Odile Versois

French actress of Russian origin, Odile Versois (real name Etiennette Poliakoff) is the sister of Marina Vlady, Hélène Vallier and Olga Varen. Her parents emigrated from Russia after the Revolution of 1917 and took refuge in France. Her father Vladimir de Poliakoff is an opera singer, and her mother Militza Envald, a prima ballerina. Odile Versois was interested in theater and cinema very early on. She made her first film at 18 with director Roger Leenhardt, who was immediately captivated by her beauty. She led her younger sister Catherine into the world of entertainment, and filmed with her the film Orage d'été directed by Jean Gehret.

After divorcing the actor Jacques Dacqmine, Odile Versois married Count François Pozzo di Borgo in 1953 with whom she had four children. She died at the age of fifty from cancer. According to the magazine Paris Match of June 11, 1955, the initial “V” common to the four pseudonyms of the Poliakoff sisters would be the V for victory popularized during the Second World War.