The photograph of Livanov as Sherlock Holmes is said to be the largest of those gracing the walls of the Sherlock Holmes Museum in Baker Street.

Vasily Borisovich Livanov OBE (Russian: Васи́лий Бори́сович Лива́нов) (born 19 July 1935) is one of the most easily recognizable Russian and Soviet film actors, a screenwriter, a voice actor and the only one to receive an Order of the British Empire (of the second degree, for his portrayal of Sherlock Holmes). Image File history File links Livanov. ... Image File history File links Livanov. ... A portrait of Sherlock Holmes from the Strand Magazine, 1891 Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, who first appeared in publication in 1887. ... The Sherlock Holmes Museum is a privately-run museum and popular tourist attraction dedicated to the fictional detective Sherlock Holmes. ... 94 Baker Street, formerly the Apple Boutique. ... Commanders Badge of the Order of the British Empire (Military division) The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by King George V. The Order includes five classes in civil and military divisions; in decreasing order of seniority... July 19 is the 200th day (201st in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 165 days remaining. ... 1935 (MCMXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar). ... Soviet redirects here. ... Screenwriters, scenarists or script writers, are authors who write the screenplays from which movies and television programs are made. ... A voice actor (also a voice artist) is a person who provides voices for animated characters (including those in feature films, television series, animated shorts), voice-overs in radio and television commercials, audio dramas, dubbed foreign language films, video games, puppet shows, and amusement rides. ... Commanders Badge of the Order of the British Empire (Military division) The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by King George V. The Order includes five classes in civil and military divisions; in decreasing order of seniority... A portrait of Sherlock Holmes from the Strand Magazine, 1891 Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, who first appeared in publication in 1887. ...

His father was Boris Livanov, a preeminent actor of the Moscow Art Theatre and probably the most acclaimed stage actor of his generation. Vasily was brought up in the artistic milieu, as many of the greatest Russian actors (such as Olga Knipper and Alla Tarasova) worked with his father and frequented the Livanov house. The Moscow Art Theatre is a theatre company in Moscow, Russia, founded in 1897 by Konstantin Stanislavsky and Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko. ... Olga Leonardovna Knipper (1869-1959) was among the 39 original members of the Moscow Art Theatre, when the latter was formed by Konstantin Stanislavsky in 1898. ... Alla Konstantinovna Tarasova (1898-1973) was a leading actress of Konstantin Stanislavskys Moscow Art Theatre from the late 1920s onward. ...

Livanov graduated from the Vakhtangov Theatre school and started his film career in 1959. His breakthrough role came in the 1963 adaptation of Vasily Aksyonov's Colleagues, in which he co-starred with Vasily Lanovoy and Oleg Anofriev. Yevgeny Vakhtangov Yevgeny (Eugene) Bagrationovich Vakhtangov (February 13, 1883-May 29, 1922) was a renowned Russian director who founded the Vakhtangov Theatre in Moscow. ... Year 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1963 (MCMLXIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (the link is to a full 1963 calendar). ... Vasily Pavlovich Aksyonov (Russian: Василий Павлович Аксёнов, born August 20, 1932 in Kazan) is a Russian novelist who began his career in the Soviet era. ... Vasily Semyonovich Lanovoy (Russian: Василий Семенович Лановой) is a Ukrainian-born Russian actor who works in the Vakhtangov Theatre, Moscow. ...

Livanov's rather erratic bohemian lifestyle all but derailed his film career. He made very few appearances in the movies produced in the late 1960s and 1970s, using his newly acquired hoarse voice to become the voice behind the famous Russian cartoon characters – Karlsson-on-the-Roof and Crocodile Gena. His other major contribution to the Soyuzmultfilm cartoon industry was writing the modernized adaptation of Town Musicians of Bremen, which went on to become a cult Soviet cartoon film of the 1970s. He also wrote a few more animated films, such as The Blue Bird. Karlsson-on-the-Roof from a Russian cartoon, voiced by Vasily Livanov. ... Gena playing his accordion Crocodile Gena (Крокодил Гена) is a fictional friendly crocodile in the series of Cheburashka books by Russian writer Eduard Uspensky and also in the animated films based on the series by Soyuzmultfilm studio. ... Winnie-the-Pooh by Soyuzmultfilm The Studio Soyuzmultfilm () is the most important Soviet animation film studio, founded in 1935 under the name of Soyuzdetmultfilm. ... The Town Musicians of Bremen, erected in 1951. ... The Blue Bird (Russian: ) is a 1970 Soviet animated feature film based upon the play by Maurice Maeterlinck. ...

