Arkady Raikin | |
|---|---|
 Raikin on a 2001 stamp of Russia | |
| Born | Arkady Isaakovich Raikin 24 October [O.S. 11 October] 1911[1] |
| Died | 17 December 1987(1987-12-17) (aged 76)[1] |
| Resting place | Novodevichy Cemetery, Moscow |
| Spouse | Ruth Ioffe |
| Children | 2, includingKonstantin Raikin |
| Comedy career | |
| Years active | 1935–1987 |
| Medium | Stand-up,theater,radio,television,film |
| Genres | Observational comedy,improvisational comedy,satire,musical comedy |
| Signature | |
 | |
Arkady Isaakovich Raikin (Russian:Арка́дий Исаа́кович Ра́йкин; 24 October [O.S. 11 October] 1911 – 17 December 1987)[2] was a Sovietstand-up comedian, stage and film actor, theater director, screenwriter and satirist. He led the school of Soviet and Russian humorists for about half a century.[3] He is the father ofKonstantin Raikin.[4]
Raikin was born into aJewish family inRiga, in theGovernorate of Livonia of theRussian Empire (present-dayLatvia).[5] He graduated from the Leningrad Theatrical Technicum in 1935 and worked in both state theatres and variety shows. In 1939, he founded his own theatre inLeningrad,[1] where he usedsketches andimpersonations to ridicule the inefficiency of communistbureaucracy and the Soviet way of life. After graduating in 1935, he joined the troupe of theWorkers' Youth Theatre. He made his debut in cinema and won the 1st contest of entertainers in the wholeSoviet Union.[6] He also appeared in several comedies during and after theGreat Patriotic War.[7]
Raikin created an array of popular satirical characters, some of which were featured in the TV serialPeople and Mannequins. He launched careers of several other prominent stand-up comedians, such asMikhail Zhvanetsky andRoman Kartsev.[8]
Raikin is often compared withCharlie Chaplin.[by whom?] His fame in the Soviet Union, and throughout Central and Eastern Europe, was such that he was invited to participate in the opening night ofBBC Two television in 1964, although the broadcast had to be postponed for one day due to a power failure. His trip to London for the BBC broadcast—during which he was reunited with his British cousin, distinguished pianist Bruno Raikin—marked the first of only two times when the Soviet government permitted him to perform in the West. Arkady Raikin also maintained good working relationships withMarcel Marceau and some other foreign actors.
Three years before his death, Raikin finally moved toMoscow, where he opened theSatyricon Theatre, now run by his sonKonstantin Raikin, also an acclaimed actor. His wife, Roma, played a major role in guiding his career, and his daughter, Ekaterina, also had a successful career as a Moscow actress. For a month during the summer of 1987, Raikin hosted his American cousin, Washington D.C. attorney Steven Raikin, as a guest in his Moscow flat.[9] In September 1987 the Soviet Ministry of Culture finally permitted Raikin to visit the United States, where, with his son and daughter, he gave emotional farewell performances in several cities to adoring audiences of Russian émigrés.[9]
A minor planet4518 Raikin discovered on 1 April 1976, is named after him.
