Vasily Livanov
Encyclopedia
Vasily Borisovich Livanov MBE
is a Soviet
and Russia
n film actor
, and screenwriter
.
was a prominent actor of the Moscow Art Theatre
. Vasily was brought up in the artistic milieu, as many Soviet/Russian actors (such as Olga Knipper
and Alla Tarasova
) worked with his father and frequented the Livanov house.
Livanov graduated from the Vakhtangov Theatre school and started his film career in 1959. His breakthrough role came in the 1963 adaptation of Vasily Aksyonov
's Colleagues, in which he co-starred with Vasily Lanovoy
and Oleg Anofriev.
Livanov's rather erratic bohemian lifestyle derailed his film career. He made very few appearances in the movies produced in the late 1960s and 1970s, using his newly acquired hoarse voice to become the voice behind multiple popular Soviet cartoon characters – Karlsson-on-the-Roof
, Gena the Crocodile, Udav (the snake) from 38 Parrots
. His other contribution to the Soyuzmultfilm
cartoon industry was co-writing the screenplay for the animated film Town Musicians of Bremen, a modernised adaptation of the homonymous folktale. He also directed a few animated films, e.g. The Blue Bird
.
In the late 1970s and in the 1980s, Livanov returned to film stardom in what became the greatest success of his acting career: the role of Sherlock Holmes
in The Hound of the Baskervilles
and other Holmes TV series directed by Igor Maslennikov
.
Sherlock Holmes
short stories and novels that were featured in Livanov's movies included:
Those movies were filmed between 1979 and 1986, with the latter four stories forming the plot of a standalone big-screen feature entitled The 20th Century Begins. Vasily Livanov played Sherlock Holmes and Vitaly Solomin
played Doctor Watson
.
The daughter of Arthur Conan Doyle once commented that her father would approve Livanov as Holmes.
On 20 February 2006 Livanov became an Honorary MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire) "for service to the theatre and performing arts".
On April 27, 2007 a sculpture featuring Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson as portrayed by Vasily Livanov and Vitaly Solomin was opened on the Smolenskaya embankment alongside the Embassy of the United Kingdom in Moscow
(sculptor Andrey Orlov).
and Rina Zelyonaya, who played Doctor Watson and Mrs. Hudson. As he writes in his memoir,
Vasily Livanov is also known for his unique voice, with a rich timbre and a resonant tone.
His wife is Elena Artemyevna Livanova, an animation artist; they have three children together: Anastasya, who is a sculptor and a member of the Moscow union of artists, Boris, and Nikolay.
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
is a Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
and 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...
n film actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
, and screenwriter
Screenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...
.
Biography
His father Boris LivanovBoris Livanov
Boris Nikolayevich Livanov was a Soviet and Russian film actor, and screenwriter. He was a member of the Moscow Art Theatre from 1924 through 1972.* He was awarded the Stalin Prize five times...
was a prominent actor of the Moscow Art Theatre
Moscow Art Theatre
The Moscow Art Theatre is a theatre company in Moscow that the seminal Russian theatre practitioner Constantin Stanislavski, together with the playwright and director Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko, founded in 1898. It was conceived as a venue for naturalistic theatre, in contrast to the melodramas...
. Vasily was brought up in the artistic milieu, as many Soviet/Russian actors (such as Olga Knipper
Olga Knipper
Olga Leonardovna Knipper-Chekhova was a Russian stage actress. She was married to Anton Chekhov.Knipper was among the 39 original members of the Moscow Art Theatre when it was formed by Constantin Stanislavski in 1898...
and Alla Tarasova
Alla Tarasova
Alla Konstantinovna Tarasova was a leading actress of Constantin Stanislavski's Moscow Art Theatre from the late 1920s onward.A title role in Anna Karenina was her most resounding success. She appeared to mixed reviews as Katerina in the screen version of Ostrovsky's The Storm and as Catherine I...
) worked with his father and frequented the Livanov house.
