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Mikheil Gelovani is a Actor Russe born on 6 january 1893 at Kutaisi Governorate (Russie)

Mikheil Gelovani

Mikheil Gelovani
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Nationality Russie
Birth 6 january 1893 at Kutaisi Governorate (Russie)
Death 21 december 1956 (at 63 years) at Moscow (Russie)
Awards People's Artist of the USSR, State Stalin Prize

Mikheil Gelovani (Georgian: მიხეილ გელოვანი, Russified as Михаи́л Гео́ргиевич Гелова́ни, Mikhail Georgievich Gelovani; January 6 [O.S. December 25, 1892] 1893 – December 21, 1956) was a Georgian-Soviet actor, known for his many portrayals of Joseph Stalin in cinema.

Biography

Early life
Mikheil Gelovani was a descendant of the old Georgian princely house of Gelovani. He made his stage debut in a theater in Batumi during 1913. From 1919 to 1920, he attended the Drama Studio in Tiflis. In the two following years, he was a member of the cast in the city's Rustaveli Theatre. From 1923, he worked as an actor and a director in Georgian SSR's Goskinprom film studio. In 1924, he first appeared on screen in the film Three Lives. He moved to the Armenian SSR's Armenkino production company in 1927. In addition to his cinematic work, Gelovani continued to appear in theater, and performed on stages in Kutaisi and Baku. In 1936 he returned to the ensemble of the Rustaveli Theatre, and remained there for three years.


Antebellum
In 1938, Gelovani first portrayed Stalin in Mikheil Chiaureli's The Great Dawn. His performance won him the Order of the Red Banner of Labour on 1 February 1939 and the Stalin Prize during 1941. Afterwards, Gelovani "established a monopoly on the role of Stalin", which he continued to portray in twelve other pictures until the premier's death. Gelovani greatly resembled Stalin physically, except in his stature: he was much taller than the latter. Reportedly, he was not the premier's favorite candidate for depicting himself on screen: since he was Georgian, he mimicked Stalin's accent "to perfection". Therefore, the leader personally preferred Aleksei Dikiy, who used classic Russian pronunciation. However, Gelovani appeared in his role much more than Dikiy. According to the The Guinness Book of Movie Facts and Feats, Gelovani had probably portrayed the same historical figure more than any other actor. When the two met, the general secretary told the actor: "you are observing me thoroughly... You do not waste time, do you?"

Soviet cinema played an important part in cultivating the leader's cult of personality: from 1937 and onward, in a gradual process, Stalin's reign was legitimized by depicting him as Vladimir Lenin's most devout follower and by positively presenting historical autocrats - like in Sergei Eisenstein's Ivan the Terrible.


Later years
Due to his identification with Stalin, Gelovani was barred from playing other roles in cinema; he was not allowed to depict "mere mortals." From 1942 to 1948, he was a member of the cast in the Gorky Moscow Art Theatre. During World War II, the personality cult was abandoned in favor of patriotic motifs, but returned already at the war's late stages, and with greater intensity than ever after 1945: Stalin was soon credited as the sole architect of victory. In the postwar films in which he portrayed him - The Vow, The Fall of Berlin and The Unforgettable Year 1919 - Gelovani presented the leader as "a living god."

The actor was awarded three more Stalin Prizes, all of which were granted for his performances of the premier in film: in 1942 for The Defence of Tsaritsyn, in 1947 for The Vow and in 1950 for The Fall of Berlin. On 3 June 1950, he was given the title People's Artist of the USSR.

After Stalin's death in 1953, Gelovani was denied new roles in films, since he was completely identified with the character of the dead ruler. From 1953 until his death in 1956, he acted in Moscow's State Theater for Film Actors. Andreas Kilb wrote that he ended his life "a pitiful Kagemusha" of Stalin. Gelovani is buried in the Novodevichy Cemetery, alongside his wife Ludmila.

Following Nikita Khrushchev's Secret Speech in 1956, most of the pictures he appeared in as Stalin were either banned or had the relevant scenes removed.

