Miscellaneous 2024, November

10 best films about dancing and the fate of dancers that teach you to overcome yourself

10 best films about dancing and the fate of dancers that teach you to overcome yourself

The grace of the dance always attracts attention, sometimes it is simply impossible to look away from the choreographic pattern that is drawn with movement. But only those who are professionally involved in dancing know exactly what the apparent ease of movement is worth. Many directors turned to this topic, trying to tell not only about the fate of the dancers, but about how they have to overcome themselves daily and hourly. Our today's selection contains the best films on this topic

Models whose fate was tragic

Models whose fate was tragic

“Beauty will save the world,” some say. You can't argue with that. But others say: "Do not be born beautiful." One cannot but agree with this phrase. It would seem that when the whole world insists that attractive external data is a guarantee of success, the fate of many famous models proves the opposite. They had everything: recognition, contracts, fans, money … But sometimes fate takes too high a price for their gifts

Truth and lies about the famous dance group "Birch": 7 historical inconsistencies in the series

Truth and lies about the famous dance group "Birch": 7 historical inconsistencies in the series

When the TV series "Birch" was announced, not only ordinary viewers were waiting for it, but also those people whose fate was connected with the legendary team. Moreover, the tape was released in the year when the ensemble celebrated the 70th anniversary of its foundation. In general, the television series "Birch" collected good reviews, but people familiar with the history of the creation and development of the ensemble noted several serious inconsistencies

10 recent discoveries that are raising the veil of mystery over Neanderthals

10 recent discoveries that are raising the veil of mystery over Neanderthals

Neanderthals are considered to be the closest extinct "relatives" of humans. Therefore, it is not surprising that their relationship with Homo sapiens is one of the topical research topics of scientists. Recent findings have helped to understand the dangers Neanderthals faced, the skills that helped them survive for millennia, why they looked different from Cro-Magnons, and how they possibly saved Homo sapiens from extinction

What exhibits the "Bird Museum" keeps under the roof of an ancient temple: What jackdaws have been stealing from people for 100 years

What exhibits the "Bird Museum" keeps under the roof of an ancient temple: What jackdaws have been stealing from people for 100 years

The unique collection of old papers discovered by scientists in Zvenigorod amazes not only with its diversity and antiquity. The fact is that collectors for hundreds of years have been birds that steal material from people to insulate their nests. Thanks to the "feathered historians", scientists got their hands on a wide variety of exhibits - from food coupons of the 30s to scraps of documents from the 17th century

How the rarest "Chinese" porcelain of the Medici family appeared as a result of a mistake

How the rarest "Chinese" porcelain of the Medici family appeared as a result of a mistake

In 1574, the Medici family tried to reproduce Chinese porcelain. Although this attempt was unsuccessful, it led to the creation of one of the rarest types of pottery ever made in the history of mankind. Chinese porcelain has long been considered a great treasure. From the end of the 13th century, it began to appear at the courts of Europe as trade routes expanded. By the second half of the 15th century, Chinese porcelain was abundant in the ports of Turkey, Egypt and Spain. The Portuguese began to systematically import

Lenin's "hardships" in exile in Shushenskaya, or why during the years of persecution the leader gained a lot of weight

Lenin's "hardships" in exile in Shushenskaya, or why during the years of persecution the leader gained a lot of weight

The professional revolutionary Lenin was a hereditary nobleman, which was always reflected in his life. He preferred to provide himself with decent living conditions - a servant, health care, hearty food, intellectual communication. The years spent in political exile in Siberia were no exception. The carcass of a ram for a weekly menu, hares and partridges, mineral water ordered from the capital, skates and hunting, a cheerful Maslenitsa, a wedding and a honeymoon - this is how Lenin's life passed in Shushenskoye

Angels from Auckland. Social art project Everyday Angels in Auckland

Angels from Auckland. Social art project Everyday Angels in Auckland

An unusual social art project in the New Zealand city of Auckland was founded by the charitable public organization Auckland City Mission. In collaboration with advertising agency Publicis Mojo, they decorated the city with graffiti in the form of angel wings, and invited people who are not indifferent to the fate of the city's disadvantaged people to participate in the Everyday Angels in Auckland charity art event

