Childhood and family
Marina Viktorovna Orlova was born on March 25, 1986 in Pyatigorsk, in the family of a foreign language teacher Lyudmila Pavlovna and accordionist musician Viktor Konstantinovich. The parents of the future star were intelligent people, but not rich. However, Marina was not deprived of everything that makes childhood happy: serenity, fun and useful pastime.
Marina Orlova with her mother and sister
And when, as soon as Marina began to speak, she immediately began to sing, the parents realized that the baby had excellent hearing. The girl’s voice was clear, but low, different from the timbre of other children - you don’t often see this. She could perform any song she heard from memory.
Little Marina Orlova and her mother
Orlova began composing songs even before she learned to read music. The artist admits that she wrote her first composition, entitled “Lullaby,” at the age of three. And you could hear it: twenty years later, the song was performed in the television series “Native People”. Mairan Orlova sings “Lullaby” in “Good morning, kids!” The actress has a sister, Lena. She supported Marina in her creative endeavors, and the Orlov sisters spent many evenings at the piano. If Marina connected her life with acting, then Lena became a professional singer and DJ. Marina got into the music school without exams - she was accepted in the middle of the school year when they heard the little girl accompanying herself on the piano. Soon the whole of Pyatigorsk knew about the gifted schoolgirl Orlova: not a single talent competition or concert was held without her participation. One day, a 9-year-old girl even had a chance to make money: she performed at evening concerts and matinees, and with the money she had saved, she bought a music center.
Marina Orlova in childhood
Marina managed to graduate from music school earlier than her peers, but it was too early to relax. At the age of 11, she entered a vocal-jazz school, where she began to hone her skills with the city's leading teachers.
The actress today cannot imagine life without music
Soon the hobby of KVN was added to music lessons. Under the strict guidance of Semyon Slepakov, then still a student, young Orlova first tried herself as a comedy artist.
Despite Marina’s undeniable successes in creativity, her parents imagined a happy future for her in a “serious” profession and sent the girl to study as a seamstress-machine operator. Orlova's father and mother did not want their daughter to become a musician - and they had their own reasons. Being ordinary people, they believed that Marina should follow the path trodden by dozens of generations: husband, children, home. But the girl’s soul yearned for every minute extravaganza and courage. “In the life of parents, everything flows evenly. I understand that time has passed when I see grown flowers on the windowsills,” she said later.
Imagine the surprise of my classmates when, at the assembly line on September 1, they again saw Orlova, to whom they had already said a heartfelt goodbye three months ago! Of course, Marina had no intention of becoming a seamstress. She took fate into her own hands: she graduated from high school as an external student, earned a decent amount for those times working on a local radio, and set off to conquer Moscow.
Biography
Actress Marina Orlova was born on March 25, 1986 in the city of Pyatigorsk. The daughter of a talented musician, the girl learned to sing even before she began to speak. With her unexpectedly low voice for a small child, she easily repeated any melody she heard. The first song was also written by the baby early, at only three years old. TV viewers know this “Lullaby” from the popular TV series “Family People.”
The girl's musical talent became extremely strong. At the age of nine, the future actress Marina Orlova, while a student at a regular school in Pyatigorsk, conquered the director of the local music school with her strong, now adult voice. He accepted her as a student without entrance tests, only once having heard a song of her own composition. Soon after their memorable acquaintance, the young singer performed on behalf of her new school at a serious music competition - and won it!
Student years
The capital immediately surrendered under the pressure of the blond beauty. The girl was accepted into the Moscow Art Theater School without any hesitation, where Igor Zolotovitsky became her mentor. Theater university students lived modestly but cheerfully. Like many classmates, Marina dressed up as the Snow Maiden at children’s matinees and worked part-time as a presenter at holidays—there was no need to expect financial help from her parents. Marina Orlova: a success story Orlova had no chance of disappearing into the crowd of newcomer actors. An unusually impressive girl, who performed songs in a well-trained voice at student evenings, attracted the attention of the famous Vladimir Etush. It was he who lured the Moscow Art Theater student into his “Pike”. And the girl accepted his invitation, laying the foundation for her artistic destiny.
