Olga Orlova: seven months pregnant, but still in the limelight

It has been widely reported in the Russian press that former vocalist of pop band Blestyashchiye, Olga Orlova, got married to the owner of the Gryozy nightclub, Alexander Karmanov, and is expecting a child.

Now seven-months pregnant, Orlova continues to arouse admiration among her fans, remaining in the limelight and full of creative plans. In addition to contemplating a career as a solo performer, Mir Novostei reports, she has been offered a role in Ilya Khotinenko’s new film, "Zolotoi Vek" (Golden Age). As one can guess from the title, the movie will feature the 18th century, when Russia was ruled by Catherine the Great. No information is available concerning the particular role Orlova has been offered, but rumors have it that it will be one of the court maids. Filming is scheduled to start shortly after Orlova gives birth.

Orlova’s former Blestyashchiye partners have meanwhile joined the ranks of Greenpeace in an action to clean up the Timiryazevsky Park. Armed with rakes and shovels, the three beauties contributed to the noble cause of tidying the planet. "It is time to stop throwing litter around and living amid dirt and garbage," one of the girls told Mir Novostei. "We have to learn to clear away our rubbish and take care of the environment. If our fans emulate our example," she added, "we will be very happy."

David Copperfield dumps Claudia Schiffer for a Russian

They got to know each other three years ago when the great magician was giving a guest performance in Moscow. Back than, Anya Pletnyova had just started her musical career as a vocalist for the band Litsei. At her first concert with Litsei in Moscow's Mirage nightclub, it so happened that David Copperfield and some of his assistants had turned out to wash the business of the day down with a shot of whisky.

"I lacked confidence on stage that night," the Zhizn weekly quoted Pletnyova as saying. "I made one mistake after another. It was a real nightmare. I could feel somebody was staring but, as I was blinded by the lights, I could not see who the impudent man was. Suddenly my microphone went off. I was at a loss and then a tall man came up to me. I was very surprised when I recognized the great David Copperfield.

"He gave me a wink and smiled. I smiled back and immediately all my tension was gone and I felt calm and at ease. Incidentally, the microphone suddenly reactivated itself. But this no longer mattered to me. David was near the stage and from that moment, I sang only for him. At the end of the concert, he came up to me and said in Russian, though with a thick accent: ‘You are wonderful.’ Then he invited me to his table and we talked, in English, for another two hours. Late that night David flew back to the United States, but he left me his phone number and said, ‘We shall meet again,’ in English, and added ‘I like you,’ in Russian."

Six months later Pletnyova visited Copperfield in Los Angeles. He met her at the airport and drove her to his home in a silvery Mercedes – a present from his then-fiancee, Claudia Schiffer. At the time Claudia Schiffer was not in the States, as she had gone to Italy to take part in a fashion show. "It seemed to me," Pletnyova told Zhizn, "that he had deliberately removed all traces of her when preparing his house for my arrival."

After that, Pletnyova and Copperfield communicated by mail and telephone; he invited her to join his company, but Pletnyova would not agree because she did not want to leave Litsei.

Recently, Pletnyova visited him again in Los Angeles. And that was when Copperfield presented her with an ultimatum: Either she agreed to become his wife or they would part forever. He gave her 24 hours to think it over. But one second was enough for Pletnyova to open her heart and say "yes."

"David was happy. He drove me around the city, bought me two superb dresses, and during dinner in a restaurant presented me with a golden ring. He said he will feel it every time I put it on," Pletnyova said.

"I’ve always liked David Copperfield," Pletnyova’s mother, Svetlana, told Zhizn. "But Anya’s choice surprised me because she had never liked dark-haired men before. When she decided to go to the States to see Copperfield, I realized that this was really a strong feeling."

Pugacheva and Zemfira sing in a duo

Pop singer and living legend of Russia’s pop stage, Alla Pugacheva, has turned 52. Some 100 people gathered at her countryside residence for a birthday party and her husband, pop star Philip Kirkorov, even cancelled his planned performance in the United States for the occasion, Zhizn wrote. Incidentally, evil tongues hurried to spread a rumor that tickets for Kirkorov’s American concert were moving sluggishly, so the cancellation did not inflict any serious damage on the family budget.

Kirkorov made the grade as a star husband, presenting his wife with a superb Hummer limousine.

The heroine of the party sported a magnificent light-blue suit made by famous fashion designer Valentin Yudashkin, and was very joyful and benevolent to the guests. She even walked to the front porch to wave to her fans when they crowded around the dacha after being admitted into the courtyard by compassionate security guards.

Given that gossip mills have portrayed Pugacheva and pop singer Zemfira as mortal enemies, the party’s surprise was Zemfira’s appearance. Pugacheva rushed to greet her as a close friend, causing murmurs among the guests. Zemfira did not eat anything and sat silently at the table. Before leaving, she yielded to Kirkorov’s persistent requests and sang Pugacheva’s famous hit "Madame Broshkina" in a duet with the party’s heroine. According to those who happened to hear it, the performance by the two stars sounded "great."

Yuri Lyubimov hates number 37

The Taganka Theater, directed by famous Yury Lyubimov, marked its 37th anniversary on April 24. Lyubimov hates the number 37. In his famous song called "Fatal Number 37," the late poet and singer Vladimir Vysotsky drew attention to its mysterious surfacing in the tragic deaths of three famous poets – Pushkin, Byron and Mayakovsky – which led Lyubimov to describe the anniversary as the opening of the theater’s 38th season, Komsomolskaya Pravda reported.

On that day, Lyubimov, together with other distinguished creative types, was invited to the Kremlin for a meeting with President Vladimir Putin. During the meeting, Putin described the Taganka as one of the theaters that had prepared Russia’s breakthrough to democracy.

The theater celebrated its anniversary with a premiere of "A Novel of Theater," based on a work by Mikhail Bulgakov. The hall was packed with well-known people, namely human-rights activist Valeria Novodvorskaya, lawyer Henry Reznik, former Moscow mayor Gavriil Popov, publisher Yegor Yakovlev, Economic Freedom party leader Konstantin Borovoi, ambassadors and diplomats. Lyubimov took his seat in the eighth row together with his wife Katalina. "I like calling her Catherine the Fourth," he joked.

After the premiere, Catherine the Fourth escorted the guests to the second floor of the building where a table was laid for a banquet. The layout of the table was styled after Bulgakov’s epoch and novels, including Bulgakov’s favorite dishes: pickled cucumbers, red caviar, bacon, smoked sturgeon, salmon, pirogi, cognac and mors.

Better later than never

Famous movie director Nikita Mikhalkov has paid an old debt to his long-standing friend and colleague Sergei Nikonenko, Mir Novostei reported.

The story almost dates back to time immemorial. Thirty-five years ago, Mikhalkov and Nikonenko studied together in the Soviet Union’s Institute of Cinematography. Back then, Mikhalkov, being in dire straits, pilfered 10 rubles from his friend’s secret cache.

"I thought I would put the money back in a few days, but I failed. Then I forgot. I have regretted this unbecoming act of mine for many years," Mikhalkov confessed when speaking at Sergei Nikonenko’s 60th birthday party held in the House of Cinema in Moscow recently.

Having made the confession, Mikhalkov produced a 10 ruble gold coin minted during Nicholas II’s time and solemnly handed it over to Nikonenko. The guests of the party noted that Mikhalkov has paid the debt at a decent rate of interest because the coin is worth much more than 10 rubles in the Brezhnev-era.

Paying debts has always been regarded as a matter of honor for genuine noblemen and Mikhalkov claims to be one of them. Now he has every reason to say that his conscience is clear.