Livanov graduated from the Vakhtangov Theatre school and started his film career in 1959. His breakthrough role came in the 1963 adaptation of Vasily Aksyonov
Vasily Aksyonov
Vasily Pavlovich Aksyonov was a Soviet and Russian novelist. He is known in the West as the author of The Burn and Generations of Winter , a family saga depicting three generations of the Gradov family between 1925 and 1953.-Early life:Vasily Aksyonov was...
's Colleagues, in which he co-starred with Vasily Lanovoy
Vasily Lanovoy
Vasily Semyonovich Lanovoy is a Soviet and Russian actor who works in the Vakhtangov Theatre, Moscow. He is also known as the President of Artek Festival of Films for Children...
and Oleg Anofriev.
Livanov's rather erratic bohemian lifestyle derailed his film career. He made very few appearances in the movies produced in the late 1960s and 1970s, using his newly acquired hoarse voice to become the voice behind multiple popular Soviet cartoon characters – Karlsson-on-the-Roof
Karlsson-on-the-Roof
Karlsson-on-the-Roof is a fictional character in a series of children's books created by Swedish author Astrid Lindgren. The cartoon adaptation became popularised in the USSR with its release in the 1970s...
, Gena the Crocodile, Udav (the snake) from 38 Parrots
38 Parrots
38 Parrots is a series of ten children's cartoons produced in the Soviet Union between 1976 and 1991 by Soyuzmultfilm. Featuring animated puppets, the series portrays the amusing adventures of four friends: the talkative marmoset Martyshka, the shy young elephant Slonionok, the eccentric parrot...
. His other contribution to the Soyuzmultfilm
Soyuzmultfilm
Soyuzmultfilm is a Russian animation studio based in Moscow. Over the years it has gained international attention and respect, garnering numerous awards both at home and abroad. Noted for a great variety of style, it is regarded as the most influential animation studio of the former Soviet Union...
cartoon industry was co-writing the screenplay for the animated film Town Musicians of Bremen, a modernised adaptation of the homonymous folktale. He also directed a few animated films, e.g. The Blue Bird
The Blue Bird (1970 film)
The Blue Bird is a 1970 Soviet animated feature film based upon the play by Maurice Maeterlinck. It was directed by Vasily Livanov and made at the Soyuzmultfilm studio. It uses a mix of traditional and cutout animation.-Crew:-External links:*...
.
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...
in The Hound of the Baskervilles
The Hound of the Baskervilles (1981 film)
The Hound of the Baskervilles is a 1981 Soviet film adaptation of Arthur Conan Doyle's novel The Hound of the Baskervilles. It was the third installment in the TV series about adventures of Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson...
and other Holmes TV series directed by Igor Maslennikov
Igor Maslennikov
Igor Fyodorovich Maslennikov is a Russian film director.He was born in Gorky. In 1954 Maslennikov completed his education in the department of journalism of the Leningrad University and worked as an editor, script writer, and cameraman on Leningrad television...
.
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...
short stories and novels that were featured in Livanov's movies included:
-
- A Study in ScarletA Study in ScarletA Study in Scarlet is a detective mystery novel written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, introducing his new character of Sherlock Holmes, who later became one of the most famous literary detective characters. He wrote the story in 1886, and it was published the next year...
, - The Adventure of the Speckled BandThe Adventure of the Speckled Band"The Adventure of the Speckled Band" is one of the 56 short Sherlock Holmes stories written by Scottish author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. It is the eighth of the twelve stories collected in The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. It is one of four Sherlock Holmes stories that can be classified as a locked...
, - The Hound of the BaskervillesThe Hound of the BaskervillesThe Hound of the Baskervilles is the third of four crime novels by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle featuring the detective Sherlock Holmes. Originally serialised in The Strand Magazine from August 1901 to April 1902, it is set largely on Dartmoor in Devon in England's West Country and tells the story of an...
, - The Adventure of Charles Augustus MilvertonThe Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton"The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton" is one of the 56 Sherlock Holmes short stories written by British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. It is one of 13 stories in the cycle collected as The Return of Sherlock Holmes and was published in 1904....
