Vyacheslav Tikhonov facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Vyacheslav Tikhonov
Tikhonov in 2003
Born	Vyacheslav Vasilyevich Tikhonov (1928-02-08)8 February 1928 Pavlovsky Posad, Soviet Union
Died	4 December 2009(2009-12-04) (aged 81) Moscow, Russia
Resting place	Novodevichy Cemetery, Moscow
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1948–2009
Spouse(s)	Nonna Mordyukova (1948–1963) Tamara Tikhonova (1968–2009)

Vyacheslav Tikhonov (front row, seated between Yuri Gagarin and Valentina Tereshkova) appears on a Soviet New Year TV show in 1963.

Vyacheslav Tikhonov's grave

Vyacheslav Vasilyevich Tikhonov was a very famous actor from the Soviet Union (which is now Russia). He was born on February 8, 1928, in Pavlovsky Posad and passed away on December 4, 2009, in Moscow. Many people remember him best for playing a Soviet spy named Stierlitz in a popular TV show called Seventeen Moments of Spring. He received many important awards for his acting, like "People's Artist of the USSR" in 1974 and "Hero of Socialist Labour" in 1982.

About Vyacheslav Tikhonov

Vyacheslav Tikhonov was born in Pavlovsky Posad, a town near Moscow. His mother was a kindergarten teacher, and his father worked as an engineer in a textile factory. Vyacheslav always dreamed of becoming an actor.

During World War II, he worked in a factory that made military supplies. After the war, in 1945, he started training to become an actor. He joined the Actors’ Faculty of the VGIK, a famous film school. He graduated with high honors in 1950.

In 1948, he married Nonna Mordyukova, who was also a well-known actress. They had one son named Vladimir, who also became an actor. Their marriage ended in 1963. Later, Tikhonov married Tamara Ivanovna Tikhonova. They had a daughter named Anna in 1969, who also became an actress.

Vyacheslav Tikhonov passed away on December 4, 2009, in Moscow. The Russian President at the time, Dmitry Medvedev, shared his sadness with Tikhonov's family.

His Acting Career

Vyacheslav Tikhonov started his film career in 1948. For the first few years, he acted in smaller movies and at a theater studio.

He became more famous after starring in the movie It Happened in Penkovo (1958). After that, he appeared in several war movies, like May Stars (1959) and On the Seven Winds (1962). In the film Thirst (1959), he played a scout on a mission to free a water plant from the Nazis. This was one of his first spy roles.

In Two Lives (1961), Tikhonov played a man who meets someone from his past. He won a state prize for his role in We'll Live Till Monday (1968). In this film, he played a history teacher who stands up for a student.

Tikhonov also played Prince Andrei Bolkonski in the Oscar-winning movie War and Peace (1968). This movie was based on the famous book by Leo Tolstoy.

Becoming Stierlitz

In 1973, Tikhonov took on the role that made him a legend: Stierlitz in the TV series Seventeen Moments of Spring. This show was about 17 days in the spring of 1945, just before Nazi Germany was defeated in World War II. Stierlitz was a Soviet spy working to stop secret peace talks between the Nazis and the U.S. and Britain.

The show became incredibly popular with viewers of all ages in Russia and other former Soviet countries. For this role, Tikhonov received the title "People's Artist of the USSR."

Later Roles

In 1976, Tikhonov worked with director Sergei Bondarchuk again in They Fought for Their Country. This film focused on the characters, which suited Tikhonov's acting style. He won another state prize for this role. In 1977, he starred in White Bim the Black Ear, playing a writer who adopts a dog.

Tikhonov often played military officers or spies. One of his notable spy roles was a KGB general in the TV series TASS Is Authorized to Declare... (1984). In his later years, he showed his range by playing a bishop in The Possessed (1992) and Charlemagne in To Kill a Dragon (1998). He even played God in the film Andersen: Life Without Love (2006).

On February 8, 2003, Russian President Vladimir Putin gave Tikhonov the Order of Merit for the Fatherland, third degree, for his contributions. Tikhonov also appeared in the Oscar-winning film Burnt By the Sun (1994) and its sequel in 2010.

Filmography

Movies

TV Shows

His Legacy

• A marine ship used for exploring the ocean, owned by the company Sovcomflot, was named after Vyacheslav Tikhonov. It was launched in 2011.
• In May 2013, a special monument was placed on his grave. It shows how talented Tikhonov was as an actor.
• There is a special plaque on the building of Lyceum No. 2 in Pavlovsky Posad, which was his old school. The school is now named after him.
• Since 2017, an international film festival called "17 Moments" has been held in his honor. His daughter, Anna, started this festival.
• On August 25, 2018, the V. Tikhonov House-museum opened in Pavlovsky Posad. This is the house where he was born and grew up.
• In 2019, Volodarsky Street in Pavlovsky Posad was renamed Tikhonov Street.
• On May 20, 2022, another monument to Vyacheslav Tikhonov was revealed in Pavlovsky Posad.

See also

In Spanish: Viacheslav Tíjonov para niños