She was called the master of the episode, and no wonder: in her entire career, the actress Zoya Vasilkova played in more than a hundred films and was never deprived of the attention of the directors. About eventful fate of Zoya Nikolaevna is described further.
Childhood
The addition in the family of Nikolai and Zoya Vasilkov appeared at the very beginning of May 1926. It turned out - daughter; the girl was named the same as her mother, Zoyushka. The available information about in which city this significant event took place differs: some sources claim that in Leningrad, others - that in Ukraine, because the girl’s father, who was a soldier, was serving there at that time. There is more reason to believe the second version, since the actress herself voiced similar information in one of her interviews.
About how Zoya lived until she was seventeen, practically nothing is known. In one of the interviews, the matured actress herself mentioned that at school she dreamed of becoming a long-distance navigator, she was a fighting girl, the so-called barefoot. Obviously, the family often moved because of the work of his father. So, at the age of sixteen (this was the forty-second year) Zoya and her mother were in Baku. The head of the family was already at the front, and exactly one year later, barely reaching seventeen, his daughter went to the front.
Front life
Zoya Vasilkova was only seventeen when she volunteered to go to the front. As the actress herself later recalled, she could not stand aside, being a fighting, hot girl, she believed that it was her direct duty to protect her homeland. Nobody could dissuade her, not even mom. For the time being, the father did not know about the act of his only daughter, since he fought. After Zoya was taken away, her mother wrote to her father, and he was able to ensure that his daughter was transferred to his unit.
In World War II, Zoya Vasilkova got a very responsible task: she was a meteorologist in the anti-aircraft part. Her tasks included the correct determination of weather conditions, wind - so that anti-aircraft gunners could precisely direct shells, and they hit straight at the target. Thus, it depended on how successful the attempts to bring down the enemy would become, and Zoya gave all the best. And in her free time she devoted herself to amateur performances - this was also a place among the fights.
Wound
However, one should not think that Zoya Vasilkova sat in the rear and did not see the hardships of military life. Got in the war and her. Literally in the very first days after arrival, the girl was seriously injured. The blame for the ridiculous accident, of which life often consists. Zoe’s father was hospitalized with appendicitis, and his daughter went to visit him. The car in which the young front-line soldier was caught was bombed. After the explosion, it was carried directly onto faulty tram rails, in front of which a large pit was dug. As a result of this incident, Zoe flew forward through the windshield. The whole face was cut out with fragments to such an extent that later in the hospital he had to literally sew again. The actress recalled later that at that time she could not look at herself in the mirror without horror.
In total, Zoya Vasilkova spent a year and a half on the front, until October 1944, when, in her own words, she and other women were sent home. Together with her part, Zoya walked many kilometers, visited several cities - Voronezh, Nizhyn, Kursk, Kiev.
She endured a lot, she saw a lot. It was hard and scary. But nevertheless, in almost every interview, Zoya Nikolaevna rather willingly recalled those days - unlike many front-line soldiers who did not want to talk about the war.
New life
Returning home in the forty-fourth year, Zoya Vasilkova began to prepare for admission to the institute. Of course, she no longer thought about becoming a navigator of long-distance navigation. The girl chose the architectural institute. Before the war, she drew well and thought that she quite sees herself as an architect. However, she did not work out with studies. The thing is that in the first year there was physics, and not just there - she was given a very significant role. But with the physics, the future actress was still having trouble, so after the first semester Zoe left the institute - and not just anywhere, but to the music school. She had a good voice, she sang quite cleanly. Unfortunately, in the future, already becoming an actress, Zoya Vasilkova never had to use her vocal data.
Life decision
The second semester, Zoe studied at a music school. And the next year it was decided to go to the conservatory. The girl was preparing for this admission in the summer together with her vocal teacher when a fateful meeting for Zoe with the director of a theater institute took place. It was he who advised her to go to the conservatory, but he threw an idea about the theater. Thanks to this person, the set of the Kiev Theater Institute of that year was replenished with another student - Zoya Vasilkova.
Moscow. VGIK
In the Kiev theater Zoya, I had a chance to study nothing at all, only the first year. Despite the fact that the war was over, nobody canceled the military service of her father. He was again transferred - this time to the capital of our country, Moscow. Of course, the family went with him, no one thought to leave Zoya alone.
At first, the future artist wanted to transfer to any Moscow theater university. I went to the Pike and Sliver. However, everywhere she was refused, offered to re-enter the first year. About the same, to take her to the second, nowhere was there any talk. Once again, Zoya did not want to enter the first year. Of course, she was upset. But then a random acquaintance in the corridors of one of the theater institutes advised her to go to VGIK, the institute of cinematographers, just for the second year, to a certain Vasily Vasilyevich Vanin. And even gave a phone number. For some reason, Zoya obeyed, called the master, and then met with him. The teacher listened to the applicant herself, then arranged an audition in front of all future fellow students. Said, "If you guys like it, I'll take it!" I liked her, they took her. Thus began a new milestone in the biography of Zoya Vasilkova.
