Biography
Yakov Smirnoff, born Yakov Naumovich Pokhis on 24 January 1951 in Odesa, Ukraine, is a Ukrainian-American actor and comedian. He began his career as a stand-up comedian in the Soviet Union before immigrating to the United States in 1977.
Smirnoff appeared in several films in the 1980s, including Moscow on the Hudson (1984) as Lev, The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension (1984) as the National Security Advisor, Brewster's Millions (1985) as Vladimir, The Money Pit (1986) as Shatov, and Heartburn (1986) as Contractor Laszlo. He also featured in television series such as Night Court (1984) as Yakov Korolenko and Scarecrow and Mrs. King (1983).
He performed regularly in Branson, Missouri, from 1993 until 2015 and has continued occasional shows there and elsewhere. Smirnoff later earned a master's degree in psychology from the University of Pennsylvania in 2006 and a doctorate from Pepperdine University in 2019.
