Arguably the most popular satirical writers of the Soviet era, Il'ia Il'f and Evgenii Petrov wrote Dvenadtsat' stul'ev(The Twelve Chairs, 1928; translated as Diamonds to Sit On: A Russian Comedy of Errors, 1930), a picaresque novel that was adapted successfully for motion pictures featuring the most prominent comedians of postwar Russia. The first Russian-language movie version was produced in 1971 by Leonid Iovich Gaidai, while the second came out in 1976, produced by Mark Anatol'evich Zakharov. Although Zolotoi telenok (1931; translated as The Little Golden Calf, 1932) was Il'f and Petrov's next novel, it had been turned into a movie before Dvenadtsat' stul'ev in 1968 by the director Mikhail Abramovich Shveitser.

Il'ia Il'f was born Il'ia Arnol'dovich Fainzil'berg, the third son of bank clerk Ar'e Veniaminovich Fainzil'berg, in Odessa on 15 October 1897. His mother's name is not known since he was not willing to reveal his family background in any form of autobiographical writing. Fainzil'berg's...