After study
In VGIK in those years there was an unwritten rule: if you graduate from the institute perfectly, with honors, then without any problems you automatically get to the Theater of Cinematographers. Otherwise, look for a job for yourself.
Vasilkova had nothing to worry about - she graduated from high school with honors, so she got the job without difficulty. For a whole year she worked at the Theater of Cinematographers. But the time was post-war, the Soviet Union was far from the film industry and the theater - in general, there were few roles. And tired of sitting idle, a year later Zoya, together with her first husband, left under a contract for China.
First marriage
Yes, at that moment Zoya was already married - to her classmate named Yura. Their marriage turned out to be something very fast: they fell in love literally as soon as Zoya began to study with these guys, and almost three days after the beginning of the relationship decided to get married.
Together with Yuri, Zoya got into the theater, together they made the decision to leave the country.
Foreign life
In total, Zoya Vasilkova spent several years abroad. First, two years in China, then briefly returned to Russia and again left - this time to Poland. Then there was another return and another departure, already to Germany. Only after their national troupe toured all of Germany on tour, Zoya and Yuri finally returned to their homeland and settled in the capital.
Filmography of Zoe Vasilkova
This is not to say that Zoya was less beautiful or less talented than many other actresses who graduated with her or before and after her. However, it happens for some reason in life that some artists take on the main roles, give them characteristic characters, while others are mostly occupied in episodes all their lives. That is exactly what happened with Zoe. As noted above, she was often called the recognized master of the episode. So it was, because she played most of her roles in episodic scenes. Probably, she was upset due to the fact that they rarely called for the main roles.
However, she did not refuse any offers, because she was afraid to remain without work at all. And she tried to make each episode, each its at least the smallest appearance in the frame, as noticeable, outstanding and memorable. Today, the name of Zoya Nikolaevna, perhaps, will say little to people, but it is worth recalling at least one of some of her roles, and it immediately becomes clear in my head who is being discussed. What is worth at least a remarkably fulfilled role of an adviser in the fairy-tale film "Fire, water and ... copper pipes"! And the janitor from "Gentlemen of Fortune", the one who scolded the unlucky four, headed by Eugene Leonov-Associate Professor!
Some examples of paintings
Among the films in which the actress starred, one can distinguish such films as “The Kingdom of Curved Mirrors”, “Sisters” (Zoya Vasilkova played the role of Rastorgueva, but was not indicated in the credits), “Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka”, “Fairy Tale” about lost time "," Children of Don Quixote "," Garnet Bracelet "and so on. She even had the chance to play Empress Catherine the Second - and try on the outfits that the queen actually wore. This happened in the movie Evenings on a Farm Near Dikanka. Zoya Vasilkova generally starred a lot in fairy-tale, comedy films, although she herself admitted that she wanted to play a tragic role all her life.
On the personal front
As mentioned above, even at the institute, Zoe married a fellow student. This happened in the second year, and a year later the couple had their first and only child - son Andrei. In the footsteps of his parents, he did not go, first devoting himself to a military career, and then taking up business. From him, Zoya Nikolaevna has a granddaughter Katya. The very marriage of Zoe and Yuri broke up after twenty years.
The artist did not marry anymore, but not only her son, daughter-in-law and granddaughter were Zoya Vasilkova’s family. Already in her declining years, shortly before her death, Zoya Nikolaevna met her first love - Felix Ivanov, who became a sailor. They fell in love at sixteen in Baku, but the war divorced them. Only after so many years have they been fortunate enough to meet. The last years of the artist they spent together.
Interesting facts about Zoya Vasilkova
1. The father of the artist had the rank of lieutenant general.
2. In China, Zoya directed amateur performances at the Palace of Culture.
3. The girl’s first film role took place in 1949, the first film for her was the film “They Have a Homeland”.
4. She starred in films with Alexander Rowe and Alexander Ptushko.
5. The artist was able to drive a car (and learned during the filming, it was required for one of her roles) and preferred to all other brands exclusively bright-colored “Cossacks”.
6. After meeting with her first love, Felix (who, by the way, found contacts of Zoya Nikolaevna with the help of his friends, kgbeshnikov), Vasilkova moved from Moscow to him in St. Petersburg.
7. In the early eighties, the actress taught the Finns the Russian language in a series of specialized programs on Finnish television.
8. The granddaughter of Zoya Nikolaevna Katya once starred in the movie - in the film "For family reasons" she played Helen.
Then she was four years old. Everything happened by accident: just grandmother brought her granddaughter with her to Mosfilm on business, and just at that time he met the director of the above-mentioned picture. This was her first and only appearance in cinema - her parents were against this kind of activity, and Katerina graduated from the Faculty of Philology.
9. In the film “The meeting place cannot be changed” Zoya Nikolaevna played the victim. However, few people know that this character was actually played by three actresses at once.
Zoya Nikolaevna Vasilkova died in 2008. She is buried in the Novodevichy cemetery in the capital.