Ielena Maksimova
Elena Alexandrovna Maksimova (23.11.1905—23.09.1986) was born in Moscow to a grocer father (he sold non-perishable goods) and a housewife mother, who was often ill. Apart from her, there were two other daughters in the family. Following her father's death in 1920, her mother was forced by poverty to send all three daughters to Orphanage No. 55, located in the Sokolniki district. Shortly after, in 1922, her mother also passed. Thus, at the age of 17, she was left completely orphaned.
From an early age, Elena Maximova had dreamed of becoming an actress. When she finished schooling in 1925, she immediately went to the film studio attached to ‘Moskprofobor’ (Москпрофобр) to sit her entrance exams. There was only one free place available, and it went to Elena – as the most talented of all the applicants. From 1925 to 1927, she trained under the guidance of renowned film masters Vladimir Gardin and Konstantin Eggert. Alongside her studies at the film studio, Elena Maksimova had to work as a press operator at a button factory.
She worked in film since 1927, appearing in productions by various film studios in Moscow and Leningrad. Between 1940 and 1964, she was an actress at the Soyuzdetfilm studio (now the Gorky Film Studio).
Honoured Artist of the RSFSR (30 September 1958). The characters she portrayed were distinguished by their realism and attention to everyday detail. Her heroines were most often active, energetic and impetuous, yet she was equally at home with gentle, lyrical roles. She served Soviet cinema for nearly fifty years, and her work was modest and selfless — rarely in supporting roles, but more often in small cameos.
Photos
Films (88)
A Small Favor
1984
Streak of Luck
1983
To My People!
1983
Assol
1983
The Secret Agent's Return
1982 · Utkin's neighbour
Carnival
1982 · visitor of the pawnshop
The Secret of the Notebook
1981 · Glafira Petrovna
Rebirth
1981 · домработница Дарья Алексеевна
We'll Be Waiting, Come Back
1981 · babushka
Shot In The Back
1980 · Вера Николаевна
The Soldier and the Elephant
1978
Without Father
1977 · Glafira
This Disturbing Winter
1976
Storm on the Land
1976
The Last Meeting
1974 · Drenched Passerby
Conscience
1974
Birds Over the City
1974
Fulfillment of Desires
1974
Duration of the Day
1974
The Red Snowball Tree
1974
This Merry Planet
1973 · мать Прошки
The Sky Behind the Clouds
1973
Right to Jump
1973
Alka's Songs
1973 · бабка Анфиса
Declaration of Love to G.T.
1971 · Old Woman
New Year's Abduction
1970 · Maksimova
Time to Live
1969
Ivan Makarovich
1968
The Gypsy
1967 · Lushchilikha
Such a Big Boy
1967 · Filippovna
Afterlight
1966
Someone Else's Name
1966 · Babushka
The Conscience
1966 · Елена Евгеньевна
The Stars of the Day
1966
Они не пройдут
1965 · The passenger of the tram
Beloved
1965 · Нина Петровна
Sorcerer Island
1965 · Marya Stepanovna
Black Business
1965 · Aunt Masha
Father of a Soldier
1965 · Borya's grandma
Early in the Morning
1965 · мать Жени Горохова
Null kolm
1965
The Green House
1964 · Marfa Nikolayevna
Summer is Short in the Mountains
1964 · Praskovya Savvishna
Meeting at the Crossing
1964 · woman in boat
The Judgment
1962 · woman at a court hearing (uncredited)
No Fear, No Blame
1962 · janitor
Yevdokiya
1961 · Maryushka
Chronicle of Flaming Years
1961 · mother of the disabled person
In Transit
1961
Miraculous One
1960
The Song of Koltsov
1959 · Aleksey Koltsov's mother
The Sun Shines to Everyone
1959 · Pelageya Ivanovna
In the Silence of Steppe
1959 · Anfisa
Strict Woman
1959
A Home for Tanya
1959 · Makarikha
King of Diamonds
1959
The Volunteers
1958 · (uncredited)
Rains
1958
"Чудотворец" из Бирюлёва
1958 · Манефа
Quiet Flows the Don
1957 · Кошевая
The Tight Knot
1957
Height
1957 · Berestova
Polyushko, pole
1957
For the Power of the Soviets
1956
Other People's Relatives
1956 · Varvara Stepanovna
Two Captains
1955 · aunt Dasha
The Grasshopper
1955 · krestyanka iz Glukhova
The Frigid Sea
1955 · Dergachikha
Incident in the Taiga
1954
Admiral Ushakov
1953 · Wife of doctor Yermolaev (uncredited)
The Country Doctor
1952
First-Year Student
1948 · Woman with flowers
The Old Courtyard
1941 · жиличка
The New Land
1940
A Personal Matter
1940 · Vitya Surikov's mother
Stepan Razin
1939 · Woman in the crowd (uncredited)
Pugachev
1937
Aerograd
1935 · Mariia Kudina
Men and Jobs
1932 · Worker woman (uncredited)
A Personal Affair
1932
Killing to Live
1931
And Quiet Flows the Don
1931 · Daria Melekhova
Earth
1930 · Natalia, Vasyl's bride
Ranks and People
1929 · Modest's servant - Anna na shee
The Other Woman
1929 · Provincial lady
The Last Attraction
1929 · Polly
A Bright City
1928 · Marusenka
The Peasant Women of Ryazan
1927 · Lukerya
