Mikhail Nikolayevich Zadornov was a Soviet and Russian stand-up comedian and writer. Zadornov was born into an artistic family, his father Nikolay Zadornov (1909-1992) being a notable writer from Riga. Zadornov's mother, Elena Matusevich (1909-2003), came from an old noble family, which can trace its roots to the Polish king Stephen Bathory.