Yakov Smirnoff
Yakov Smirnoff
Yakov Naumovich Pokhis, better known as Yakov Smirnoff, is a Soviet-born American comedian, actor and writer. After emigrating to the United States in 1977, Smirnoff began performing as a stand-up comic. He eventually gained fame, and he reached his biggest successes in the mid-to-late 1980s, when he also appeared in several films and television shows, including his own 1986–87 sitcom, What a Country!. His comic persona was of a naive immigrant from the Soviet Union who was perpetually confused and...
NationalityRussian
ProfessionComedian
Date of Birth24 January 1951
CityOdessa, Ukraine
CountryRussian Federation
In America, you break law. In Soviet Russia, law breaks you! In America, you watch Big Brother. In Soviet Russia, Big Brother watch you!
Men and women are immigrants in each other's worlds.
If love is the treasure, laughter is the key.
I believe there is a direct correlation between love and laughter.
I was a comedian in Russia, and I worked on the cruise ships there. I met a lot of Americans, and they were laughing even though I didn't speak their language.
In every country, they make fun of city. In U.S. you make fun of Cleveland. In Russia, we make fun of Cleveland.
Everybody laughs the same in every language because laughter is a universal connection.
I believe that laughter is a language of God and that we can all live happily ever laughter.