert the blow.”
As the playwright admits, his son Oleg from his first marriage to Alla Geraskina really missed his father. But when Oleg was imprisoned, it was Radzinsky who did everything to help him. The son received 5 years in a maximum security colony with the wording “participant of the dissident movement.”
“And they imprisoned him because of me, but he had no idea about it, ” Radzinsky admits today. - After all, we live in a country where there are hawks and doves... At that moment there was supposed to be a trip to America, I was supposed to go with Oleg Efremov. But within two days they imprisoned Oleg, naturally I didn’t go, Efremov also refused. The 19-year-old had no idea why he was being arrested. They attributed anti-Soviet agitation to him. Oleg had to serve five years, but I involved everyone I could. As a result, he received a year in prison, which had already passed because he was in a pre-trial detention center. Then there was exile to Siberia...”
According to Radzinsky, he wrote letters to the government asking him to expel his son from the country, and since perestroika he has lived in the USA, where he also became a writer. “He was simply thrown out of the country,” says the playwright. But since then he has resumed a warm relationship with his own son. In one of his books, Oleg Radzinsky described the whole terrible and ridiculous story.
Historical works
At the end of the 80s, a new historical program began to air on Central Television, the author and presenter of which was Edward Stanislavovich. “Riddles of History” immediately gained great popularity among viewers. In addition to Russia, the historical almanac was also broadcast on Western channels.
Of particular interest were programs that talked about Russian tsars, including Peter the Great and Ivan the Terrible, as well as about Soviet rulers - Stalin and Lenin. The program about Rasputin, which described the unpleasant moments in the life of the Tsar’s favorite, caused a lot of controversy. The ambiguous assessment of historical events that the writer gave in his programs aroused either sharp rejection or great interest among critics, but no one remained indifferent after watching the rating programs. For his work on television, Radzinsky received the Tefi Award four times.
Edward Radzinsky created his programs based on his own historical works. The writer never forgot his main specialty; new historical books by Radzinsky were published at regular intervals. In them, he talked about the lives of not only great political figures in Russia, but also about other historical figures: Chateaubriand, Mozart, Socrates, Nero.
His works have been translated into many languages of the world. The books were published in the USA, France, Germany, Great Britain, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Sweden, Denmark and other countries.
Personal life
In search of happiness in his personal life, the famous playwright was married three times, and only the third marriage turned out to be the most durable and stable. Radzinsky's first wife was the young artist Alla Geraskina, the daughter of the famous children's writer Liya Geraskina. Alla not only played on stage, but also wrote. She became one of the writers of “Zucchini “13 Chairs” and headed the literary department of the Moscow Theater of Miniatures. Later, while emigrating to the USA, Alla began writing memoirs about Soviet actors, as well as about her life in the USSR and America.
Edward Radzinsky and his son Oleg
Soon after the wedding, a son was born into the Radzinsky family, who was named Oleg. He followed in his parents' footsteps and graduated from the Faculty of Philology of Moscow State University. In his youth, Oleg became interested in forbidden literature, for which the authorities sent him to a Siberian camp for repeat offenders. Six years later, with the beginning of Perestroika, Oleg was released from captivity, and he immediately left for the United States, where he soon received citizenship. There, Radzinsky’s son, after graduating from a financial university, worked for several years as a manager of a bank, and after some time, having accumulated the necessary amount, he moved to the coast of France, where he began literary work.
The wife of Edward Radzinsky in her youth was the star of the film “Look for a Woman” (right)
For the second time, Edward Radzinsky married the famous Soviet actress Tatyana Doronina. Their union lasted only six years, after which the couple separated, but remained friends.
The writer’s third wife was former film actress Elena (Ukrashchenok) Denisova, who played the role of a secretary in Alla Surikova’s famous detective story “Look for a Woman.” She is 24 years younger than Edward Stanislavovich, but this does not prevent them from living in harmony. Family photos show how tenderly Edward and Elena treat each other. For Elena Denisova, this is already the second marriage; from the first she has a son, Timofey. She has not acted in films for a long time, but is involved in charity work.
Personal life of Edward Radzinsky
Radzinsky does not talk about anything personal and never tires of repeating that this area of his life is always behind the curtain.
And yet it is known that he married three times until he found his only soul mate. His first chosen one was Alla Geraskina, actress, screenwriter of the popular TV show “Zucchini “13 Chairs”, daughter of children's writer Liya Borisovna Geraskina. They met at the Actors' Holiday House in Alupka, when Edward had just graduated from school. And at 22 he became a father. The baby was named Oleg.
