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Elton John

21 May

On May 21, 1979, in Leningrad, Elton John opened a series of concerts in the Soviet Union, becoming the first Western rock star ever to perform on the other side of the iron curtain.…

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Peter Carl Faberge

Peter Carl Faberge was a world famous master jeweler and head of the ‘House of Faberge’ in Imperial Russia in the waning days of the Russian Empire.

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Prominent Russians: Politics and society

Roman Abramovich Roman Abramovich Politics and society Orphaned at the age of three and brought up by relatives in a remote area in Northern Russia, Roman Abramovich has been ranked the 15th richest man in the world by Forbes. Mikhail Bakunin Mikhail Bakunin Politics and society Mikhail Bakunin was one of the intellectual founding fathers of anarchism, often considered to be Marx's major historical rival. Yelena Baturina Yelena Baturina Politics and society Yelena Baturina is a successful business woman and the richest woman in all of Russia. Aleksandr Benckendorff Aleksandr Benckendorff Politics and society Aleksandr Benckendorff was Russian general, statesman and head of the Imperial secret police service. Nikolay Berdyaev Nikolay Berdyaev Politics and society Nikolay Berdyaev was a Russian religious and political philosopher. Lavrentiy Beria Lavrentiy Beria Politics and society Lavrentiy Beria was certainly one of the most vicious and mysterious figures of Stalin's era and Stalin's most sinister hangman. Pavel Borodin Pavel Borodin Politics and society Pavel Borodin, the acting State Secretary of the Union of Russia and Belarus, headed the Department of Presidential Affairs while Boris Yeltsin was President. Nikolay Bukharin Nikolay Bukharin Politics and society Nikolay Bukharin was one of the key Soviet politicians in the years immediately following the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution. Yury Chayka Yury Chayka Politics and society Yury Chayka began his career as an intern and proceeded to become an investigator at one of the local prosecutor's offices in Russia's Irkutsk region. Today he is Prosecutor General. Viktor Chernomyrdin Viktor Chernomyrdin Politics and society Viktor Chernomyrdin is Russia's noted political figure, serving as Prime Minster of Russia from 2001 to 2009 and as an advisor to Russian President Dmitry Medvedev from June 2009. Anatoly Chubais Anatoly Chubais Politics and society Anatoly Chubais is cursed as much as credited for the severe privatization of state assets in the 1990s, to introduce market capitalism to the former Soviet Union. Felix Dzerzhinsky Felix Dzerzhinsky Politics and society The Soviet revolutionary and politician, Felix Dzerzhinsky was the founder and head of the first Soviet secret police, notorious for its use of torture and mass killings.