Marina Orlova at the beginning of her career
At the school named after B.V. Shchukin, the actress had the opportunity to study with such mastodons of the acting world as Vasily Lanovoy, Alexander Shirvindt and Nina Doroshina. Orlova did not doubt her choice for a second: “Pike” became a place where she was able to fully realize her talent and gain the necessary knowledge.
Marina Orlova in her youth and now
In 2006, the graduate joined the teaching ranks of her native institute, and at the same time began acting in the theater. Stanislavsky. However, she did not have a chance to stay on the theater stage for long. Soon Marina left the theater for film roles.
Actress Marina Orlova: It was not easy for me to play Yulia Nachalova
Marina Orlova, actress, director, singer, composer. Photo from the personal archive of the actress Marina Orlova - actress, director, singer, composer.
The viewer knows her from such films and TV series as “Okhlamon”, “Passenger”, “Family People”, “Margosha”, “Barvikha”, “Kremlin Cadets”, “Invisibles”, “The Last Secret of the Master”, “Sparrow”, “Golden”, “Undercover”, etc. From February 16 on Channel One, as part of the “Doc-talk” program, the feature-documentary drama “Morning Star” will be shown, where Marina Orlova played the singer Yulia Nachalova. — Marina, what interested you in this role?
— You can say that I went through a long creative path for Yulia Nachalova, from the age of 20 until the day of her death. I didn't know Yulia. She and I are not particularly similar, we refused complex plastic makeup, perfect similarity was not required. We just did the same hairstyles and makeup. The clothes were real, Yulina. We filmed in the apartment that Aldonin gave her, and Yulia’s parents allowed us to use her things and outfits in the frame. Filming in an apartment is very different from filming on a soundstage. Here the story becomes real, because everything in the apartment remains as it was under Yulia. As if nothing has changed, and she continues to live.
— How did your parents react to the idea of embodying the image of their daughter on the screen?
“I saw her mother, and it was very awkward for me to talk to her, because I understood how hard it was for her to look at me. When I stand with the same hairstyle, makeup, and Yulia’s dress. Do you understand? In order not to make her parents even more painful, I tried to concentrate more on working on camera.
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— What character traits of Yulina should have been reflected in the image?
— Openness, lightness, perception of the world as better than it really is, gullibility, admiration for one’s own profession and immersion in it so much that there were no pitfalls visible. Which, it seems to me, caused Yulia a lot of problems.
— Are Yulia’s husbands present in the film?
— Yes, all three, they are played by talented actors. But real husbands were not very interested in the idea of the film. I read how they spoke about this in various interviews, that no one asked their permission, that they did not see the script, etc.
— Probably, filming Julia’s illness and death was the most difficult?
— Quite a large part of the film is dedicated to this tragedy. It all started with a problem with my finger. Julia refused to amputate it. Then blood poisoning occurred. She had a whole bunch of illnesses, as far as I understood from the script, one did not allow the other to be cured.
— Which of the old-school actors did you act with in films or play in the theater? What did they impress you with, what did they teach you?
— During my student years, I did an internship at the Vakhtangov Theater. There I was lucky enough to be on the same stage with Vladimir Abramovich Etush and Vasily Semyonovich Lanov. Etush was already very old when he played “Uncle’s Dream”. It seemed to me that he didn’t really understand what he was doing, but it was precisely this behavior of Vladimir Abramovich that gave a feeling of real life on stage. He remembered his text perfectly, despite the years. I was amazed that at that age you can still play, be in the profession, be in demand. It was a brilliant performance by an outstanding artist!
— You were born into a large and low-income family. Do you know what poverty is? Have you tried it yourself?
