Ljuba Tadić | Origin of Street Names

Ljubivoje "Ljuba" Tadić (1929 - 2005) was one of the greatest Serbian and Yugoslavian actors who, over the course of more than five decades in his acting career, performed in over 250 film, television, and theater roles, thus engraving his name in the history of the seventh art.

Originally from the surroundings of Čačak, he was born in Uroševac, Kosovo, where his father worked as a history professor at the local gymnasium. After his father's premature death, Ljuba and his three brothers were taken care of by their mother, who moved to Kragujevac, where Ljuba completed high school.

At the age of 15, he became a member of the newly established Joakim Vujić Theater in Kragujevac, and even during his high school days, he played over 40 different roles.

With undeniable talent and considerable acting experience for a 19-year-old, Ljuba Tadić's professional path was already largely paved at the end of his high school education. He was one of the first students of the newly founded Academy of Dramatic Arts in Belgrade, from which he graduated in 1953, in the same class as future acting legends Rade and Olivera Marković, Bora Todorović, and others.

In the same year, he also got his first professional role in the film "I Was Stronger," and in the following years, roles started to come one after another, both on radio and television, as well as in film and theater.

In over 70 films, Ljuba Tadić portrayed many memorable roles, but the ones that will definitely go down in history as iconic, for all time, are the famous Major Kursula from "March on the Drina," Sultan Murat from "The Battle of Kosovo," and the legendary Mitke from "Koštana," as well as King Lear, Othello, and Socrates when it comes to theater roles.

As a four-time winner of the Golden Arena, the most prestigious film award in former Yugoslavia, Ljuba Tadić became the recipient of all other acting accolades during his lifetime for his exceptional contribution to domestic film and theater.

Besides the immense popularity gained through outstanding performances on TV screens, movie theaters, and theater stages, Ljuba Tadić was particularly beloved among Red Star sympathizers because he himself was a passionate fan of the red-and-white jersey. His famous statement has become one of the motifs of this club's supporters.

Regarding Red Star, it is also connected to the cult status of Ljuba Tadić at the famous Madera restaurant in Belgrade, a gathering place for distinguished Red Star fans that the actor visited daily for decades.

Despite the film roles that brought him fantastic popularity, Ljuba Tadić, like most great actors, had a much greater love for the theater. He performed in all the major theaters in Belgrade, from Atelje 212 to the National Theater, Belgrade Drama Theater, and Yugoslav Drama Theater, where today the grand stage symbolically bears his name.

Ljuba Tadić played his last theater role (King Lear) in 2005 at the age of 76. Shortly after that, he tragically passed away due to injuries sustained from a fall in the hallway of his residence.

Fifteen years later, in honor of the great actor, several streets in Serbian cities bear the name of Ljuba Tadić.