Pay your taxes and stretch your legs: the work of American cartoonists

Pay your taxes and stretch your legs: the work of American cartoonists

Nobody wants to deliver hard-earned "killed raccoons" to their homeland. After all, money is not a smile: if you share it with someone, then it is not a fact that they "will return to you more than once." However, why not make such an unpleasant procedure as filing a tax return a reason for a smile: sometimes cheerful, sometimes sad, sometimes caustic? Foreign cartoonists tried to combine business with pleasure and socially useful and show what happens on April 15, the last day of filing tax returns

The Pros and Cons of Abortion: American Cartoonists on Family Planning

The Pros and Cons of Abortion: American Cartoonists on Family Planning

Abortion - a license to kill or a conscious necessity? Are the souls of unborn children appealing to our conscience, or are they not children at all? From how many months or weeks can an embryo be considered a human? Family - a state within a state, and something like a five-year plan will not interfere with it? Or the more casual, the more true? Physicians and theologians will argue forever. American cartoonists also present the drawn pros and cons of abortion

Voltaire and his "divine" Emilia: 15 years of "earthly paradise" with his beloved and muse

Voltaire and his "divine" Emilia: 15 years of "earthly paradise" with his beloved and muse

Contemporaries considered the French writer and philosopher Voltaire a genius. Aristocrats and kings listened to his thoughts, and his literary works were a great success. Intelligence and talent are certainly important, but Voltaire would not have made a brilliant career if the Marquis du Châtelet had not appeared in his path. This woman became a muse, a lover, a lightning rod for the writer. It was she who held back the impulses of an excessively ardent Voltaire, directing his energy in the right direction

8 science fiction novels recognized as the best books of the 21st century

8 science fiction novels recognized as the best books of the 21st century

From time immemorial, people have been trying to look into the future and reflect on what it might be. Perhaps this is why literary works written in the genre of fiction remain so popular. And decades later, science fiction becomes reality. Who could have imagined at the beginning of the twentieth century that a person would fly to the moon or be able to communicate with thousands of people around the world via mobile communications. Who knows, maybe some of the works of modern science fiction writers will also become

"Doomed to love": how an outstanding opera singer Sergei Lemeshev brought girls to mass psychosis

"Doomed to love": how an outstanding opera singer Sergei Lemeshev brought girls to mass psychosis

People's Artist of the USSR, outstanding opera singer Sergei Lemeshev passed away 42 years ago. His voice acted on women magnetically: he had so many fans that they even got the nickname - "lemeshists", and also "syrikhs" - as they were on duty at the "Cheese" store near his house. Officially, the artist was married five times, in addition, he was credited with a large number of novels. Once a psychiatrist told Lemeshev that such a massive psychosis of women can be given a medical explanation

How Commissioner Philip Zadorozhny saved members of the royal family from the Red Terror in the Bluebeard castle

How Commissioner Philip Zadorozhny saved members of the royal family from the Red Terror in the Bluebeard castle

Great upheavals always give rise to chaos and senseless cruelty to their own kind. But even in troubled, blood-stained times of uncontrollable permissiveness, there are individuals who do not deviate from the principles of morality and retain the best spiritual qualities. One of such personalities is Commissioner Philip Zadorozhny. This is the man who saved the relatives of the last Russian tsar from the inevitable execution that awaited them in Crimea during the period of the “red” terror

Under the yoke of censorship: 10 authors whose books were banned in the USSR

Under the yoke of censorship: 10 authors whose books were banned in the USSR

Censorship exists all over the world, and books, theatrical performances and films are often subjected to censorship. In Soviet times, literature, like many other spheres of culture, was under the total control of the party leadership. Works that did not correspond to the propagandized ideology were banned, and they could only be read in samizdat or by taking out a copy bought abroad and secretly brought to the Land of the Soviets

Selling love in the USSR: Because of what prosperous and wealthy Soviet women went to the "panel"

Selling love in the USSR: Because of what prosperous and wealthy Soviet women went to the "panel"