— Yes, but back then all our cartoons were about how the poor are lucky. That for those who have little money, everything will turn out great in life. The girl will marry a prince or catch a goldfish. As it turned out, it was not in vain that I believed in fairy tales: I am marrying the coolest guy on Earth! Yes, as a child I had to wear my older sisters’ darned tights, but we always had optimism. I remember my sisters and I were only allowed to take one chocolate candy a day. There was no way to beg for the second one.
“Aren’t you afraid that there is now a huge gap between the poor and the rich in our country?” In Europe, where you often visit, there is no such gap, right?
— This problem has always been in our country, and we tried to solve it using different methods: socialism, communism, and revolutions. It's not working yet. But don’t think that it’s good where we are not. These are fairy tales. Europe has its own problems. It is a misconception that everyone lives there carefree. For example, in Italy there are huge taxes, at 50 percent. And even if the average salary is three thousand euros per month, subtract half the amount for tax from there; gas, water, and electricity cost a lot of money. Europeans turn off batteries when they leave home to save money! We don’t pay attention to this, because our utilities are very cheap compared to them...
- But our salaries are many times less!
- Costs are also lower. It is better to solve your problems yourself than to complain about the government. By my own example, I hope to motivate other people to achieve their goals and financial independence.
—Have you lived abroad for a long time?
- Yes, in America, in Italy. I still constantly travel between Italy, Russia and the USA.
— In America, you became a member of the Hollywood Actors Guild. How did you do it? What does this membership provide?
— There are actors’ unions there that make sure that the artist is not deceived, that they pay a decent salary and interest on rentals, they resolve various kinds of conflicts, etc. It is very difficult to join the Guild; you need to star in three films, or in one film in the leading role.
- A harsh scheme!
- Yes. I played the main role in one film, but I was not allowed to join the Guild. Maybe because the film was not of a high enough level. Then I starred in several more episodes of different films, but this also did not work. But when I played with Eric Roberts in the film about Frank Sinatra, they finally gave me a membership card. Then I paid 3 thousand dollars and joined the actors' union.
— How was it working with Eric Roberts? What kind of person is he, a partner?
- He plays so much! Eric, it seems to me, takes in quantity. He no longer even tries to remember the text. He comes and says: “Okay, guys. I'm not going to remember your text. Write it to me on posters. And I’ll tell you in which corners who should stand with them.” He asks the director and cameraman where the shot ends. And 5 specially trained people stand with posters in different places. And Eric says his entire text in one take.
— What other projects did you have in America?
— The thriller “Deadly Game” was recently released. There I have a negative role. It’s funny that in Russia I was dubbed from English into Russian by some other actress.
— As a director, you shot a short film in Italy “Hello! I'm Woody Allen's producer." Have you met the famous director?
- There's a whole story here. I'm a real Woody Allen fan. I was simply desperate to audition for his films, and I did this regularly, so I made this short film, which unexpectedly led me to Woody. His film opened the Cannes Film Festival, and my film was in the short films program. The festival website had both names, and Woody Allen's people saw it and contacted me. They demanded that I not show my film and threatened to sue me. I invited them to watch the film themselves. They looked and were convinced that there was no secret or dirty information in the picture. They laughed, calmed down, and on this wave they came to the premiere of my film with Woody Allen, and Woody liked the short film. We are still friends with his family. They invite me to Woody Allen holidays and concerts.
-What kind of person is Woody Allen? Is he as talkative and irrepressible as we know him from the films?
“I’ve seen him many times since Cannes, and he’s just an overly modest and quiet person.” He is completely different from the character in his films. Woody doesn’t gush with stories about this and that, like in the movies; he doesn’t talk much even among friends and acquaintances. He communicates mainly with his wife. It seems that creativity is the only way for him to throw out his thoughts and emotions.
— You are a Goodwill Ambassador. What responsibilities does this impose on you?
— I was offered to become a Goodwill Ambassador in order to build acting and music schools in Kenya. Because in Kenya there were problems with this. And I, as an international actress and singer, was invited to the project. We went to Kenya and talked to people at embassies. And schools eventually opened. They did a great job, I think!
— You have been writing songs since you were three years old. How many do you have?
