Furtseva's black list: Who and why fell out of favor with "Catherine the Great" of Soviet culture

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

Ekaterina Furtseva, who was called "the commander-in-chief of the fine arts" and "Catherine the Great" in the field of culture, was one of the most controversial figures in Soviet political circles: those to whom she was supportive characterized her as a just and noble person, and those who disfavor, considered cruel and vindictive. For 14 years she was the Minister of Culture of the USSR, and during this period many artists who were on her blacklist said that she broke their fates.

By the time Furtseva became the Minister of Culture of the USSR, Klavdia Shulzhenko had already been on the stage for more than 30 years and was considered one of the most popular and beloved artists among the people, but for some reason Ekaterina Furtseva did not share this universal admiration and always disliked the singer. Once Furtseva told Shulzhenko that there are too many love songs in her repertoire and there are no patriotic songs at all, to which the singer replied: “”. After that, when Shulzhenko appeared on stage during group concerts, Furtseva got up and left the hall. She remembered the insult and somehow, having made an appointment with her, she kept in the waiting room for an hour. Without waiting, Shulzhenko left with the words addressed to the secretary: "" The singer stood in line for an apartment in a high-rise building on Vosstaniya Square, but Furtseva crossed her out of this list with her own hand. And Shulzhenko's pension was the smallest among art workers.

In 1958, a scandal erupted: Moskovskaya Pravda published a feuilleton entitled "Tuzik in a Faint", in which the author in a harsh manner ridiculed Klavdia Shulzhenko, who had canceled the concert because her "dog fell ill". In fact, the dog did not "fall ill" - she died under the wheels of a car, and it happened right before the concert, after which the singer really could not perform. Such an article could come out only with the approval of the high authorities, and Shulzhenko understood who was the initiator of this persecution. After that, the singer, on the basis of nervousness, had a non-closure of the ligaments, for two months she could not speak, and did not go on the stage for about a year.

Actress Larisa Luzhina became famous after the release of Rostotsky's film "On the Seven Winds". In 1962, as part of the Soviet delegation, she presented this picture at the Cannes Film Festival. An incident happened at the reception: one of the guests invited the actress to dance a twist with him. Luzhina knew that this dance in the USSR was considered obscene and forbidden, so she refused. But Gerasimov insisted that she dance. And photographers captured the moment when the actress danced surrounded by men. The next day, this picture flaunted in the newspapers with the caption "Sweet life of a Soviet student." When Furtseva saw this publication, she flew into a rage and struck Luzhin off the list of artists who could travel abroad. If not for the intercession of Gerasimov and Rostotsky, this "offense" would have cost her career.

In the 1960s. one of the most popular singers was Tamara Miansarova, whose song "Black Cat" won the hearts of millions of fans. In 1963 g.she won a pop competition in Sopot, and when an article about four of the best pop artists in Europe was published in a Polish magazine, Tamara Miansarova was named among them. Having studied her repertoire, the Minister of Culture drew attention to the fact that the singer performed too many songs of foreign authors at her concerts, and criticized the "Black Cat" because it was a twist. As a result, Furtseva accused Miansarova of promoting the Western way of life and forbade her to perform all of her most famous hits. Soon, the singer disappeared from television, radio and concert venues. She moved to Donetsk and got a job at the local philharmonic society. Her career was broken. Only after the death of Furtseva, she was able to return to Moscow.

The reasons for her personal animosity were often difficult to understand and explain. Furtsev called the famous comedian Sergei Filippov a fool, and the singer Aida Vedishcheva was licentious and vulgar. In the 1960s. The singer Valery Obodzinsky was very popular, but his songs seemed to Furtseva too lightweight and unprincipled. When she saw the circulation of his records, she was furious: “” After that, a ban was imposed on the records, the singer's records were demagnetized. His concerts were canceled, he was not invited to television. In a state of deep depression, Obodzinsky became addicted to alcohol, his life went downhill. For several years he worked as a watchman in a factory. In 1994 he returned to the stage, and after 3 years he was gone.

Once, having met Vladimir Vysotsky, Furtseva invited him to contact her on any issue. However, in fact, she did not intend to participate in his fate and ordered the secretary to talk to him politely, but always answer that she was busy and could not accept him. In the circles of the party leadership, the Minister of Culture called Vysotsky anti-Soviet and did not hide her hostile attitude towards him. She did not let him go abroad, knowing that he was striving there because of his wife, Marina Vlady. Only 3 years after the wedding, he was finally able to go to his wife.

However, it should be noted that many cultural figures were sincerely grateful to Ekaterina Furtseva for her help. So, Evgeny Yevtushenko said: "".

And when Yuri Nikulin turned to Furtseva and told about the problems that threatened the release of Leonid Gaidai's film, she came to his aid: What is left behind the scenes of "Prisoner of the Caucasus".