Biography
Nikolai Gritsenko was a notable Soviet actor known for the role of Karenin in Anna Karenina (1967) by director Aleksandr Zarkhi, and as a Nazi General in TV series 'Semnadtsat mgnovenii vesny' by director Tatyana Lioznova.
He was born Nikolai Olimpiyevich Gritsenko on July 24, 1912, in Yasynuvata, Donetsk province, Russian Empire (now Donetsk oblast, Ukraine). In 1934, he graduated from Makeevka School of musical drama, then studied acting in Kyiv. From 1937 to 1940, he studied acting at Shchukin Theatrical School of the Vakhtangov Theatre in Moscow, graduating in 1940 as an actor.
From 1940 to 1979, Nikolai Gritsenko was a permanent member of the troupe at Vakhtangov Theatre in Moscow. There his stage partners were such actors as Mikhail Ulyanov, Ruben Simonov, Boris Zakhava, Mikhail Astangov, Vladimir Etush, Varvara Popova, Irina Kupchenko, Natalya Tenyakova, Yuliya Borisova, Lyudmila Maksakova, Lyudmila Tselikovskaya, Marianna Vertinskaya, Nina Ruslanova, Nikolai Plotnikov, Vasiliy Lanovoy, Yuriy Yakovlev, Vyacheslav Shalevich, Andrei Abrikosov, Grigori Abrikosov, Boris Babochkin, Nikolai Timofeyev, Aleksandr Grave, and Evgeniy Karelskikh, among others. His most memorable stage performances were such roles as Fedor Protasov in "Zhivoy Trup" (1962) (aka. The Living Corpse) after the eponymous novel by Lev Tolstoy, and the title role as Prince Myshkin in Dostoyevsky's "Idiot" (1958). Gritsenko created the role of Tartalya in 'Princess Turandot' (1963) and delivered many acclaimed performances in the legendary Vakhtangov's production of Carlo Gozzi's comedy.
Nikolai Gritsenko was designated People's Actor of the USSR (1964). He was awarded the State Prize of Russia for his stage work, and was awarded the State Prize of the USSR (1951) for his role in the film Dream of a Cossack (1951). He died of heart failure on December 8, 1979, in Moscow, Russia, Soviet Union, and was laid to rest in the Novodevichy Cemetery in Moscow, Russia.