— About 80. Now I also write, but less, because I am in a happy period in my life, and in this state I somehow don’t write much.
— Is it true that your lullaby, which you wrote when you were three years old, was included in the soundtrack of the series “Family People”?
- Yes. In films and TV series, you can’t just take and perform this or that song. You need to have rights to everything. And this is a long and dreary story. When we needed a lullaby on set, I suddenly remembered my song and offered it to the director. She sang it and they all liked it. And I began to sing it from series to series when I was rocking the baby to sleep. Then people even asked me where they could get the words of this song.
— Marina, does beauty help in the acting profession, or does it sometimes get in the way?
— As for the frame, it helps. Although I like ugly faces in movies, they are more memorable. Take Almodóvar Rossi’s favorite actress Palma, she’s so big-nosed, he stars her in every film. There seems to be no less attractive person in the world, but she has such charisma! Although, of course, more beautiful people are cast in leading roles.
Why does beauty get in the way? The fact that everyone gets the impression that you have something with any person with whom you just had coffee. Or he didn’t drink coffee, but stood in line for water. It happens that you want to meet with some producer and offer him a certain project. And the producer suddenly has the idea that if he now goes with me to a restaurant and his friends see him, they will immediately think that we have something. Paradox!
— What three things would you never forgive a man?
- Lack of three-day stubble, interest in other men and love for television series with my participation!
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Movie
Although Marina Orlova was lucky enough to play in a movie for the first time while still a student, she managed to achieve her first success in this field after her final exams. The girl was happy with small roles, but the main role in the film “Okhlamon” (2007) was a real gift of fate. And the main role in the TV series “Family People” (2008) only strengthened Orlova’s belief that she had chosen the right path.
Marina Orlova in the series “Native People”
Thanks to “Family People,” fate brought Marina into contact with the legendary Stanislav Govorukhin, director of the films “Voroshilov Shooter” (1999) and “Bless the Woman” (2004). The director at that time was filming the historical melodrama “The Passenger” with Anna Gorshkova in the title role.
Stanislav Govorukhin and Marina Orlova
Young Marina inspired Govorukhin so much that he changed the script and wrote into it a new heroine, who was played by Marina. According to Orlova, Govorukhin was the first to see her as a socialite. Before that, she got the roles of hooligans, bandits and tomboys, albeit in very famous projects.
Subsequently, Orlova appeared in another film by Stanislav Sergeevich called “Weekend” (2013). By that time, she had already spent most of the year in Hollywood, but more on that later.
Still from the film “Week End”
A turning point in the actress’s fate occurred after the release of Barvikha (2009-2010). In the youth series from the TNT channel, Marina played a simple girl, Tanya Lipkina, who dates Fender, the main bully of the school, where the children of oligarchs and ordinary Muscovites study.
On the set of the series "Barvikha"
Using her example, the creators of the series demonstrated the main difference between ordinary “city” students and “Rublev” majors: Tanya is a sweet, open, family girl with a simple soul and a dreamy nature. Marina Orlova in "Barvikha" The sweet story about teenagers from an elite school was continued in the series "Golden", which was not so successful and was closed after one season.
“Barvikha. Golden": Marina Orlova (right) and Anna Khilkevich
Another youth series in which Orlova shone was “Kremlin Cadets” (2009-2010). The sequel to “Kadetstvo” reveals the stories of the audience’s favorite heroes Aristarkh Venes, Alexander Golovin, Pavel Bessonov and Kirill Emelyanov. In the series, Marina played the role of a rich girl, Nika, who finds herself drawn into a tedious affair with Gena Varnava (Sergei Druzyak).
Marina Orlova in the TV series “Kremlin Cadets”
On the wave of success, the actress decided to leave for the USA to become a student at the legendary acting school of Lee Strasberg. Marina was incredibly lucky: Al Pacino himself became the master of her course.
In parallel with her studies, Orlova tried to make her way in Hollywood. After much wandering around castings, Marina finally got the role. A sweet Russian accent and a trail of mystery - that’s what played a decisive role in Orlova’s conquest of American cinema. To correct her Russian accent, the girl studied with a teacher for 12 hours a day.