Source : Wikidata

Filmography of Mikheil Gelovani (14 films)

Display filmography as list

Actor

The Fires of Baku, 1h28
Directed by Aleksandr Zarkhi, Iossif Kheifitz
Genres Drama, Historical
Actors Vladimir Gardine, Mikheil Gelovani, Nikolai Mordvinov, Nikolai Kryuchkov
Roles Staline
Rating59% 2.9665952.9665952.9665952.9665952.966595
Le film décrit des travailleurs dans les champs pétrolifères d'Azerbaïdjan pendant la Seconde Guerre mondiale, alors qu'ils revêtaient une grande importance stratégique.
Hostile Whirlwinds, 1h43
Directed by Mikhaïl Kalatozov
Genres Drama, Historical
Themes Political films
Actors Vladimir Yemelyanov, Mikheil Gelovani, Viktor Avdyushko, Georgi Yumatov, Nikolai Gritsenko, Andrei Popov
Roles Joseph Stalin (scenes later deleted)
Rating63% 3.1537853.1537853.1537853.1537853.153785
Film exercises the first years of Soviet government, biography of Felix Dzerzhinsky in 1918-1921.
The Unforgettable Year 1919, 1h48
Directed by Mikhaïl Tchiaoureli
Genres Drama, Historical
Themes Political films
Actors Mikheil Gelovani, Boris Andreyev, Andrei Popov, Mikhaïl Yanchine, Vasili Merkuryev, Yevgeny Samoylov
Roles Stalin
Rating62% 3.119223.119223.119223.119223.11922
May 1919. The city of Petrograd, the Bolsheviks' stronghold in Russia, is attacked by the counter-revolutionary White Army of General Nikolai Yudenich, who is supported by the imperialist British, and especially by the warmongering Winston Churchill. The city's High Soviet is demoralized and about to order an evacuation, while the White fifth column inside it plots an insurrection. The Krasnaya Gorka fort dispatches a detachment of Baltic Fleet sailors to assist Petrograd, among them the young Vladimir Shibaev. As the Red Army faces defeat by the Whites, Joseph Stalin arrives on the battlefield, rallies the communists and routs the enemy, saving the city.
The Unforgettable Year 1919, 2h29
Directed by Mikhaïl Tchiaoureli
Origin Russie
Genres Drama, Historical
Themes Politique, Théâtre, Political films, Films based on plays
Actors Boris Andreyev, Mikheil Gelovani, Andrei Popov, Yevgeny Morgunov, Mikhaïl Yanchine, Vsevolod Sanaïev
Roles Stalin
Rating62% 3.119223.119223.119223.119223.11922
En mai 1919, alors que la guerre civile russe bat son plein, la direction de Petrograd est prise de panique devant l'offensive des armées blanches. Le camarade Staline sauve la jeune République des Soviets, apparaissant sur le front au moment le plus dramatique.
The Fall of Berlin, 2h47
Directed by Mikhaïl Tchiaoureli
Origin Russie
Genres Drama, War
Themes Politique, Political films
Actors Mikheil Gelovani, Boris Andreyev, Tamara Nossova, Rouben Simonov, Boris Livanov, Andrei Abrikosov
Roles Marshal Iosef Visarionovic Stalin
Rating56% 2.803072.803072.803072.803072.80307
Part 1 Alexei Ivanov, a shy steel factory worker, greatly surpasses his production quota and is chosen to receive the Order of Lenin and to have a personal interview with Joseph Stalin. Alexei falls in love with the idealist teacher Natasha, but has difficulties approaching her. When he meets Stalin, who tends his garden, the leader helps him to understand his emotions and tells him to recite poetry to her. Then, they both have a luncheon with the rest of the Soviet leadership in Stalin's home. After returning from Moscow, Alexei confesses his love to Natasha. While they are both having a stroll in a wheat field, their town is attacked by the Germans, who invade the Soviet Union.
The Vow
The Vow (1946)
, 1h48
Directed by Mikhaïl Tchiaoureli
Themes Political films
Actors Mikheil Gelovani, Sofja Vladimirovna Giatsintova, Tamara Makarova, Vasili Merkuryev, Nikolai Plotnikov
Roles Joseph Stalin
Rating50% 2.549792.549792.549792.549792.54979