, - The Adventure of the Final ProblemThe Adventure of the Final Problem"The Final Problem" is a short story by Arthur Conan Doyle featuring his detective character Sherlock Holmes. It was first published in Strand Magazine in December 1893. It appears in book form as part of the collection The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes...
, - The Adventure of the Empty HouseThe Adventure of the Empty House"The Adventure of the Empty House", one of the 56 Sherlock Holmes short stories written by British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, is one of 13 stories in the cycle collected as The Return of Sherlock Holmes. Public pressure forced Conan Doyle to bring the sleuth back to life, and explain his...
, - A Scandal in BohemiaA Scandal in Bohemia"A Scandal in Bohemia" was the first of Arthur Conan Doyle's 56 Sherlock Holmes short stories to be published in The Strand Magazine and the first Sherlock Holmes story illustrated by Sidney Paget....
, - The Sign of Four,
- The Adventure of the Engineer's ThumbThe Adventure of the Engineer's Thumb"The Adventure of the Engineer's Thumb", one of the 56 short Sherlock Holmes stories written by British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, is the ninth of the twelve stories collected in The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. The story was first published in Strand Magazine in March 1892.-Synopsis:In his...
, - The Adventure of the Second StainThe Adventure of the Second Stain"The Adventure of the Second Stain", one of the 56 Sherlock Holmes short stories written by British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, is one of 13 stories in the cycle collected as The Return of Sherlock Holmes....
, - The Adventure of the Bruce-Partington PlansThe Adventure of the Bruce-Partington Plans"The Adventure of the Bruce-Partington Plans" is one of the 56 Sherlock Holmes short stories written by British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. It is one of eight stories in the cycle collected as His Last Bow...
, and - His Last BowHis Last BowHis Last Bow is a collection of seven Sherlock Holmes stories by Arthur Conan Doyle, as well as the title of the last story in that collection...
- A Study in Scarlet
Those movies were filmed between 1979 and 1986, with the latter four stories forming the plot of a standalone big-screen feature entitled The 20th Century Begins. Vasily Livanov played Sherlock Holmes and Vitaly Solomin
Vitaly Solomin
Vitaly Mefodievich Solomin was a Soviet and Russian actor, director and screenwriter. He was the younger brother of Yury Solomin....
played Doctor Watson
John Watson (Sherlock Holmes)
John H. Watson, M.D. , known as Dr. Watson, is a character in the Sherlock Holmes stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Watson is Sherlock Holmes's friend, assistant and sometime flatmate, and is the first person narrator of all but four stories in the Sherlock Holmes canon.-Name:Doctor Watson's first...
.
The daughter of Arthur Conan Doyle once commented that her father would approve Livanov as Holmes.
On 20 February 2006 Livanov became an Honorary MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire) "for service to the theatre and performing arts".
On April 27, 2007 a sculpture featuring Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson as portrayed by Vasily Livanov and Vitaly Solomin was opened on the Smolenskaya embankment alongside the Embassy of the United Kingdom in Moscow
Embassy of the United Kingdom in Moscow
The British Embassy in Moscow is the chief diplomatic mission of the United Kingdom in the Russian Federation. It is located at 10 Smolenskaya Naberezhnaya in the Arbat District of Moscow...
(sculptor Andrey Orlov).
Personal life
Vasily Livanov was a close friend of Vitaly SolominVitaly Solomin
Vitaly Mefodievich Solomin was a Soviet and Russian actor, director and screenwriter. He was the younger brother of Yury Solomin....
and Rina Zelyonaya, who played Doctor Watson and Mrs. Hudson. As he writes in his memoir,
It happens so that when someone passes away, we customarily treat his actions and related events as the thing of the past. But everything about my beloved closest friend and partner Vitaly Solomin has become a part of my way of life, my conscience, so for me it will become the thing of the past only when I pass away too.
Vasily Livanov is also known for his unique voice, with a rich timbre and a resonant tone.
His wife is Elena Artemyevna Livanova, an animation artist; they have three children together: Anastasya, who is a sculptor and a member of the Moscow union of artists, Boris, and Nikolay.