Yelena Ivanovna Kondulainen (; born 9 April 1958 as ''Lembi Kontulainen'') is a Russian Ingrian actress,

Honored Artist of the Russian Federation Merited Artist of the Russian Federation (, ''Zasluzhenny artist Rossiyskoy Federatsii''), also known as Honored Artist of Russia, is an honorary title in the Russian Federation. The title is awarded to actors, directors, filmmakers, writers, d ...

(2002),Почётное звание присвоено указом президента № 116 от 31 января 2002 года
and pop singer.

Life and career

Kondulainen comes from a family of

Ingrian Finns Ingrian Finns (, ; ) are the Finnish people, Finnish population of Ingria (now the central part of Leningrad Oblast in Russia), descending from Lutheranism, Lutheran Finnish immigrants introduced into the area in the 17th century, when Finland ...

. In 1983, she graduated from the

Saint Petersburg State Theatre Arts Academy The Russian State Institute of Performing Arts (), formerly known as St Petersburg Theatre Arts Academy, formerly Leningrad State Institute of Theatre, Music, and Cinema (LGITMiK), is a theatre school in Saint Petersburg. It is the oldest Russian ...

(course of

Georgy Tovstonogov Georgy Aleksandrovich Tovstonogov (, – 23 May 1989) was a Russian-Georgians, Georgian theatre director. He was the leader of the Tovstonogov Bolshoi Drama Theater, Gorky Bolshoi Drama Theater which was renamed after him in 1992. Biography G ...

). She has starred in more than 40 movies. When Kondulainen began to receive fame with the daring movie roles she played in the late 1980s, her looks were often compared – for instance – to those of

Marilyn Monroe Marilyn Monroe ( ; born Norma Jeane Mortenson; June 1, 1926 August 4, 1962) was an American actress and model. Known for playing comic "Blonde stereotype#Blonde bombshell, blonde bombshell" characters, she became one of the most popular sex ...

and

Marlene Dietrich Marie Magdalene "Marlene" DietrichBorn as Maria Magdalena, not Marie Magdalene, according to Dietrich's biography by her daughter, Maria Riva ; however, Dietrich's biography by Charlotte Chandler cites "Marie Magdalene" as her birth name . (, ; ...

. Soon, she began to be referred to as the first-ever

sex symbol A sex symbol or icon is a person or character widely considered sexually attractive and often synonymous with sexuality. Pam Cook, "The trouble with sex: Diana Dors and the Blonde bombshell phenomenon", In: Bruce Babinigton (ed.), ''British St ...

of the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

(1922–1991), and following her performance in the 1990 movie ''

100 Days Before the Command ''100 Days Before the Command'' (, translit. Sto dney do prikaza) is a 1990 Soviet drama film directed by Hussein Erkenov, inspired by the eponymous novel written by Yuri Polyakov. In order to get Gorki Studios to provide funding for the f ...

'' also the first sex symbol in the

Russian Federation Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

(a.k.a. Russia; founded in 1991).An interview with Yelena Kondulainen by Arja Paananen in Moscow, published in the largest Finnish daily, Iltasanomat, on 6 October 2018 (in Finnish)
A quote from the article: ''"Kun Kondulainen alkoi kerätä kuuluisuutta 1980-luvun lopussa rohkeilla elokuvarooleillaan, hänen ulkonäköjään verrattiin usein esimerkiksi Marilyn Monroeen tai Marlene Dietrichiin. Pian häntä ryhdyttiinkin kutsumaan ”Neuvostoliiton ensimmäiseksi seksisymboliksi”."''Елена Кондулайнен / Elena Kondulainen
/ref> In 1993, Kondulainen entered politics, but only for a brief time, to help promote a movement and political party in

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

known as ''Free Love''. Kondulainen composes music for her own songs and writes lyrics for them. She has also continuously been active in various theater arts productions. Her recent acting roles have included e.g. one in which she plays

Catherine the Great Catherine II. (born Princess Sophie of Anhalt-Zerbst; 2 May 172917 November 1796), most commonly known as Catherine the Great, was the reigning empress of Russia from 1762 to 1796. She came to power after overthrowing her husband, Peter I ...

(a.k.a. Catherine II).

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kondulainen, Yelena 1958 births Living people People from Vsevolozhsky District 21st-century Russian women singers Russian people of Finnish descent Soviet film actresses Russian film actresses Russian State Institute of Performing Arts alumni Honored Artists of the Russian Federation People of Ingrian Finnish descent