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Russians name their icons and heroes of the 20th century

For almost 20 years, Russians have viewed the first man in space Yuri Gagarin, singer-songwriter and actor Vladimir Vysotsky and Soviet Marshal Georgy Zhukov as the 20th century’s key icons
Vladimir Vysotsky  Sergei Metelitsa/TASS
Vladimir Vysotsky
© Sergei Metelitsa/TASS

MOSCOW, January 23. /TASS/. For almost 20 years, Russians have viewed the first man in space Yuri Gagarin, singer-songwriter and actor Vladimir Vysotsky and Soviet Marshal Georgy Zhukov as the 20th century’s key icons, the All-Russia Public Opinion Research Center said in a statement on Tuesday.

"Vladimir Vysotsky remains one of Russia’s foremost 20th century icons, as 28% of those surveyed in 2018 mentioned his name, compared to 31% in 1999. Vysotsky is second following Yuri Gagarin (44% in 2018)," the statement said. Soviet Marshal and four-time Hero of the Soviet Union Georgy Zhukov came in third.

The poll, conducted in the run-up to Vysotsky’s 80th anniversary, shows that almost every Russian knows his name, while 92% of those familiar with his work said that they had been positively affected by it.

"As many as 67% of Russians familiar with Vysotsky’s name believe that he strongly influenced the views of his contemporaries and the following generations. At the same time, 53% of those surveyed say that his creative activities were not aimed at protesting against the Soviet system, while 34% see it otherwise," the pollster added.

Vladimir Vysotsky (1938-1980) was a Soviet singer-songwriter, poet and actor. He wrote more than 600 songs, played at Moscow’s Taganka Drama and Comedy Theater, and starred in many movies. In 1986, Vysotsky was posthumously awarded the title of the Honored Artist of the Russian Soviet Republic, while in 1987 he was awarded the USSR State Prize. January 25 will mark Vysotsky’s 80th anniversary.

The nationwide telephone poll, involving 2,000 people, was conducted on January 19-20. The margin of error does not exceed 2.2% at the 95% confidence level.