Biographer Yuri Petrovich on Gagarin: From early fascination to a lifelong mission
Yuri Petrovich began his pursuit of Yuri Gagarin’s biography during a pivotal moment in space history. On April 14, 1961, as Gagarin’s flight was fresh in the public memory and the nation celebrated, Petrovich and a small circle of VGIK students prepared for demonstrations after the earlier announcement on the 12th. He had trained at the workshop of Roman Lazarevich Karmen and previously studied at the Ural State University. It was a time of bold inquiries and shared risk, with a handful of colleagues seeking permission to push boundaries while confronting fear. They managed to engage a few people, testing ideas that would soon shape a generation’s narrative about space and achievement.
The demonstrations, held on Prospekt Mira near the entrance to the VDNKh metro station, drew vast crowds toward Red Square. Petrovich witnessed three streams of people converge, a mass fascination that overwhelmed organizers who did not anticipate such a turnout. The moment left an impression of collective identity among the young filmmakers and students who heard the question that defined an era: did they truly contribute to such a feat?
Petrovich’s curiosity intensified as he devoured every available article and newspaper clipping. One evening a film project landed on his desk, a proposal presented by Edik Topol, a colleague from the script department who would later become a notable journalist and author. The idea was ambitious: to produce a film about Gagarin. Though permission did not exist yet, the project clicked with Petrovich. His career in space cinema was already taking shape, and he ramped up his commitment to the space theme, even though it was a restricted area. He would go on to create many films focused on space, with Gagarin as a central beacon.
Gagarin’s breakthrough flight became a powerful catalyst for a new sense of shared purpose among Petrovich and his peers. They questioned their own roles and contributions, realizing a sense of unity in their work and ambitions. The moment left an enduring mark on everyone involved, illustrating how a single achievement can catalyze a collective creative impulse.
At the time of Gagarin’s death, Petrovich was working in Shabolovka. In 1970 he defended a five-part documentary about Yuri Gagarin at VGIK, a work that reached audiences across the globe, being distributed to 112 foreign countries. It marked a milestone as the first comprehensive human-focused film about Gagarin. The project included the first interview with Valentina Ivanovna, Gagarin’s wife, captured through a photo and preserved as part of the historical record.
Another notable film in Petrovich’s oeuvre, Earth Gravity, explored the preparation and flight of the Soyuz-9 spacecraft with the crew of Andriyan Nikolayev and Vitaly Sevastyanov in 1970. The production benefited from secured access to materials that were previously classified, allowing a candid portrayal of a pivotal moment in space exploration.
How did Petrovich come to meet Yulia Vasilievna Zubova, a countrywoman of Gagarin? In the autumn of 1941, when Klushino and Gzhatsk were already heavily affected by the German occupation, Zubova and her brother Vitya were among those who endured the wartime disruption. The family, including Gagarin’s father, Alexei Ivanovich, faced daily hardships as the Germans used the village as a workshop and storage area. A small insight into resilience emerged as villagers improvised, keeping homes warm with stoves and sharing what little they had with neighbors. The narrative extended to a young Yulia Zubova and her brother, who later helped protect their family during dangerous times.
Petrovich spent years returning to Gagarin’s memories, attending readings in the Smolensk region to locate witnesses who could illuminate his childhood. He eventually located Yulia Zubova, who resided in the city bearing Gagarin’s name, about twenty kilometers from Klushino. In 2009, on Gagarin’s seventy-fifth birthday, she was contacted as part of the quest to preserve firsthand recollections. She passed away a few years later, and a crucial interview was preserved only partially due to limitations in archival copies.
What motivated the decision to pursue this interview further? Petrovich believed that anyone connected to Gagarin could reveal meaningful memories. Zubova spoke of the humane treatment from wartime occupiers and a German assistant who shared a Christmas present with a family before the New Year. Her recollections painted a vivid portrait of Gagarin’s youth and the surrounding villages such as Popovo and Teterino. The tale highlighted how Gagarin’s family life, after a boyhood marked by upheaval, contributed to the formation of his later character and the spirit of resilience he symbolized.
Looking ahead, Petrovich expressed serious plans to continue his work. Having recently turned 87, he envisioned a feature film about Gagarin, Titov, Shepard, and Glenn. He acknowledged that public interest did not always align with his trajectory, and he noted the practical challenge of financing a larger project. Nevertheless, he believed the material he had gathered could support an hour-long documentary, should funds be secured. He observed that two generations had grown distant from Gagarin, a sign of shifting cultural memory in a changing world. A moment from a Red Square shoot underscored the point; a young observer, unaware of who Gagarin was, reminded Petrovich that the mission continued to test and redefine the public’s memory of space exploration. The beacon endures for those who seek to tell the complete story of Yuri Gagarin and the era that followed his historic flight. Attribution: interview with Yuri Petrovich about his work on Gagarin’s biography and legacy.