00:00It's 1990. I'm 14, living in Corky, a city that would have been famous across the USSR for its military
00:07plans, if they weren't a state secret.
00:11For my birthday, my dad gave me a biography of Margaret Thatcher.
00:16Read it, and then report back on what you've learned.
00:20I read the book and proudly informed him that I now knew how to deal with coal miner strikes.
00:26But my dad waved it off. That's not important.
00:29Remember, the Iron Lady became great because she wasn't afraid of anything.
00:35That's what you need to do, too.
00:37Don't you want to work in television?
00:40I eyed my dad cautiously.
00:43I don't know.
00:45Oh, yes, you do, he sneered.
00:47I've seen you in the bathroom, performing in front of the mirror with a hairbrush for a microphone.
00:54So go on, get yourself on real TV.
00:57I resisted as much as I could, but my dad was relentless.
01:02Don't you want to be like Margaret?
01:05I couldn't dare disappoint my dad, so I borrowed my sister's hat.
01:10Hers was much nicer than mine.
01:13Slipped into my mom's heeled boots.
01:15And, unbuttoning my coat like I'd just stepped out of a warm taxi,
01:21I headed off in search of glamour and fame.
01:25The local TV center was in the red high-rise.
01:28As it turned out, you could only get in with a pass.
01:32A glass wall blocked the path to paradise,
01:35meant to keep the truth-seekers and the crazies from bothering the important people at work.
01:41A sarcastic old doorman refused to let me in,
01:46even after I lied and said my mom worked there.
01:49It was a disaster.
01:51I'd have to go back home,
01:54and everyone would ask how it went
01:56and whether their hat and heels came in handy.
01:59What was I supposed to say?
02:01I circled around to the back of the TV building
02:04and climbed over the fence.
02:08Luckily, one of the back doors was open,
02:10and I found myself in a long, dimly lit hallway.
02:14I had no idea where to go next.
02:16Every now and then, some men would walk by.
02:19Signs about the doors read on air,
02:23and I didn't dare open my mouth to ask anyone
02:26where do they hire 14-year-old schoolgirls.
02:30Desperate, I got into an elevator
02:33and started riding it up and down.
02:36At least there, I could cry in peace.
02:39Suddenly, the doors opened,
02:41and Nina Zvereva, one of the most famous anchors in Corky,
02:45stepped in.
02:46Seeing my tearful eyes,
02:48she asked what I was doing there.
02:51I explained that I'd climbed over the fence
02:55because I really wanted to be on TV,
02:57and Nina took me to the children's programming office.
03:01Turns out, they were looking for hosts
03:03for a show called Columbus Flower Bed.
03:07Don't ask me what that means.
03:10I have no idea either.
03:11I think the director liked my hat and heels
03:14because he immediately invited me to a shoot.
03:18I flew home on cloud nine.
03:20I had talked to a real TV host,
03:23and she hadn't scolded or shoot me away.
03:26And my dad, oh, he was over the moon.
03:31However, the shoot was a disaster.
03:34It turned out I was terrified of the camera
03:36and could barely string two words together.
03:39It was horribly embarrassing,
03:41especially since I'd already told the entire school
03:43that I'd been on channel three soon.
03:46But my failure on TV didn't deter my dad's restless mind
03:50as he had already come up with a new plan.
03:54Write an article and take it to the newspaper,
03:58he ordered.
03:58Otherwise, what kind of Margaret Thatcher are you?
04:02She wouldn't have been afraid
04:04to go to Gorkovskaya Pravda,
04:07that being the name of the local newspaper,
04:10which meant the truth of Gorky.
04:13And that's how, through a mix of blackmail
04:17and psychological manipulation,
04:19my dad got me my first publication.
04:22It was an article called
04:24And Out from Under the Blade Flies a Carrot
04:28about drunk combine operators
04:31who ruined the collective farm's harvest.
04:34My name is Elvira Barry.
04:36I'm an offer.
04:37And if today's story made you smile,
04:39please give this video a thumbs up.
04:41Since I don't support the war in Ukraine,
04:44I can no longer publish my books in Russia.
04:47And I'm rebuilding my audience from scratch,
04:51right here on YouTube.
04:52Books only sell when readers know the offer
04:55and believe they are worth their time and attention.
04:58If you'd like to help me rise from the ashes,
05:01please support this video
05:02with your likes, comments, and subscriptions.
05:05And I'll see you soon.
05:10Thanks.
05:10Thanks.
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