Biography

Aleksandr Abdulov, one of Russian cinema's best known sex symbols and was one of the most celebrated Russian film stars.

He was born Aleksandr Gavrilovich Abdulov on May 29, 1953, in Tobolsk, Siberian Russia, into the family of a theatre director from Fergana, Uzbekistan. His father, named Gavriil Abdulov was a wounded veteran of the Second World War decorated for his courage at the front-line tank battles against the Nazis. Abdulov's mother was a make-up artist at several Russian theatres. Young Abdulov grew up in Uzbekistan, where he finished high school and also became the Master of Sports in fencing. He was admitted to a local college where he had the chance of becoming a sports coach.

His dream of becoming an actor was almost ruined when he failed the admission tests at the Moscow State Institute of Theatrical Arts (GITIS). He could not go back to Uzbekistan so he stayed in various gloomy dorms in Moscow, working hard labor jobs at railway stations just to survive. He then studied acting at GITIS, made very little money working as an extra, and still was a hard laborer in order to pay for his living in Moscow. In 1975 he graduated from GITIS and was hired by the Lenkom Theatre director Mark Zakharov.

Abdulov revealed the full range of his talent in popular films An Ordinary Miracle (1979) and S lyubimymi ne rasstavaytes (1980). The public adored Abdulov and he became the first big sex-symbol in the former USSR. Millions of his pictures has been decorating homes and student dorms in every big and small town of the former Soviet Union. The public loved Abdulov - the actor and the man - for his sincere talent and for his devotion to his ideas.

He played his best roles under the direction of Mark Zakharov in such films as 'Obyknovennoe Chudo (1978), 'Tot samyi Munchgausen (1979), 'Formula Lyubvi' (1984), and Kill the Dragon (1988). His best film partners were Oleg Yankovskiy, Evgeniy Leonov, Vyacheslav Tikhonov, Evgeniy Evstigneev, Leonid Bronevoy, Andrey Mironov, Irina Kupchenko, Leonid Yarmolnik, Semyon Farada, Aleksandr Zbruev, Sergey Nikonenko, Irina Alfyorova and others. This ensemble of fine actors and directors evolved into a special and uniquely Russian milieu, where Abdulov's multifaceted talent was supported by other actors.

His range and nuanced acting reached a new level in the films made in the late 1980s and 1990s. Abdulov created powerful roles in a tandem with the masterful Innokentiy Smoktunovskiy in the innovative film 'Geniy' (1991) by director Viktor Sergeev. At that time, Abdulov also received a Nika Award nomination for supporting role in Sukiny deti (1991) by director Leonid Filatov. Abdulov made two equally interesting works in collaboration with director Sergey Solovyov in 'Chyornaya roza - emblema pechali, krasnaya roza - emblema lyubvi' (1989) and in 'Dom pod zvyozdnym nebom' (1991). Both works were awarded, acclaimed by critics, and loved by the public.

Abdulov showed his gift for transformation in the devilish character Korov'ev in 'Master i Margarita' (2005), a TV-series from director Vladimir Bortko based on the eponymous book by Mikhail A. Bulgakov. Abdulov's energy helped the film making him the most lively nerve in the group of 'super stars' (some say super old stars). His acting became more classic and restrained in the traditionally Russian period-film 'Anna Karenina' (2005) based on the eponymous novel by Lev Tolstoy from director Sergey Solovyov. Later Abdulov worked with director Aleksandr Buravskiy in the epic film Leningrad (2009), about the historic siege during the Second World War; where his acting partners were Gabriel Byrne, Mira Sorvino, Kirill Lavrov, Mikhail Efremov, Donatas Banionis and other notable actors.

Aleksandr Abdulov was designated People's Artist of Russia. He received numerous awards and nominations for his performances in film and on stage. He was a permanent member of the troupe at Lenkom Theatre in Moscow. He also directed several films as well as stage productions. Aleksandr Abdulov died of lung cancer, on January 3, 2008, and was laid to rest in Vagankovskoe cemetery in Moscow, Russia.
- IMDb mini biography by: Steve Shelokhonov

Aleksandr Abdulov is a Soviet and Russian theater and film actor, film director. He first appeared on the theater stage at the age of five in the play 'Kremlin Chimes' at the Fergana Drama Theater. At school he went in for sports and received the title of Candidate Master of Sports of the USSR in fencing. In addition, he was interested in music. After graduating from school, Aleksandr, at the insistence of his father, tried to enter the Shchepkin Theater School, but was unsuccessful. Returning from Moscow, he entered the Faculty of Physical Education at the Fergana State Pedagogical Institute. At the same time, he worked in his father's theater as a stagehand.A year later, Abdulov entered GITIS. In 1975, the chief director of the Moscow Lenin Komsomol Theater (Lenkom) Mark Zakharov invited Abdulov to the troupe, noting his performance in the graduation performance. Since then, Abdulov's entire further theatrical career has been inextricably linked with Zakharov's theater. Among his most famous theatrical works is his role in the famous Lenkom play 'Yunona and Avos'.

He made his film debut in 1969 in the film Zoloto (1970), playing a small role. He began to actively appear on screen in the early 1970s and quickly won the love of viewers. In 1974, while still a student, he played a cameo role in Mikhail Ptashuk's film Pro Vityu, pro Mashu i morskuyu pekhotu (1974). Aleksandr Abdulov came to wide fame only after the role of the Bear in the television film An Ordinary Miracle (1979), directed by Mark Zakharov based on the play of the same name by Evgeniy Shvarts. Among Abdulov's most famous acting works are Nikita in the film Karnaval (1982) by Tatyana Lioznova, Robert from Alla Surikova's eccentric detective story Look for the Woman (1983), and the lyrical hero Ivan from the film Magicians (1982).
- IMDb mini biography by: Tango Papa

In 2007 was diagnosed with lung cancer and was treated at several clinics: in Ukraine, in Israel, in Moscow, Russia, and in Germany.

He was the general director of the Moscow International Film Festival for several years, starting in 1995.