Oleg Konstantinowitsch Popov

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Oleg Popow with the Russian State Circus in Worms (2009)
Oleg Konstantinowitsch Popow without make-up (undated)
Oleg Popov, 1989

Oleg Popov ( Russian Олег Константинович Попов ., Scientific transliteration Oleg Popov Konstantinović ; *  31 July 1930 in Wirubowo at Kuntsevo , Moscow Oblast , † 2. November 2016 in Rostov-on-Don ) was a Russian clown and pantomime . He was considered one of the last great circus clowns of the world.

Life

Popov was born in a suburb of Moscow in 1930 and grew up in a middle-class family. His father - a watchmaker by trade - was arrested in 1941 for allegedly "disregarding" the Soviet dictator Josef Stalin and died in prison. The time of the Second World War was marked by shortages for young Popov and his mother. Often the food was scarce. To make ends meet, he had to lend a hand early on.

After a few temporary jobs, at the age of twelve he began an apprenticeship as a locksmith at Pravda, the CPSU party newspaper . This had a youth sports group that Popov joined in 1944. As a member of this group, at the age of fourteen, he took part in a sporting event that was also attended by the director of the Moscow State Circus . He noticed Popov's talent and offered him a place at the prestigious Moscow State School of Circus Arts. A daily training of up to ten hours at the state school for circus arts followed. His specialty there was wire rope juggler. In 1951 he appeared as a clown for the first time. In 1955 he got his first engagement at the Moscow State Circus.

He asserted himself and achieved world fame. Popow appeared in the costume of the Russian Ivanuschka , a figure that roughly corresponds to the German Hans im Glück : checkered sports cap, black velvet jacket, dark striped trousers that are too short, small sticks, red socks, very pointed shoes in the front and only a few spots of make-up on Face. Popov was a masterful tightrope walker and juggler .

In 1952 he married Alexandra, a violinist in the circus orchestra. The marriage resulted in Olga, his only child. While he was performing in Marburg , his wife died of serious cancer in Moscow in April 1990. During the upheaval of the fall of the Soviet Union, he lost his savings. His dream of becoming the ringmaster of the state circus also fell through. In 1991 he moved to Germany disappointed from Russia. Chancellor Helmut Kohl offered him German citizenship. Popov refused and said: "I suffer with Russia". In 1991 he met the 32 years younger German Gabriela Lehmann and married her on September 1st in Breda ( Netherlands ). Both moved to a farm in Egloffstein ( Franconia ). He continued to act as a clown. He did not visit Russia for 21 years. From 2012 he traveled to Russia for guest appearances. He died while touring in the Rostov circus dormitory .

Before the corpse was transferred to Germany, his fans were able to say goodbye on November 7, 2016 in Rostov-on-Don in a public memorial service, first in the circus, where Popov's last appearance was planned, and then in the Rostov Church of St. John of Kronstadt. After the decision of his wife and daughter from their first marriage, both of whom live in Germany, he was buried in a clown costume on November 9, 2016 in accordance with his last will in Egloffstein .

Awards

year Award
1956 Honored Artist of the RSFSR
1958 People's Artist of the RSFSR
1980 Order of Lenin
1980 Order of the Red Banner of Labor
1981 "Golden Clown" at the International Circus Festival of Monte Carlo . Princess Gracia Patrizia ( Grace Kelly ) presented him with the "Oscar of the Circus World".
1993 Induction into the Clown Hall of Fame
1994 Order of Friendship
2010 Certificate of Honor of the President of the Russian Federation

Movies

Documentation

  • 1966: В городе клоун. Олег Попов в Ленинграде (Eng .: a clown is in town, Oleg Popov is in Leningrad).

Cinema & TV

  • 1959: Kosolapyy Drug (German: a clumsy friend)
  • 1966: Posledniy zhulik (German: The last crook)
  • 1966: Knight without armor ( Ritzar bez bronya )
  • 1970: The Adventures of the Yellow Suitcase ( Priklyucheniya zhyoltogo chemodanchika )
  • 1970: Dve ulybki (German: smile twice)
  • 1971: Polchasa na chudesa
  • 1972: Headless rider ( Vsadnik bez golovy )
  • 1972: Carnival
  • 1976: The Blue Bird ( The Blue Bird )
  • 1976: About the wolf and the smart little goat ( Ma-ma )
  • 1976: Vesyoloye snovideniye, ili smekh i slyozy (German: funny dream or laughter and tears)
  • 1987: Dog Theater ( Free Admittance ) ( Postoronnim vkhod razreshyon )

Works

  • Ma vie de clown . Stock, Paris 1968 OCLC 3080061 (French).
  • Russian clown . Macdonald, London 1970, ISBN 978-0-356-02940-5 (English).
  • My dog ​​Mischka, illustrated by Carolin Gaiser, translated from Russian by Gabriele Popov, Mayer, Stuttgart / Berlin 1997, ISBN 3-932386-04-3 .
  • with Melle van der Velde, Alexander Kalmykov: Popov - Mijn Leven Als Clown . Lannoo Uitgeverij, Tielt 2006, ISBN 978-90-209-6521-6 ( autobiography , Dutch).

literature

  • Roswitha von dem Borne: The clown: story of a figure , Urachhaus, Stuttgart 1993, ISBN 3-87838-969-8 .
  • Hans Joachim Pietrula: Clear the ring, homage to Oleg Popov . Calendar 1998, Ruck, Stuttgart 1997 (24 pages).
  • Alex Kats: Sun clown Ivanuschka: Oleg Popov cartoons . Engelsdorfer Verlag, 2014, ISBN 978-3-95744-333-5 .

Web links

Commons : Oleg Konstantinowitsch Popow  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Footnotes

  1. ↑ FAZ.net Russian circus star Oleg Popow has died . Retrieved November 3, 2016.
  2. ↑ a b c Der Spiegel: Oleg Popow, 86 , Obituaries, Der Spiegel 45/2016, p. 141.
  3. ↑ Famous Clowns ; Retrieved November 4, 2016
  4. ↑ Elective Francs and world famous. Clown Oleg Popow is dead ( Memento from November 8, 2016 in the Internet Archive ), br.de from November 3, 2016
  5. ↑ Олега Попова похоронят в Германии 9 ноября (Russian) . In: ТАСС , November 7, 2016. Accessed November 26, 2016. 
  6. ↑ За час до смерти Олег Попов планировал поехать на рыбалку (Russian) . In: rostov.kp.ru , November 4, 2016. Retrieved November 26, 2016. 
  7. ↑ Попов хотел, чтобы его похоронили в клоунском костюме ( Russian ) www.aif.ru. November 4, 2016. Retrieved November 26, 2016.
personal data
SURNAME Popov, Oleg Konstantinowitsch
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Попов, Олег Константинович (Russian); Popov, Oleg Konstantinovič
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Russian clown and pantomime
DATE OF BIRTH July 31, 1930
PLACE OF BIRTH Wirubowo near Kunzewo , Moscow Oblast
DATE OF DEATH November 2, 2016
Place of death Rostov on Don