Vitali Baganov

Career overview

Role: Meticulous television and film archivist.
Task: Write a 180-260 word career overview of Vitali Baganov (Acting).
Constraints:
Use ONLY verifiable facts from provided SYNOPSIS and SOURCES.
No invented titles, names, dates, awards, etc.
Original, neutral, encyclopedic prose.
Plain text only (no markdown, no asterisks, no headings, no bullet points).
Word count: 180-260 words.
Structure: 2-3 short paragraphs.
Name: Vitali Viktorovich Baganov (Russian: Виталий Викторович Баганов).
Born: September 6, 1952.
Place of Birth: Leningrad, USSR (now Saint Petersburg, Russia).
Nationality: Russian and American.
Profession: Actor of film and television.
Acting Credits/Roles:
Valery (the Russian gangster) in The Sopranos episodes "Pine Barrens" and "...To Save Us All from Satan's Power".
Voice of Ray Bulgarin in Grand Theft Auto IV and The Ballad of Gay Tony.
Actor in Salt.
Education/Background: Attended Leningrad State University (studied astronomy for 4 years), then entered the State Institute of Theater, Music and Cinema.
Paragraph 1: Identity and Background.
Vitali Viktorovich Baganov, born September 6, 1952, in Leningrad, USSR (now Saint Petersburg, Russia), is a Russian and American actor of film and television. Before pursuing a career in acting, Baganov studied astronomy for four years at Leningrad State University. He subsequently entered the State Institute of Theater, Music and Cinema.
Paragraph 2: Acting Credits.
Baganov's work in television includes guest starring as Valery, a Russian gangster, in The Sopranos. His appearances in this series occurred in the episodes titled "Pine Barrens" and "...To Save Us All from Satan's Power". In the realm of voice acting, he provided the voice for the character Ray Bulgarin in Grand Theft Auto IV and The Ballad of Gay Tony. Additionally, he is credited as an actor in Salt.
Drafting check:
Current word count: ~135 words.
Target: 180-260 words.
Expanding to meet word count requirements (while staying strictly to facts):
I need to add more detail from the sources without inventing anything.
Sources mention:
Name in Russian: Виталий Викторович Баганов.
Known for: Acting.
Known credits: 14.
Born: September 6, 1952.
Place: Leningrad, USSR (now Saint Petersburg, Russia).
Education: Leningrad State University (astronomy, 4 years), State Institute of Theater, Music and Cinema.
Roles: Valery (Russian gangster) in The Sopranos ("Pine Barrens" and "...To Save Us All from Satan's Power"); Ray Bulgarin (voice) in Grand Theft Auto IV and The Ballad of Gay Tony; Salt.
Revised Draft:
Vitali Viktorovich Baganov, known in Russian as Виталий Викторович Баганов, is a Russian and American actor of film and television. Born on September 6, 1952, in Leningrad, USSR, which is now Saint Petersburg, Russia, Baganov followed a circuitous route to his acting career. He attended Leningrad State University, where he spent four years studying astronomy, before entering the State Institute of Theater, Music and Cinema.

His professional credits include various roles in film and television. In the television series The Sopranos, Baganov guest starred as Valery, a Russian gangster, appearing in the episodes titled "Pine Barrens" and "...To Save Us All from Satan's Power".