Coward, Fool, and Pro (, Trus, Balbes, i Byvaly) are a trio of comical characters, petty criminals from Soviet cinema, first appeared in the films of Leonid Gaidai. They were played accordingly, "Coward": Georgy Vitsin, "Fool": Yuri Nikulin, "Pro": Yevgeny Morgunov. Initially appearing in Gaidai's satirical shorts, they gained all-Union popularity after the films Operation Y and Shurik's Other Adventures and Kidnapping, Caucasian Style, (further Shurik's New Adventures).Lev Layner (Лайнер Л. Д.), Весёлая троица — Вицин, Моргунов, Никулин, Moscow, Центрполиграф, 2000Rollberg, Peter (2010) The A to Z of Russian and Soviet Cinema, The Scarecrow Press, Inc., , pp. 235–8
The exact moment of the creation of the trio is documented in the Mosfilm minutes: December 27, 1960, 17:30. At this moment the Mosfilm management approved the actors for their first common film, Dog Barbos and Unusual Cross.
In Moscow there is the dedicated to them.Музей трех актеровТРУС, БАЛБЕС, БЫВАЛЫЙ: Кто развалил великолепную троицу, kp.ru, April 4, 2007
Filmography 1961: Dog Barbos and Unusual Cross 1961: Moonshiners 1965: Give Me a Book of Complaints (episodic) 1965: Operation Y and Shurik's Other Adventures, segment "Operation Y" 1966: :ru:Сказки русского леса 1967: Kidnapping, Caucasian Style - the last film in which the trio were the main characters 1968: Seven Old Men and a Girl (episodic) 1969: The Bremen Town Musicians (animated musical) and the sequels: On the Trail of the Bremen Town Musicians The New Bremen Town Musicians 1980: :ru:Комедия давно минувших дней (crossover comedy) 1982: :ru:Происшествие в стране Мульти-Пульти (crosover animated musical) 1991: ; in this Ukrainian children's film the trio is played by Ukrainian actors, however it contains a cameo appearance of Yuri Nikulin, his last cinema role.Никулин Юрий Владимирович, Arguments and Facts Ukraine 2014: Kidnapping, Caucasian Style!, a remake
See also Olsen Gang, and the related Jönssonligan The Three Stooges
References