Mutt

Hardly anybody mentions Moscow on the Hudson, he was great in it and the film was kind of important sociologically and politically. He played a Russian circus performer or musician who defected to the USA on a tour. This used to happen regularly back during the Cold War, and took huge balls. The scene where he visits his first American supermarket and he's overwhelmed by the quantity and variety of things on the shelves, he has a panic attack. I'd heard the story before from Soviets who defected.

I wasn't a big fan of his standup comedy and neither were other standup comics, he 'borrowed' lots of material. He acknowledged it himself, saying it was never intentional, his mind was like a sponge taking in everything. He was a great comedic and dramatic actor.

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