Edward Radzinsky and Alla Geraskina
The son graduated from a special school, entered the philological department of Moscow State University, but at the age of 19, due to his membership in the pacifist dissident organization “Trust Group”, he was arrested and convicted under Article 70 of the Criminal Code of the RSFSR for anti-Soviet activities. Although, according to his father, in reality he suffered because of him. Just then Radzinsky’s trip to the USA was supposed to take place, but when his son was imprisoned, he, of course, did not go anywhere.
Oleg Radzinsky was convicted of anti-Soviet views
It was not possible to help avoid punishment. Oleg was released only in perestroika 1987 and was forced to leave the country. A year later, his mother also emigrated to the United States and became interested in writing memoirs. And the son graduated from Columbia University, became an investment banker, worked as an analyst, broker, and trader in the financial district of New York on Wall Street.
In the 1990s, Oleg Radzinsky worked for some time in Moscow, at the Austrian investment bank Creditanstalt, leaving at the end of the contract back to America. In the 2000s, he returned to Russia again and headed the Board of Directors of Rambler Media Group. After completing his task in 2006 - to take the company to the stock exchange and make it public - he first went to France, then to the UK, where he took up literary creativity.
Edward's second wife was actress Tatyana Doronina. They met in 1964 at the Leningrad Bolshoi Drama Theater - Tatyana played the main role in a play based on his play. The beauty and people's favorite, married to Anatoly Yufit, a professor at the Leningrad Institute of Theater, Music and Cinematography, was captured by the unique charm of the writer. For his sake, she left her husband and the Bolshoi Drama Theater, where she was a leading actress. They got married in 1966, but their union broke up in 1971. Both are silent about the reasons for the breakup.
Tatyana Doronina in her youth
The third wife of the playwright and TV presenter was actress Elena Denisova (nee Ukrashchenok). She raised her son Timofey (born in 1983) from her first marriage to Igor Denisov, a classmate at GITIS. By the time of the meeting with Edward Stanislavovich, which happened during a vacation in Koktebel, the girl was already free.
Edward Radzinsky with his wife
Despite the large age difference (Lena is 24 years younger than her husband), harmony reigns in their home. In 1986, a 26-year-old girl believed in God, left her acting career and became involved in charity work. She visits those sentenced to life imprisonment, organizes dinners for the homeless and poor, writes and reads her poems on biblical topics on the radio.
Edward Radzinsky now
In 2021, Edward Radzinsky celebrated his 80th birthday. Vladimir Putin, Vladimir Medinsky, as well as colleagues in the theater and writing workshop congratulated him on his anniversary. But advanced age does not become an obstacle for a historian in his work. Edward Radzinsky creates a series of research films called “The Gods Thirst”; he appears in public and entertainment programs, including the program “Evening Urgant”.
At the beginning of 2021, Vladimir Pozner’s program was aired on Channel One, in which the famous hero of the day becomes an invited guest. In addition, a new documentary film by Radzinsky, “The Kingdom of Women,” was presented, which tells about the reign of Tsarina Elizabeth Petrovna and her predecessors.
Third wife of Edward Radzinsky
For the third time, Edward Stanislavovich married actress Elena Ukrashchenok (Denisova), who is twenty-four years younger than her husband. This actress is known to many for her role in Alla Surikova’s film “Look for a Woman,” in which she played the role of a secretary named Virginia.
In the photo - Elena Ukraschenok and Edward Radzinsky
Then she was a twenty-three-year-old graduate of GITIS, and four years after this role, Ukrashchenok left the profession. Elena is from Sverdlovsk, and her childhood was spent in Alma-Ata. When the girl was in fourth grade, her parents moved to Moscow, and since then her biography has been connected with the Russian capital.
While working on the film “Look for a Woman,” the actress was married to her classmate Igor Denisov and found out that she was pregnant during filming. An accident during a play in which Elena played an imp changed her entire future life - she broke her ankle and spent a lot of time in a hospital bed. During that period, Denisova met the famous actor Said Bagov, who introduced her to faith in God. This belief was the reason that the actress left the profession and devoted her life to guiding alcoholics and drug addicts on the true path.
In the photo - Radzinsky with his third wife
In addition, Elena writes poetry on religious topics, and her husband, Edward Radzinsky, helps her with this. Elena’s help helped many people suffering from alcoholism to take the right path and come to God.
She collaborates with the city's Alcoholics Anonymous program and attends group classes that meet every Sunday at the Church of Cosmas and Domian on Stoleshnikov Lane in Moscow.
Elena met Radzinsky when she was already a deeply religious person, and the writer treated her faith with deep respect. The wife of Edward Radzinsky is grateful to her husband for the fact that he does not limit her freedom and never tried to break it.
She appreciates in her husband a sense of compassion, tenderness, great natural humor, generosity and talent. Elena and Edward Stanislavovich are endlessly happy with each other, and their family is a harmonious union of two talented people.