Marina Orlova in Hollywood
The debut film of her “American” period – the sports drama “Not So Young” (2013) – missed the audience, but Marina was happy to be on the set again. And although no high-profile Hollywood films with Orlova’s participation have yet been released, she highly values the experience gained and meeting talented actors (including Eric Roberts, brother of the famous Julia Roberts).
She also played Marilyn Monroe in Treehouse (2014), met Woody Allen and Barack Obama, played a cameo role in the TV series American Horror Story, and was a presenter on the Discovery Channel.
Marina Orlova as Marilyn Monroe
The beginning of the career of actress Marina Orlova
The young actress’s first place of work was the Stanislavsky Theater. Very soon, Orlova quit the theater, since rehearsals had not started for a very long time and, according to her, a complete mess reigned. In addition, she did not find a common language with management.
Since 2007, Marina began actively acting. He made his debut in the film “Matchmaker”. There were many supporting roles, and the first major role was the role of Svetlana in the film “Okhlamon”. One of the largest projects with the participation of the actress is the series “Family People”. Later there was filming in Borvikha. She worked and filmed simultaneously in Kyiv and Moscow, wandering between cities for a long time. The young actress was noticed by Stanislav Govorukhin and invited to the filming of the film “Passenger”.
The actress's start turned out to be so successful and rapid that it could not go unnoticed by foreign film producers. She was invited to film in China, India, America and France. She has already played about forty film roles.
Remembering her experience as a radio host back in her school years, Marina began hosting her “Lifestyle” program on Megapolis FM radio. Her guests were famous actors, athletes, singers, directors and musicians. Soon she was invited to Channel One, where in the program “I Want to Know,” hosted by Mikhail Shirvindt, she is an assistant traveling to different countries and regions, helping to find answers to viewers’ questions.
Marina was a participant in such shows as “We Talk and Show”, “Let Them Talk”, “Let’s Get Married”, “Live”, etc.
Orlova did not forget about her talent as a singer. She continues to be interested in music, writes songs, of which she already has more than eighty, and collaborates with composers.
Marina knows English well, which helped her graduate from the Acting School in Los Angeles, where Al Pacino himself was the Master of the course.
While filming in China, the actress worked with the director who at one time discovered Jackie Chan. Her invitation to Hollywood did not come as a surprise. She studied with a teacher for about a year, trying to get rid of the Russian accent. On the Discovery Channel, Orlova hosts the program “About Extreme Records”; she is involved in the series “American Horror Story”. Aspiring American director Adam Kraivo invited her to star in his film as Marilyn Monroe. The actress joined the Association of American Actors.
Now she is filming in the TV series “Craftsmen”, where Marina’s partner is Sergei Makovetsky.
Music
Sitting alone at the piano and composing music is true happiness for Marina. The actress admits that occasionally “it’s like some kind of space opens up” in front of her, and then she doesn’t have to suffer over every phrase and force out rhymes. “Some kind of stream is pouring on you, you just have time to write it down!” says Orlova. The artist is still very young, but has already managed to write more than 80 songs. Her compositions were performed in several domestic films, and the song “I will become strong without you” (written for Angelica Agurbash) created a stir. After Agurbash performed the fatal song for the first time, she separated from her husband and was forced to start her career from scratch. “Everyone now asks: did I know? But how could she know what would happen in her life in six months?!?”, shares Orlova.
Television and charity
Being just an actress is too boring for Marina Orlova. In the mid-2010s, the girl tried herself in a slightly different role, becoming the author of the short film “Hello! I'm Woody Allen's producer." Marina entrusted the main role in the 15-minute film to herself: who better than her could play a Russian tourist in Italy who accidentally tries on the role of a star. The film was highly praised by critics, who named it the best at one of the Italian film festivals. Marina Orlova in Italy In addition to cinema, Marina worked on television and radio. In particular, she was the co-host of the educational program “I Want to Know” with Mikhail Shirvindt on Channel One (the last episode was released in 2013). On duty, the actress went to different parts of the world to find answers to questions from TV viewers. “I want to know” with Marina Orlova and Mikhail Shirvindt. Fragment In addition, Orlova was the face of the French volunteer organization Club De Chance and a goodwill ambassador for the Italian charity Maria Diomira, which provides assistance to children in Kenya.
