A brochure with a handwritten wish and 2 autographs by Yuri Nikulin and Mikhail Shuidin

We present to your attention a brochure with a handwritten wish and autographs of the participants of the clown duo of the Soviet circus: Yuri Nikulin and Mikhail Shuidin. The text of the wish: "Laskin Alley in good memory with best wishes 07/29/69 Moscow."

Yuri Nikulin was a Soviet and Russian circus performer, circus director, film actor, TV presenter, director and artistic director of the Tsvetnoy Boulevard Circus from 1982 to 1997. Yuri Nikulin's name was included in the list of "Great Comedians of the World" by representatives of the Oxford Encyclopedia of Cinema.

Mikhail Shuidin is a Soviet clown, eccentric acrobat, and People's Artist of the RSFSR. Mikhail's tragic story is well known, which prompted him to become a clown. The multi-layered make-up and white gloves helped the artist hide the numerous scars and scars on his body resulting from Shuidin's ramming on German tanks during the Great Patriotic War.

Yuri Nikulin and Mikhail Shuidin worked together for about 30 years, delighting the Soviet audience at the arena. Initially, the artists worked together in the Pencil group as assistants to the famous clown. In 1950, after retiring from the Pencil, they created their own duo.

The comedic positions of most of the skits were based on the contradiction of the characters of the images. Nikulin (Yurik) is a phlegmatic character, somewhat touching and naive. Shuidin is an enterprising jack—of-all-trades, a bully who always tries to play his buddy.

The duo was popular all over the world: the artists toured the UK, Australia, France, Belgium, Brazil, the GDR, Canada, Poland, the USA, Uruguay, Sweden, Japan.