On the ruins of the bourgeois system, they dreamed of creating a new society, where vices like venal love would have no place. They tried to eradicate the phenomenon by terror, harsh punishments and even re-education in the spirit of loyalty to the ideas of communism. In all cases, the fighters for morality faced failure, prostitution in one form or another still existed. The honest work alternative did not appeal to women who were accustomed to receiving benefits for much less effort

Walter and Tatiana Zapashny: A happy marriage of convenience, a lifetime

Walter and Tatiana Zapashny: A happy marriage of convenience, a lifetime

In their marriage, initially there was not even a hint of romance. There was a certain tacit agreement between two sane people. Much later, feelings and awareness of the value of a family and creative union came. Walter and Tatiana Zapashny lived together for 33 years, building not only a strong family, but also creating a real strong dynasty of Zapashny

The wives of Soviet party leaders whom even their high-ranking husbands could not save from repression

The wives of Soviet party leaders whom even their high-ranking husbands could not save from repression

The women who will be discussed in this review are very different - housewives and activists, loved ones and forgiven betrayal, simpletons and intelligent ladies. One thing unites them: their husbands, who were in power and entered the highest offices, could not protect them from the steel millstones of repression

6 Soviet intelligence officers and officers who escaped from the USSR

6 Soviet intelligence officers and officers who escaped from the USSR

Soviet citizens who decided to stay in the West were usually called defectors and defectors. Among them were many scientists and representatives of the creative intelligentsia. But the most painful for the Soviet Union were the escapes of representatives of power structures, intelligence officers and diplomats. Each of them had their own reasons for fleeing, and life abroad sometimes turned out quite differently from what they dreamed of

What made 10 star actresses change their profession

What made 10 star actresses change their profession

Each of the heroines of our today's review at one time not only acted in films, but was remembered by the audience for their vivid roles. Nevertheless, all of them at some point dramatically changed their fate and preferred completely different professions to the stage and filming. Some actresses after a while returned to the theater and cinema, while others decided never to appear on the screens again. What made popular actresses change their destiny so dramatically?

Famous Soviet "defectors": why the successful and famous fled from the USSR, and how they lived abroad

Famous Soviet "defectors": why the successful and famous fled from the USSR, and how they lived abroad

The term "defector" appeared in the Soviet Union with the light hand of one of the State Security officers and came into use as a sarcastic stigma for people who left the country of the heyday of socialism for life in decaying capitalism. In those days, this word was akin to anathema, and the relatives of the "defectors" who remained in a happy socialist society were also persecuted. The reasons that pushed people to break through the "Iron Curtain" were different, and their destinies also have warehouses

In pursuit of prosperity: How did the fate of famous athletes who fled from the USSR

In pursuit of prosperity: How did the fate of famous athletes who fled from the USSR

Everyone in the USSR knew about their sports achievements - they won prizes at championships and brought gold medals from international competitions and Olympiads. However, this practically did not affect their material well-being. Therefore, some of them, finding themselves abroad, decided not to return to the USSR. True, only a few managed to achieve the same success in another country. How the fate of the fugitives and "defectors" of Soviet sports developed - further in the review

"Love the Other, No - Others, No - All ": Sofia Parnok - the fatal passion of Marina Tsvetaeva

"Love the Other, No - Others, No - All ": Sofia Parnok - the fatal passion of Marina Tsvetaeva

Each creative person has his own muse, a stimulus in the flesh, which kindles a storm in the heart of the poet, helping to give birth to artistic and poetic masterpieces. Such was Sofia Parnok for Marina Tsvetaeva - love and a catastrophe of her whole life. She dedicated many poems to Parnok that everyone knows and quotes, sometimes without even knowing who they were addressed to

Beria's list: Soviet celebrities who suffered from the sympathy of the all-powerful People's Commissar

Beria's list: Soviet celebrities who suffered from the sympathy of the all-powerful People's Commissar

The whole country knew about the special weakness of Lavrenty Beria for women. Frightening stories about a black armored car, from which the People's Commissar looked out for his victims, Muscovites passed on to each other in a whisper. Most often, Beria paid attention to stately beauties, while he was not interested in either age, marital status, or social status of the victim he chose. The list of victims at the hands of Lavrenty Beria included both ordinary girls and quite famous personalities