Work in Russia
The actress's first place of work was the theater. Stanislavsky. But she did not work there for long; she quit due to personal disagreements with the management and constant postponements of rehearsals.
In 2007, Marina plunged into the filming process and made her debut in the film “The Matchmaker.” Marina received her first leading role in the film “Okhlamon”, playing Svetlana. The loudest and largest work of Marina Orlova is considered to be the series “Native People” and “Barvikha”. A little later, at a time when the actress lived and worked in two cities (Moscow-Kyiv), Stanislav Govorukhin noticed her and invited her to participate in the filming of a film called “Passenger.”
Marina Orlova in the film “Winter Woman”
Marina did not forget about working at the radio station, and worked as a presenter on the Megapolis FM radio. Orlova aired on the “Lifestyle” program. Afterwards, she received an invitation from Channel One and accepted it. With Mikhail Shirvindt she traveled to cities and countries. They told TV viewers interesting facts about life in them, and looked for answers to questions that TV viewers asked. The program was aired under the title “I Want to Know.”
Still from the TV series “Interns”
Personal life of Marina Orlova
The name Marina Orlova is often associated with the Russian satirist Mikhail Zadornov, who died in 2020. The comedian's friends say that in the last years of his life, Mikhail was passionate about Marina and did not hide his admiration for his ward. “It is very rare to meet an actress who is not stupid,” the satirist said about Orlova.
Mikhail Zadornov and Marina Orlova were close friends
The acquaintance took place on the initiative of Zadornov. Admired by the girl’s original songs, Mikhail invited the artist to perform at his concerts. So the actress, who was 38 years younger than the satirist, became his friend and muse (although many suspected these two had a much closer relationship). True, Marina herself categorically does not accept the address “Zadornov’s muse.”
While still alive, the satirist wrote the script for the film “Once Upon a Time in America or a Purely Russian Fairy Tale,” which was released after Zadornov’s death. The film was received coolly, and Marina Orlova did not receive the promised fee in full. This became a reason for a conflict with the director of the film, Dmitry Panchenko. And although the actress had previously mentioned more than once in interviews that she starred in the film for free in memory of Mikhail Zadornov, the court sided with her and demanded that she pay an additional 1.15 million rubles.
On the set of the film “Once Upon a Time in America or a Pure Russian Fairy Tale”
Later, Orlova said that she had known Dmitry for 11 years, it was she who recommended the satirist to hire the director and even gave Panchenko her savings - her own and her parents' - to shoot the film. “We worked 24 hours a day without overpayments for the sake of Mikhail Zadornov, but not for the sake of Dima’s loans,” said the actress.
Marina Orlova and Dmitry Panchenko were close friends
Now Marina’s heart is not free: the actress is about to marry an aspiring actor and model Georgy Kiryanov. Marina's lover is 10 years younger than her, but this did not become a stumbling block in the relationship. “The astrologer said that we have a very rare 100% compatibility, and our karmic task is to create a family,” shares Marina, “what really hooked me was his character! He manages to find a common language with everyone. He is the life of the party, always the center of attention.”
Marina Orlova and Georgy Kiryanov
In the summer of 2020, Orlova became the heroine of the “Actually” program. The actress was called to the talk show by 20-year-old model Christina, who was trying to prove that they were dating the same man. As a result, it turned out that Kiryanov has a twin brother, Arkady, who took the lie detector test for him.
Future husband Marina Orlova has a twin brother Arkady
Many viewers considered the program just an excuse for PR and even doubted Orlova’s feelings, remembering her appearance in the show “Let’s Get Married” several years earlier.