In the late 1970's and in the 1980's, Livanov returned to film stardom in what became the greatest success of his acting career – the role of Sherlock Holmes in The Hound of the Baskervilles and other TV series directed by Igor Maslennikov. The Russians believe that Livanov was the most believable and authentic Holmes to ever grace the screen. His other notable roles from the period included Don Quixote and Tsar Nicholas I. A portrait of Sherlock Holmes from the Strand Magazine, 1891 Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, who first appeared in publication in 1887. ... The Hound of the Baskervilles (Russian: ) is a 1981 Soviet film adaptation of Arthur Conan Doyles novel of the same name. ... Igor Fyodorovich Maslennikov (Russian: ) (b. ... (IPA: ), fully titled (IPA: ) (the ingenious hidalgo Don Quijote of La Mancha) is an early novel written by Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra. ... Nicholas I Pavlovich (Russian: Николай I Павлович, July 6 (June 25, Old Style), 1796–March 2 (February 18, Old Style), 1855) was the Emperor of Russia and king of Poland from 1825 until his death in...

Sherlock Holmes short stories and novels that were featured in Livanov's movies included: A Study In Scarlet, The Adventure of the Speckled Band, The Hound of the Baskervilles,The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton, The Adventure of the Final Problem, The Adventure of the Empty House, A Scandal In Bohemia, The Sign of Four, The Adventure of the Engineer's Thumb, The Adventure of the Second Stain, The Adventure of the Bruce-Partington Plans and His Last Bow. Those movies were filmed between 1979 and 1986, and the latter four stories formed the plot of a standalone big-screen feature titled The 20th Century Begins. Vasily Livanov played Sherlock Holmes and Vitaly Solomin played Doctor Watson. A portrait of Sherlock Holmes from the Strand Magazine, 1891 Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, who first appeared in publication in 1887. ... A Study in Scarlet is a detective mystery story written by Arthur Conan Doyle and published in 1887. ... The Adventure of the Speckled Band is one of the 56 short Sherlock Holmes stories written by British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. ... The Hound of the Baskervilles is a crime novel by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, originally serialised in the Strand Magazine in 1901 and 1902, which is set largely on Dartmoor 1889. ... The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton, one of the 56 Sherlock Holmes short stories written by British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, is one of 13 stories in the cycle collected as The Return of Sherlock Holmes. ... The Reichenbach Falls The Adventure of the Final Problem is a short story by Arthur Conan Doyle, featuring his detective character Sherlock Holmes. ... The Adventure of the Empty House, one of the 56 Sherlock Holmes short stories written by British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, is one of 13 stories in the cycle collected as The Return of Sherlock Holmes. ... A Scandal in Bohemia was the first of Arthur Conan Doyles 56 Sherlock Holmes short stories to be published in The Strand Magazine. ... The Sign of Four (1890) was the second novel featuring Sherlock Holmes written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. ... The Adventure of the Engineers Thumb, one of the 56 short Sherlock Holmes stories written by British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, is the ninth of the twelve stories collected in The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. ... The Adventure of the Second Stain, one of the 56 Sherlock Holmes short stories written by British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, is one of 13 stories in the cycle collected as The Return of Sherlock Holmes. ... The Adventure of the Bruce-Partington Plans, one of the 56 Sherlock Holmes short stories written by British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, is one of eight stories in the cycle collected as His Last Bow. ... His Last Bow is a collection of Sherlock Holmes stories by Arthur Conan Doyle, as well as the title of one of the stories in that collection. ... Vitaly Mefodievich Solomin (Russian: ) (12 December 1941 – 27 May 2002) was a Russian (and former Soviet) actor, director and scenario. ... Dr Watson (left) and Sherlock Holmes, by Sidney Paget. ...

Livanov's portrayal of Sherlock Holmes is widely regarded as one of the best, especially in the Former Soviet Union. Both Queen Elizabeth II and former PM Margaret Thatcher were reportedly fond of Livanov's portrayal, and he was awarded an OBE for his work. Elizabeth II in an official portrait as Queen of Canada (on the occasion of her Golden Jubilee in 2002, wearing the Sovereigns badges of the Order of Canada and the Order of Military Merit) Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary) (born 21 April 1926), styled HM The... Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, LG, OM, PC (born October 13, 1925), is a former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, in office from 1979 to 1990. ...

Livanov's first name Vasily is Russian translation of Basil. Coincidentally, in the West, the actor best known for portrayal of Sherlock Holmes was Basil Rathbone. Not only do the two share the same name and the same main role, but they had very physical appearence. Basil is of Greek origin (Βασίλειος), meaning royal or kingly, from the Greek word βασιλεύς (basileius) or // Basil Acres, English professional footballer Basil Arthur, Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives from 1984 to 1985 Basil Beattie, British artist, born in 1935 in West Hartlepool, England Basil Blackshaw, painter born in... A portrait of Sherlock Holmes from the Strand Magazine, 1891 Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, who first appeared in publication in 1887. ... Basil Rathbone (13 June 1892 – 21 July 1967) was an English actor most famous for his portrayal of Sherlock Holmes and swashbuckler film villain roles. ...

External links

• (Russian) Internet site dedicated to Vasiliy Livanov
• The Sherlock Holmes Museum
• Vasily Livanov at the Internet Movie Database