Mark Naumovich Bernes (Russian: Ма́рк Нау́мович Берне́с) (October 8 [O.S. September 25] 1911, Nezhin, Chernigov Governorate, Russian Empire – August 16, 1969, Moscow, Soviet Union) was a Soviet actor and singer of Jewish ancestry (his father's last name was Neumann), who performed some of the most poignant songs to come out of World War II, including Dark Night (Russian: Тёмная ночь, Tyomnaya noch; 1943) and Cranes (Russian: Журавли, Zhuravli; 1969). His voice had some similarities to Bing Crosby, but his style was closer to French chansonniers such as Yves Montand.