Marina Orlova in “Let's Get Married”
However, the lovers are still planning their wedding. George gave the bride a ring exactly like the luxurious engagement jewelry that belonged to actress Grace Kelly.
Grace Kelly's engagement ring
Personal life of Mikhail Zadornov: how a 31-year-old beauty became the writer’s last muse
According to Zadornov’s friends, in recent years the satirist has been fascinated by 31-year-old actress Marina Orlova. “The Young Muse,” as she was called, accompanied the artist on tour; they had double acts. The writer did not hide his admiration for his ward. Zadornov told reporters: “Meeting a dumb actress is very rare. Usually they will remember a dozen phrases from some role and very successfully pretend to be well-read people, although they themselves are like traffic jams. And Marina turned out to have a wonderful voice and a hundred funny texts ready to be performed on the stage!”
The relationship between teacher and student, as they gossiped, went beyond business. “KP” decided to ask the actress herself about everything.
"Red carpet for birthday"
— Marina, how did you meet Zadornov?
— We met on his initiative. He heard my song “My Genius”, he was very touched by the poems, and he asked me to share this song with his audience at the concert. And I sang it. Then my other songs were included in the concert. It was the dream of my life - to perform my original songs on stage, and even for such educated and grateful spectators as Zadornov’s. He helped discover his creativity not only for me, but also for many other talented people, Brandon Stone, Sonya Fisenko, he organized children's song competitions...
Zadornov showed me Russia. I kept dreaming about foreign countries, Europe, America…. And he showed me the beauty of his native country during our tour. Samara, Voronezh, Rostov-on-Don, Krasnodar and even Kudykina Mountain! And in Pyatigorsk, he actually gave a free concert at the sanatorium where my mother worked. Just for employees. I didn't take a penny! Which other of our artists is capable of this?
— They say that Zadornov admired your beauty.
— He appreciated natural beauty. He told me not to wear makeup at all. For the concert, here’s a white or some light dress and nothing else, no transformations. And when, due to my profession, I needed to go to festivals, he egged me on: they say, I know what to give you for your birthday - a red carpet. “So that you can lay it out at home and go back and forth!” He always called me Marinushka...
— Was he charged with energy from the young people?
- Yes, it’s not clear here: was he charging or the youth from him? He had so much energy that sometimes we ourselves want to sleep at night, and he says: “Let's go for a walk along the Volga! We're having a "prom"! We were one family with his team. Everyone always had breakfast, lunch and dinner together. Everyone slept together on the bus, moving from city to city, they told stories and laughed on the trains. So one day Zadornov read his new play to Brendan and me. He said: “You, Marinushka, would play this role great,” and in response I offered him to make a film! And it was from such a touring gathering that a new project began. Feature film “Once Upon a Time in America, or a Purely Russian Fairy Tale.” Zadornov was not afraid of anything new, most people know him as a satirist and humorist, but he did so much besides this. He wrote books, was interested in history and the Russian language, the meaning of words, traveled, led a healthy lifestyle, made documentaries, wrote for the theater, opened a library, erected a monument to Arina Rodionovna, and he got involved in this adventure with the film with childish excitement! I selected actors, rehearsed and even wanted to play the role of the US President. But I didn’t have time...
He was worried about how we would cope, and wanted to have time to organize everything in such a way that the process would go on and all the cogs would function even in his absence. He told me: “Marinushka, you will be a film producer! And come on, control these guys! I believe in you, only a woman can do this!”
The artist led a healthy lifestyle. Photo: EG Archive
“The brain is my main organ”
— Did Zadornov’s young wife go on tour with him? Did you know her?
- No. I know his first wife Velta, who is from Latvia. And I personally don’t know my second wife. And with his daughter too. By the way, he always spoke of his daughter with tenderness and love. Although his daughter lived in Malta, he often talked about her, tried on whether she would like this or that performance of his...
- How do you know his former wife?