"Arctic Convoys", or How the British helped the USSR during the Great Patriotic War

"Arctic Convoys", or How the British helped the USSR during the Great Patriotic War

Starting the war with the USSR, the German leadership hoped that the country would find itself in political isolation, deprived of the help of other states. However, in July the Soviet Union and Great Britain became allies, and in October the United States decided to supply the belligerent anti-Hitler side - food, weapons and strategic materials. The British military undertook to deliver the cargo, which already in August 1941 formed and sent to Astrakhan the first Arctic protected

How did the fate of the children of the famous writer Viktor Dragunsky, to whom he dedicated his books?

How did the fate of the children of the famous writer Viktor Dragunsky, to whom he dedicated his books?

More than one generation of children has grown up on "Denis's Tales" by Viktor Dragunsky, and adults do not stop rereading the fascinating works of the writer. His most famous book was born out of great love for his son Denis. In total, the famous writer had three children: Leonid from his first marriage, Denis and Ksenia from his second. Did the children of Viktor Dragunsky inherit his craving for creativity and how their destinies developed - further in our review

What the famous historical beauties really looked like: Buckingham, de Bussy, Suleiman the Magnificent and others

What the famous historical beauties really looked like: Buckingham, de Bussy, Suleiman the Magnificent and others

Human beauty is one of the most subjective characteristics. Sometimes it depends more on personal charm and charisma. Therefore, often historical figures, remembered by contemporaries as famous handsome men and heartthrobs, look very mediocre in portraits and disappoint descendants. In this review, there are five men who, each in their own era, could serve as a model of attractiveness. Images created during the life of famous handsome men will help evaluate their appearance from the point of view of the 21st century

Step into the Abyss: What Pushed Famous Russian Writers to Suicide

Step into the Abyss: What Pushed Famous Russian Writers to Suicide

Mental suffering, inability to find a way out of a difficult situation, lack of money and fear of being a burden can lead to committing a fatal mistake. People of creative professions, who are distinguished by the subtlety of nature and instability of the psyche, are especially prone to suicide. What made Russian writers voluntarily leave this life against the background of external well-being?

From generation to generation: 7 famous Russian musical dynasties

From generation to generation: 7 famous Russian musical dynasties

Much has been written and said about the acting and directing dynasties, but much less information about the continuity of generations in the families of composers, musicians and opera singers. However, often, studying the biographies of the famous composer, you can see that many grew up in musical families. And the first lessons in music or composition were received from parents or close relatives

Where tourists are not allowed to take photos: 5 popular attractions around the world

Where tourists are not allowed to take photos: 5 popular attractions around the world

Now, in our digital age, with the help of our phone's camera, we can capture, it would seem, anything. Sometimes it seems to us that the whole world is open for a photo shoot and a selfie. Social networks give the impression that wherever we are, we can document absolutely everything. It seems … But still there are places in the world where photography is strictly prohibited. Here are five world attractions where photography is a very risky adventure

Iconic photographs capturing milestones in history: the fall of the Berlin Wall, Rasputin, the slave market, etc

Iconic photographs capturing milestones in history: the fall of the Berlin Wall, Rasputin, the slave market, etc

Photography is a way to look into the past. The pictures give us an idea of what life was like in those times, which today are very different from ours. They can show a tragedy, a triumph, or simply how everything has changed and is changing in the world, becoming a part of history

What priests and monks wear, or What is the difference between a cassock and a robe

What priests and monks wear, or What is the difference between a cassock and a robe

Priests, like, incidentally, monks, cannot be confused with anyone, so distinctive is their appearance, which for centuries has embodied the traditions of the Orthodox Church. One gets the impression that just out of the desire to distinguish itself from ordinary people, from the laity, the church keeps the rules for the vestments of deacons, priests, bishops, monks unshakable, does not recognize innovations in this area, due to which the modern representatives of the Orthodox clergy look almost exactly like their predecessors

