January 7, 1917
In Vladimir province I was born Nina Sazonova — Soviet actress and singer. "Our woman of the people."
She grew up in a musical family: her father was a virtuoso violinist, her mother a guitarist, and her older siblings played the accordion and balalaika. On weekends, they all held house concerts together.
Her love for the theatre stage began in elementary school, when she made her debut in a school play as Kolobok.
This wonderful role was rightfully mine: I was a smart, nimble, and agile girl.
From the age of 15, she worked as an accountant and was involved in the drama club. At 17, despite her parents' objections, she went to Moscow — to enroll in the studio at the Central Theater of the Red Army. She passed the high competition, performing Russian folk songs.
She played at the Central Theatre of the Soviet Army almost until the end of her life – more than 60 years.
During the Great Patriotic War, she performed for soldiers on the front lines. One day, while walking from one military unit to another, she stepped on a mine and stood there for about an hour until fellow travelers brought a sapper.
In the summer of 1942, at the age of 25, she and her concert crew found themselves encircled near Kharkov. She struggled to return to the rear: first, she was captured by Soviet intelligence, then interrogated by the NKVD. This undermined her mental health; she was later diagnosed with schizophrenia.
She entered the film industry in the late 50s, debuting as the mother in "Poem of the Sea." Alexandra Dovzhenko (1958).
Sazonova is the embodiment of Russian motherhood
(Vasily Shukshin)
From then on, she was cast as a simple woman of the people. Soviet women easily recognized themselves in her heroines.
After the premiere of the film “There Lives Such a Guy” (1964) – Sazonova played the role of Aunt Anisya – the director Vasily Shukshin I received this letter:
Comrade director, who's playing this Aunt Anisya? If it's our village woman, explain how she was taught to act. And if it's an actress, then why is she so village-like?
She became popular nationwide at 52, after the release of the film Women (1966), in which she played the role of the chairwoman of the factory committee.
— Why can’t I wish a good fate for my only son?
- Who knows, Katya, where she is, fate
("Women")
The songs of her heroines - "Waltz of Parting" from "Women", "Standing at the Half-Station" from "Day after Day" (1971) and "Daisies Hid" ("Why do you, girls, love beautiful women?") from "My Street" (1970) - were sung by the whole country.
When Sazonova began singing "The Daisies Have Hidden," absolute silence fell on the set. Everyone froze: those involved in filming the episode, the makeup artists, the lighting technicians, and the studio's support staff. All the cleaning ladies put down their buckets and froze.
(songwriter Igor Shaferan)
After her role as Aunt Pasha in the first Soviet TV series, "Day by Day" (1971), Sazonova began receiving thousands of letters. The envelopes read: "Moscow. To Aunt Pasha."
During her tour of the Soviet Union, fans showered her with gifts—there were so many of them that she had to buy a separate compartment for storage.
How can you refuse to come and meet with soldiers and workers? I don't like the criminal underworld.
On the night of 2001–2002, she experienced a tragedy: her drunken son beat her unconscious and the next morning jumped from the 11th floor, believing he had killed his mother. Sazonova was hospitalized, and after her discharge, she was cared for by a nurse who claimed to be a relative (and who ultimately took her three-room apartment in central Moscow along with her valuables).
The actress spent her final days in a nursing home. She died in 2004, at the age of 87.