1. Yakov Naumovich Pokhis, better known as Yakov Smirnoff, is a Soviet-American comedian, actor and writer.
25 Facts About Yakov Smirnoff
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Yakov Smirnoff began his career as a stand-up comedian in the Soviet Union, then immigrated to the United States in 1977 in order to pursue an American show business career, not yet knowing any English.
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Yakov Smirnoff reached his biggest success in the mid-to-late 1980s, appearing in several films which include Moscow on the Hudson with Robin Williams, The Money Pit with Tom Hanks, Heartburn with Jack Nicholson and Meryl Streep, and Brewster's Millions with Richard Pryor.
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Yakov Smirnoff earned a master's degree in psychology from the University of Pennsylvania in 2006 and a doctorate in psychology and global leadership from Pepperdine University in 2019.
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Yakov Smirnoff has taught a course titled "The Business of Laughter" at Missouri State University and at Drury University.
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The son of Naum Pokhis and Klara Pokhis, Yakov Smirnoff was born in Odesa, Ukraine, then part of the Soviet Union.
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Yakov Smirnoff was an art teacher in Odesa, as well as a comedian.
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Yakov Smirnoff's family was allowed to come to America because of "an agreement between the USSR and America to exchange wheat for Soviet citizens who wished to defect".
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Yakov Smirnoff spent a portion of his early days in the United States working as a busboy and bartender at Grossingers Hotel in the Catskill Mountains of New York and living in the employee dormitory.
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Yakov Smirnoff began doing stand-up comedy in the US in the late 1970s.
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Yakov Smirnoff chose the last name "Smirnoff" after trying to think of a name that Americans would be familiar with; he had learned about Smirnoff vodka in his bartending days.
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Yakov Smirnoff subsequently appeared in several other motion pictures, including Buckaroo Banzai, Brewster's Millions and The Money Pit.
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In 1987, Yakov Smirnoff was invited to a party hosted by Washington Times editor-in-chief Arnaud de Borchgrave which featured President Ronald Reagan as the guest of honor.
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Reagan and Yakov Smirnoff immediately hit it off due to Reagan's love of jokes about life in the Soviet Union.
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Reagan enjoyed telling such jokes in speeches, and Yakov Smirnoff became one of his sources for new material.
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Rohrabacher later stated that Yakov Smirnoff became "one of the inner circle" of speechwriting advisers during Reagan's final years in office, due to the quality of Yakov Smirnoff's suggestions.
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In 1988, Yakov Smirnoff was the featured entertainer at the annual White House Correspondents' Dinner and he appeared in some commercials for hotel chain Best Western.
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In 2002, Yakov Smirnoff appeared in episodes of King of the Hill and The Simpsons.
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Yakov Smirnoff was a featured writer for AARP Magazine and gave readers advice in his column, "Happily Ever Laughter".
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Yakov Smirnoff gives seminars and self-help workshops on the topic of improving relationships.
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Yakov Smirnoff earned his doctorate in psychology and global leadership at Pepperdine University, graduating in May 2019.
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In 2016, Yakov Smirnoff produced and starred in a comedy special for PBS, Happily Ever Laughter, which was named PBS Special of the Year.
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Some of Yakov Smirnoff's jokes involved word play based on a limited understanding of American idioms and culture:.
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Yakov Smirnoff is a painter and has frequently featured the Statue of Liberty in his art since receiving his US citizenship.
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Yakov Smirnoff married Linda Dreeszen in 1989; they divorced in 2001.