1924. Veteran Bolshevik Petrov, a resident of Tsaritsyn, carries a letter to Vladimir Lenin, to inform him of the Kulak brigands that roam the land, spreading death and misery. The Kulaks murder him. His widow, Varvara, continues his quest, joining a group that travels to Moscow. When they arrive, they discover that Lenin is dead. In the Kremlin, Vyacheslav Molotov tells Anastas Mikoyan that now, Grigory Zinoviev, Lev Kamenev and Nikolai Bukharin will attempt to subvert the party by attacking Stalin, Lenin's devout disciple. Stalin, mourning his teacher's passing away, carries a eulogy in the funeral, calling for all attendants and all the people of the Soviet Union to vow to maintain his legacy. The people swear. Varvara sees Stalin and hands him over the blood-stained letter entitled "To Lenin".
Wings of Victory, 1h37
Directed by Mikhaïl Kalatozov
Genres Drama, War, Biography
Themes Transport films, Aviation films
Actors Mikheil Gelovani, Mark Bernes, Mikhaïl Kalatozov, Boris Andreyev, Arkadi Raïkine
Roles Stalin
Rating64% 3.2371153.2371153.2371153.2371153.237115
Valeri Tchkalov, l'un des meilleurs pilotes de voltige aérienne, s'ennuie dans les chartes et les instructions, il cherche à faire des virages vertigineux, des vols ultra-bas, etc. Un jour, il effectue le vol sous le pont de la Neva à Leningrad et se voit expulsé de son unité.
Lenin in 1918, 2h10
Directed by Mikhaïl Romm
Genres Drama, Historical
Themes Politique, Political films
Actors Nikolai Cherkasov, Leonid Lioubachevski, Mikheil Gelovani, Nikolai Plotnikov
Roles Joseph Stalin
Rating64% 3.219923.219923.219923.219923.21992
Les événements se déroulent lors de la guerre civile russe. Au Kremlin, Lénine et Staline cherchent les moyens d'enrayer la crise économique. Entre deux réunions importantes, Lénine trouve le temps de recevoir les représentants du peuple parmi lesquels se trouve un koulak de Tamborsk, c'est un moment émotionnellement fort du film. Une tentative criminelle est déjouée par le commandant du Kremlin, Matveïev, mais les comploteurs s'échappent et préparent un nouvel attentat. Fanny Kaplan tire sur Lénine, elle sera arrêtée. Après sa convalescence, Lénine retourne au travail.
The Vyborg Side, 2h1
Directed by Grigori Kozintsev, Leonid Trauberg
Origin Russie
Genres Drama
Themes Politique, Political films
Actors Boris Chirkov, Valentina Kibardina, Mikhail Zharov, Nikolai Kryuchkov, Anatoly Kuznetsov, Vasili Merkuryev
Roles Iosip Stalin
Rating61% 3.0815953.0815953.0815953.0815953.081595
Following the Russian Revolution, Maksim is appointed state commissar in charge of the national bank. With great efforts, he learns the complexies of the banking trade and begins to fight off sabotaging underlings. Dymba, now a violent enemy of the Republic, tries to rob a wine store but is arrested with Maksim's help. Maksim also exposes a conspiracy of a group of tsarist officers who prepare an attempt against Lenin. He then joins the Red Army in its fight against the German occupation.
The Great Dawn, 1h13
Directed by Mikhaïl Tchiaoureli
Themes Political films
Actors Mikheil Gelovani, Tamara Makarova, Ivan Perestiani
Roles Josef Stalin
Rating59% 2.9989452.9989452.9989452.9989452.998945
In 1917, the people of the Russian Empire are no longer willing to fight Germany, but the bourgeois government of Alexander Kerensky is unwilling to defy its imperialist allies and stop the war. Only Vladimir Lenin's Bolshevik Party is resolute in calling for peace. In the front, the soldiers of one battalion elect three delegates to travel to St. Petersburg with donations the troops collected for the Pravda newspaper: Gudushauri, Panasiuk and Ershov. The three arrive in the capital and describe the horrendous conditions in which the soldiers live to Joseph Stalin, Lenin's trusted aid and colleague. They join the Bolsheviks and take part in the storming of the Winter Palace, led by Stalin and Lenin. Stalin announces that the great dawn of revolution has broken.
Who Is Guilty?, 1h45
Directed by Aleksandre Tsoutsounava
Genres Drama, Adventure, Romance, Western
Actors Nato Vatchnadze - ნატო ვაჩნაძე, Mikheil Gelovani
Rating68% 3.4333153.4333153.4333153.4333153.433315
The young farmer Siko (Kote Mikaberidze) wants to start a better life by working for an American circus. His family stays behind, but after he leaves his child dies.