“I saw Velta once. She came once when he was reading his play (on which they made the film “Once Upon a Time in America...”) in the theater to see what jokes the artists reacted to, Velta also came to listen. Then she shared her comments. She is a very interesting woman. Strict. Strong.
— Did you come to see him at the hospital?
- I wanted to come. At first I wrote to him personally when he was in Germany. But he has a family. And she took a tough position - not to allow anyone to see him. I didn't want to put any pressure on them.
- Is his second wife so jealous?
- No. He just struggled for a whole year. And it was difficult for them emotionally. Even the farewell to him was made intimate.
— Were you at the farewell party?
- No. I asked a question about goodbye. They gently told me that only close relatives would be there. I would come to say goodbye. And thousands of people would come... The last time I saw him was before he left for surgery. He didn't want to do it. He said: “The brain is my main organ, how can I let someone in there?” But there was already a stage when the need arose.
Mikhail was born in Latvia. And they will bury him in Riga - next to his father. Photo: EG Archive
— You were called Zadornov’s last lover, muse... Dot the i’s: did you have a love relationship?
- No. For me, he was a senior comrade, a teacher, a mentor and a sunny person who helped make my dreams come true. The departure of Mikhail Nikolaevich is a huge loss for me and for all of our great Rus'.
PRIVATE BUSSINESS
Marina ORLOVA was born in 1986 in Pyatigorsk. She gained fame in 2008, when the film “Native People” was released on the Rossiya channel.
She starred in Stanislav Govorukhin’s films “Passenger” (2008) and “Weekend” (2012).
She was the producer, composer and actress of the short film in English “Hello! I'm Woody Allen's producer."
In 2009, she played the main role in the film “The Last Secret of the Master” by Chinese director Yu Xiao Gan. In 2014, she played the main role in Hollywood in the film White Crows, and together with Eric Roberts in the film about Frank Sinatra, Frank and Ava. Accepted into the Hollywood Actors Guild SAG-Aftra.
After meeting Mikhail Zadornov, she left Hollywood and began touring with the satirist.
BY THE WAY
Left an inheritance worth hundreds of millions of rubles
Zadornov has two apartments in Moscow. One on Osennaya Street, in an elite house, which was once allocated to him by the Moscow government. He bought one apartment for his second wife and daughter. There is a country estate in the Moscow region. There is a dacha and an apartment left in Jurmala. According to stories, there is a house in Altai. Mikhail Nikolaevich also had large sums left in his bank accounts. The total inheritance is estimated at hundreds of millions of rubles.
In addition to the material, there remains a creative heritage - manuscripts, video concerts, books.
BY THE WAY
10 celebrities who lost their battle with cancer
At one time or another, we've all wanted to date Patrick Swayze or be Patrick Swayze (And some of us have wanted both). But the actor’s fate decreed that he got into trouble and no one would want to be in his place. Patrick became a victim of pancreatic cancer, a disease that also killed Steve Jobs. At diagnosis, 90 percent of all patients have unresectable or metastatic disease, and only 6 percent of patients are alive 5 years after diagnosis. Swayze died in 2009 at the age of 57 (details)
Marina Orlova now
In February 2020, it became known that on the anniversary of the death of Russian singer Yulia Nachalova, a series about her life and work would be released. Nachalova will be played by Marina Orlova in the film, and football player Evgeny Aldonin, the performer’s second husband, will be portrayed on screen by Alexey Gavrilov (known from the TV series “Univer”). Details of the project have not yet been disclosed. The series is scheduled to be released in March 2020, on the anniversary of the singer’s death.
Marina Orlova and Yulia Nachalova
Radio and TV presenter
In addition to cinema, Orlova decided to master another profession and went to work on the Megapolis FM radio, the leading author’s program “Lifestyle”.
Marina invited her fellow artists, directors, producers, singers and musicians, athletes, writers and other creative personalities to the live broadcast studio. She worked on Channel One in Mikhail Shirvindt’s program “I Want to Know.” According to the plot of the TV show, Orlova went to different parts of the world in search of answers to viewers’ questions[62].
