Soviet Adventures in the Land of the Capitalists
Ilf and Petrov's American Road Trip

Unique account of how ordinary people shaped Soviet-American relations in the 1930s told through the adventures of two Russian humourists.

Lisa A. Kirschenbaum (Author)

9781316518465, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 22 February 2024

354 pages, 35 b/w illus. 1 map
23.6 x 16 x 2.3 cm, 0.65 kg

'Kirschenbaum has provided an extraordinarily welcome addition to the growing literature on Russian-American relations. Her account is well-researched and written in a way to see the whole picture of their trip. It provides a keenly-crafted analysis of their trip, the historical and literary influences, and the entire era.' William B. Whisenhunt, The Soviet and Post-Soviet Review

In 1935, two Soviet satirists, Ilia Ilf and Evgeny Petrov, undertook a 10,000 mile American road trip from New York to Hollywood and back accompanied only by their guide and chauffeur, a gregarious Russian Jewish immigrant and his American-born, Russian-speaking wife. They immortalized their journey in a popular travelogue that condemned American inequality and racism even as it marvelled at American modernity and efficiency. Lisa Kirschenbaum reconstructs the epic journey of the two Soviet funnymen and their encounters with a vast cast of characters, ranging from famous authors, artists, poets and filmmakers to unemployed hitchhikers and revolutionaries. Using the authors' notes, US and Russian archives, and even FBI files, she reveals the role of ordinary individuals in shaping foreign relations as Ilf, Petrov and the immigrants, communists, and fellow travelers who served as their hosts, guides, and translators became creative actors in cultural exchange between the two countries.

Introduction
Part I. Promised Lands: 1. Amerikanizm
2. Alienism and radicalism
3. Pernicious propaganda
4. Two Russian gentlemen
Part II. New York and the Eastern States: 5. Extraordinary adventures in the land of the capitalists
6. Photographing New York
7. Dos
8. The business of pleasure
9. Black New York
10. Complex hybrids
11. Squaring the circle
12. The apex of middlebrow culture
Part III. To the Pacific Ocean: 13. The road
14. Frozen meat, salty butter, and other American delicacies
15. The nationalities question
16. A laboratory of anthropology
17. New Mexico moderns
18. Can you kid a kidder?
19. The man in the red shirt
20. Natural wonders and technical marvels
21. The American dneprostroi
Part IV. The Golden State: 22. Irrational presuppositions
23. The soviet colony in Carmel
24. Friends of the soviet union
25. Nothing could be more hollywoody
Part V. Journey's End: 26. Racism and democracy
27. Anxious life
28. Coda.

Subject Areas: European history [HBJD]