Vladimir Aleksandrovich Sokoloff (Russian: Ð'Ð»Ð°Ð´Ð¸Ì Ð¼Ð¸Ñ€
Ð Ð»ÐµÐºÑ Ð°Ì Ð½Ð´Ñ€Ð¾Ð²Ð¸Ñ‡ Ð¡Ð¾ÐºÐ¾Ð»Ð¾Ì Ð²; December 26, 1889 â€"
February 15, 1962) was a Russian-American character actor of stage and
screen. After studying theatre in Moscow, he began his professional
film career in Germany and France during the Silent era, before
emigrating to the United States in the 1930s. He appeared in over 100
films and television series, often playing supporting characters of
various nationalities and ethnicities.Sokoloff was born in Moscow,
Russia, to a German Jewish family. He was raised bilingual, speaking
both Russian and German. He studied theatre in Moscow, first at the
Moscow State University and later at the Russian Academy of Theatre
Arts, graduating in 1913. At one point a pupil of Constantin
Stanislavski, but he would later reject Method acting (as well as all
other acting theories).Upon graduation, he joined the Moscow Art
Theatre as an actor and assistant director. Later in the decade, he
joined the Kamerny Theatre. In the early 1923, he toured with his
troupe in Germany, where he met dramatist Max Reinhardt, who invited
him to stay in Berlin. He appeared in numerous stage productions, and
began acting in German and Austrian films, including The Love of
Jeanne Ney (1927), The Ship of Lost Souls (1929), Farewell (1930), and
Darling of the Gods (1930).With the rise of Nazism, the Jewish
Sokoloff moved first to Paris in 1932, where he continued to act on
stage and screen. In 1937, he emigrated to the United States. Although
he spoke very little English at the time of his arrival, his first
stage role there was a lead in Georg Büchner's play Danton's Death,
under the direction of Orson Welles. Welles insisted that it would be
demeaning for an actor of Sokoloff's reputation to play a small role
and personally coached him in his English for the role, which he did
phonetically. It was said that Welles was in awe of him and frequently
asked him about his career in the Moscow Arts Theatre.
Ð Ð»ÐµÐºÑ Ð°Ì Ð½Ð´Ñ€Ð¾Ð²Ð¸Ñ‡ Ð¡Ð¾ÐºÐ¾Ð»Ð¾Ì Ð²; December 26, 1889 â€"
February 15, 1962) was a Russian-American character actor of stage and
screen. After studying theatre in Moscow, he began his professional
film career in Germany and France during the Silent era, before
emigrating to the United States in the 1930s. He appeared in over 100
films and television series, often playing supporting characters of
various nationalities and ethnicities.Sokoloff was born in Moscow,
Russia, to a German Jewish family. He was raised bilingual, speaking
both Russian and German. He studied theatre in Moscow, first at the
Moscow State University and later at the Russian Academy of Theatre
Arts, graduating in 1913. At one point a pupil of Constantin
Stanislavski, but he would later reject Method acting (as well as all
other acting theories).Upon graduation, he joined the Moscow Art
Theatre as an actor and assistant director. Later in the decade, he
joined the Kamerny Theatre. In the early 1923, he toured with his
troupe in Germany, where he met dramatist Max Reinhardt, who invited
him to stay in Berlin. He appeared in numerous stage productions, and
began acting in German and Austrian films, including The Love of
Jeanne Ney (1927), The Ship of Lost Souls (1929), Farewell (1930), and
Darling of the Gods (1930).With the rise of Nazism, the Jewish
Sokoloff moved first to Paris in 1932, where he continued to act on
stage and screen. In 1937, he emigrated to the United States. Although
he spoke very little English at the time of his arrival, his first
stage role there was a lead in Georg Büchner's play Danton's Death,
under the direction of Orson Welles. Welles insisted that it would be
demeaning for an actor of Sokoloff's reputation to play a small role
and personally coached him in his English for the role, which he did
phonetically. It was said that Welles was in awe of him and frequently
asked him about his career in the Moscow Arts Theatre.
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