Joe Adamov
Encyclopedia
Joe Adamov, Name in Russian
: Иосиф Адамов (Yosif Adamov) (7 January 1920 - December 2005) was a journalist and presenter on Radio Moscow
and its successor the Voice of Russia
for over sixty years. Although of Armenia
n descent, he was born in Batumi
, Georgia
. During most of his career he was a resident of Moscow
, Russia
. His death was reported on Voice of Russia's English-language news bulletins on December 12, 2005, although neither these bulletins nor the obituary on their website gave an exact date of death.
An expert English-speaker
who spoke with a neutral American accent, Joe Adamov joined Radio Moscow as an announcer in 1942. Among English-speaking listeners he is best known as the presenter of the programme Moscow Mailbag which answered questions from listeners on all aspects of the USSR and Russia. During the Cold War
the programme, like all other Radio Moscow output, was carefully studied by Western governments, a fact of which the Soviet authorities were well aware. Joe Adamov presented Moscow Mailbag from 1957 until shortly before his death when ill-health forced him to relinquish the role permanently. The programme remains on the air with different presenters.
In his capacities as a Radio Moscow journalist and presenter of Moscow Mailbag, Adamov conducted interviews with many western politicians and journalists, including Dwight D. Eisenhower
, Eleanor Roosevelt
, Walter Cronkite
and Larry King
.
Joe Adamov was also the official Soviet translator at the trial of Gary Powers
, shot down in a U-2
spy plane in 1960.
The signature poem of Moscow Mailbag was:
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
: Иосиф Адамов (Yosif Adamov) (7 January 1920 - December 2005) was a journalist and presenter on Radio Moscow
Voice of Russia
Voice of Russia is the Russian government's international radio broadcasting service owned by the All-Russia State Television and Radio Company. Its predecessor Radio Moscow was the official international broadcasting station of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.-Early years:Radio Moscow...
and its successor the Voice of Russia
Voice of Russia
Voice of Russia is the Russian government's international radio broadcasting service owned by the All-Russia State Television and Radio Company. Its predecessor Radio Moscow was the official international broadcasting station of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.-Early years:Radio Moscow...
for over sixty years. Although of Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
n descent, he was born in Batumi
Batumi
Batumi is a seaside city on the Black Sea coast and capital of Adjara, an autonomous republic in southwest Georgia. Sometimes considered Georgia's second capital, with a population of 121,806 , Batumi serves as an important port and a commercial center. It is situated in a subtropical zone, rich in...
, Georgia
Democratic Republic of Georgia
The Democratic Republic of Georgia , 1918–1921, was the first modern establishment of a Republic of Georgia.The DRG was created after the collapse of the Russian Empire that began with the Russian Revolution of 1917...
. During most of his career he was a resident of Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
. His death was reported on Voice of Russia's English-language news bulletins on December 12, 2005, although neither these bulletins nor the obituary on their website gave an exact date of death.
An expert English-speaker
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
who spoke with a neutral American accent, Joe Adamov joined Radio Moscow as an announcer in 1942. Among English-speaking listeners he is best known as the presenter of the programme Moscow Mailbag which answered questions from listeners on all aspects of the USSR and Russia. During the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
the programme, like all other Radio Moscow output, was carefully studied by Western governments, a fact of which the Soviet authorities were well aware. Joe Adamov presented Moscow Mailbag from 1957 until shortly before his death when ill-health forced him to relinquish the role permanently. The programme remains on the air with different presenters.
In his capacities as a Radio Moscow journalist and presenter of Moscow Mailbag, Adamov conducted interviews with many western politicians and journalists, including Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States, from 1953 until 1961. He was a five-star general in the United States Army...
, Eleanor Roosevelt
Eleanor Roosevelt
Anna Eleanor Roosevelt was the First Lady of the United States from 1933 to 1945. She supported the New Deal policies of her husband, distant cousin Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and became an advocate for civil rights. After her husband's death in 1945, Roosevelt continued to be an international...
, Walter Cronkite
Walter Cronkite
Walter Leland Cronkite, Jr. was an American broadcast journalist, best known as anchorman for the CBS Evening News for 19 years . During the heyday of CBS News in the 1960s and 1970s, he was often cited as "the most trusted man in America" after being so named in an opinion poll...
and Larry King
Larry King
Lawrence Harvey "Larry" King is an American television and radio host whose work has been recognized with awards including two Peabodys and ten Cable ACE Awards....
.
Joe Adamov was also the official Soviet translator at the trial of Gary Powers
Gary Powers
Francis Gary Powers was an American pilot whose Central Intelligence Agency U-2 spy plane was shot down while flying a reconnaissance mission over Soviet Union airspace, causing the 1960 U-2 incident.- Early life :...
, shot down in a U-2
Lockheed U-2
The Lockheed U-2, nicknamed "Dragon Lady", is a single-engine, very high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft operated by the United States Air Force and previously flown by the Central Intelligence Agency . It provides day and night, very high-altitude , all-weather intelligence gathering...
spy plane in 1960.
The signature poem of Moscow Mailbag was:
- You can't do better
- than send us that letter
- and in it tell Joe
- what you think of his show