Mar 18, 1925

Tatyanovka, Tomsk Region, Siberia, Russia, Soviet Union

Innokenti Smoktunovsky (birth name Smoktunovich) was born in Siberian village of
Tatianovka near Tomsk on 18 March in 1925. His ancestors were Polish Jews exiled to
Siberia for the Warsaw uprising in 1863. His father was killed in WWII. Smoktunovsky
was drafted in the Red Army during WWII and was seized by the Nazis as a POW. He was
on the road to a concentration camp, but managed to escape from the Nazis. He joined
the partisans and served until the end of WWII. After the war he was under ... ... (read more...) suspicion
as a former POW and his career was limited to Siberia.

He studied acting for one year at the drama-studio of the Krasnoyarsk Drama Theater
(1946). He found employment at the Norilsk Zapolyarny Drama Theater, where his
friend and partner was Georgi Zhzhyonov, among other exiled actors. Both friends
later starred in 'Beregis avtomobilya (1966)' , directed by Eldar Ryazanov. But his
film career started with director Mikhail Romm in 'Ubiystvo na ulitse Dante (1956),
and in 'Soldaty (1956)' with director 'Aleksandr Ivanov' .

Smoktunovsky was praised by Laurence Olivier for the leading role in 'Hamlet
(1964)', a B&W screen version directed by Grigori Kozintsev. Leading roles in
Tchaikovsky (1969), 'Uncle Vanya (1970)' , were among the highlights in film career
of this great Russian actor. He worked with Georgi Tovstonogov from 1957-72 on stage
of the Bolshoi Drama Theater (BDT) in Leningrad. He later moved to Moscow, where he
worked at the Maly Theater and at the Moscow Art Theater (MKHAT). Smoktunovsky wrote
an autobiographical book titled "They left me alive", in which he described his
survival in Siberia, in WWII, and back again in Siberia, where he started his
brilliant acting career.

He died on August 3, In 1994 at the age of 69