Soviet-Era Psychotherapist Anatoly Kashpirovsky Dies at 87

Anatoly Kashpirovsky, a Soviet and Russian psychotherapist widely known for his televised healing broadcasts, has died at the age of 87, according to a report from Kommersant citing television host Andrei Malakhov.

Kashpirovsky became a household name across the Soviet Union in the late 1980s through television programs in which he conducted mass hypnosis-style sessions, claiming to help viewers address various physical and psychological ailments. The broadcasts drew enormous audiences during a period of significant social change in the final years of the USSR, and his style of televised healing became emblematic of the era's unusual media experiments.

Trained as a psychotherapist, Kashpirovsky's career extended beyond television; he later served as a member of the Russian State Duma in the 1990s, lending him a public profile that spanned both entertainment and politics. His approach drew both large popular followings and persistent skepticism from members of the medical and scientific community, who questioned the efficacy of his televised methods.

Malakhov, who announced the death, is a well-known Russian television personality, though the report did not include additional information about the cause of death or specific circumstances surrounding it.

Kashpirovsky remained a recognizable cultural figure in Russia and other former Soviet states long after his peak television fame, occasionally resurfacing in media coverage and public discussions about the unusual programming of the late Soviet period.

Further details, including information on funeral arrangements, had not been made public at the time of this report.