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Biography

Born on January 25, 1938, in Moscow (RSFSR, USSR), Vladimir Vysotsky was an outstanding Soviet poet, bard, theatre and film actor, and author of several prose works.

His father, Semyon Vladimirovich (1916–1997), was a military communications officer, a veteran of World War II, and a colonel. His mother, Nina Maksimovna (1912–2003). In 1955, he enrolled in the mechanical faculty of the Moscow Engineering and Construction Institute, which he left after the first semester.

In 1960, he graduated from the studio school of the Moscow Art Theatre, in the class of P. V. Massalsky. From 1960 to 1962, he worked as an actor at the Pushkin Theatre in Moscow. From 1962 to 1964, he performed at the Moscow Theatre of Miniatures. From 1964 to 1980, he was an actor at the Taganka Theatre.

He made his film debut in 1959 with a minor role as a student in Vasily Ordynsky’s film Peers. For a long time, Vysotsky’s talent as a film actor remained underutilized: he was mostly given small supporting roles. However, his powerful temperament and exceptional talent always found expression even in secondary parts. His leading roles were few but memorable: Brusentsov (Two Comrades Were Serving), Ryaboy (The Master of the Taiga), von Koren (A Bad Good Man), the Moor (How Tsar Peter Married Off His Moor), Zheglov (The Meeting Place Cannot Be Changed), Don Juan (Little Tragedies). All were performed brilliantly and demonstrated his remarkable acting range.

At the same time, he began writing poems and songs about people’s everyday lives and their problems, without any allegiance to Soviet ideology. He recorded his songs, and the cassettes were soon being copied and passed from hand to hand. These songs were banned by the authorities, and the singer was only able to perform at underground concerts.

He was married three times: first to actress Iza Zhukova, then to actress Lyudmila Abramova, with whom he had two sons—Arkady (born 1962), a screenwriter, and Nikita (born 1964), an actor. His third wife was the French actress of Russian origin Marina Vlady.

Together with actors from the Taganka Theatre, he toured abroad (Bulgaria, Hungary, Yugoslavia, France, Germany, Poland). He also traveled to France to visit his wife and later visited the United States several times (including concerts in 1979), as well as Canada, Mexico, England, and Italy.

Vysotsky gave many concerts in the USSR and abroad.

On January 22, 1980, he recorded a television program (Kinopanorama), partially broadcast in 1981 and fully released only in 1987.

His final months were marked by intense activity—concerts, theatre performances (Hamlet at Taganka), and new projects. On July 20, 1980, he wrote his last poem.

Vladimir Vysotsky died on July 25, 1980, aged 42, in his Moscow apartment. He was buried at Vagankovo Cemetery.

His death occurred during the Moscow Olympic Games. Soviet authorities attempted to downplay the event, but a huge crowd—around 40,000 people—came to pay their respects.

After his death, numerous documentaries were devoted to him, including Four Meetings with Vladimir Vysotsky directed by Eldar Ryazanov. In 2011, the feature film Vysotsky. Thank You for Being Alive was released.

In Moscow, a museum is dedicated to him, and his legacy continues to inspire publications, performances, and scholarly studies.

 

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Commentaries

- Владимир Высоцкий в кино 2025, ru.Wikipedia

- От Пушкина до Высоцкого: Великие русские поэты в исполнении наших звезд [De Pouchkine à Vysotski : Grands poètes russes interprétés par nos stars] Инесе ПОНЕЛИС, 2024, kinoreporter.ru

- Топ поющих актёров СССР и России (часть 1: актёры) [Les meilleurs acteurs chanteurs de l'URSS et de la Russie (partie 1 : acteurs)] ЛитМузБес, 2022, dzen.ru

- Писатели и поэты в кино [Ecrivains et poètes dans le cinéma] 2021, Библиотека им. С. Есенина

- Не только Глеб Жеглов. 13 лучших киноролей Владимира Высоцкого [Pas seulement Gleb Zheglov. 13 des meilleurs rôles de Vladimir Vysotsky au cinéma] , Anton DOLIN, 2018, meduza.io

- Неснятые фильмы: Кино Владимира Высоцкого [Films non tournés : Le cinéma de Vladimir Vyssotski] 2018, Kinopoisk

- Пять главных образов Владимира Высоцкого в кино и на сцене [Cinq images principales de Vladimir Vysotsky au cinéma et sur scène] 2018, rodina-history.ru

- Кинопесни Высоцкого [Chansons de films de Vyssotski] 2017, culture.ru

- Vladimir Vyssotski : l’homme russe, par excellence Vasily SHUMOV, 2013, RUSSIA BEYOND

 

 

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Photos, videos, texts

1979 - 38 rue Petrovka (Место встречи изменить нельзя) de Stanislav GOVOROUKHINE


1967 - Brèves rencontres (Короткие встречи) de Kira MOURATOVA


1966 - La Verticale (Вертикаль) de Boris DOUROV , Stanislav GOVOROUKHINE


1970-1980 Hamlet au Théâtre sur la Taganka