Riddles of Notre Dame Cathedral and details that readers often forget

Riddles of Notre Dame Cathedral and details that readers often forget

Not just one of the most famous works of French classical literature. It is, for example, the first historical novel in its country. It is also a source of inspiration for the creators of 14 films, 1 cartoon, 2 operas, ballet and musical. are familiar with the plot of the novel, but even those who read it once excitedly do not pay attention or do not remember some interesting details

The secret of Bulgaria's golden treasures: Archaeologists have found the oldest treasure in the world

The secret of Bulgaria's golden treasures: Archaeologists have found the oldest treasure in the world

The oldest processed gold on Earth has caused a sensation in the scientific community. After all, they found it not in the Middle East, where the ancient Sumerians lived, not in Egypt, and not even in the burials of pre-Columbian America. The treasures were found in northeastern Bulgaria near Varna. This find even allowed a number of European scientists to suggest that the Varna culture should be considered the very first European civilization. Radiocarbon analysis of burial sites made by modern researchers

Valkyries of Russian epics, in which the legendary heroes fell in love and married

Valkyries of Russian epics, in which the legendary heroes fell in love and married

It was not easy for Russian heroes to marry. Not every girl can stand a hero by her side. So heroic hearts very often were kidnapped by raspberries and heroes - female warriors, whose disposition had to be literally won. The heroes did not tolerate weaklings near them. The hero could find his betrothed in an open field, or he could at a feast with the prince - judging by the song of the epics, the raspberries were feasting there at the same table with the heroes

6 world hits and curious stories associated with them

6 world hits and curious stories associated with them

Nothing comes from nowhere and goes nowhere - this common phrase can well be attributed to the creation of musical hits. Each of them has its own story, and sometimes it can turn out to be no less vivid than the song itself. In this review, we will tell the stories behind the creation of the world's most famous hits

In memory of the great actor: 7 women who left a bright mark on the fate of Vasily Lanovoy

In memory of the great actor: 7 women who left a bright mark on the fate of Vasily Lanovoy

On January 28, 2021, the great artist, popular favorite Vasily Lanovoy passed away. He remained optimistic and cheerful until the last day of his life. On account of his more than 80 works in cinema, about 70 literary and poetry recordings and radio performances, over 60 roles in the theater. The personal life of Vasily Semyonovich was not easy. He found his happiness only on the third attempt, but not only his wives left their mark on the fate of the great actor

Post in memory of Valentin Gaft: Gone is a shy genius who "does not rhyme with anything "

Post in memory of Valentin Gaft: Gone is a shy genius who "does not rhyme with anything "

Valentin Iosifovich Gaft is a whole era in theater, cinema, on television. The era that December 12, 2020 went with him. He was multifaceted and contradictory, in the most incredible way he combined incredible charm and a rare uncompromising attitude, shyness and self-esteem. It was not for nothing that Mikhail Kazakov once wrote the lines: “About Gaft to rhyme? What for? Gaft doesn't rhyme with anything … "

How the young priestess of love managed to deprive the UK of the government: Model Christine Keeler

How the young priestess of love managed to deprive the UK of the government: Model Christine Keeler

This young beauty, who only dreamed of living in abundance, unexpectedly became a key figure in the nationwide spy scandal that broke out in Great Britain in the early 1960s. It was she who contributed to the collapse of the Conservative government of Harold Macmillan, but the details of this case will be hidden under the heading "Secret" for another quarter of a century. Christine Keeler herself has long gone down in history

Why the star of the film "Spring on Zarechnaya Street" refused to give an interview: Nina Ivanova

Why the star of the film "Spring on Zarechnaya Street" refused to give an interview: Nina Ivanova

The audience first saw Nina Ivanova on the screen in 1944 in the film "Once upon a time there was a girl" about the besieged Leningrad, and years later the premiere of the film "Spring on Zarechnaya Street" took place, making the young actress the favorite of the entire Soviet Union. But after such a brilliant start to her career, Nina Ivanova rarely starred, and then completely disappeared from the screens. On December 1, 2020, Nina Ivanova passed away. Only a few friends and relatives came to say goodbye to her