Yevgeny Yevtushenko was a Russian poet, novelist, essayist, dramatist, screenwriter, publisher, actor, editor, university professor, and director of several films who came to prominence in the late 1950s, especially after publication of his best-known work, "Babiyy Yar", in which he vehemently denounced the Soviet response to the Holocaust which had down-played the anti-semitic and genocidal aspects of Hitler's policies. During the Krushchev era he was more celebrated within the Soviet Union and allowed travel but travel bans continued after the publication of his autobiography in 1963. He eventually spent much time in the United States where he taught at several universities. He has been criticized by both the right and left for his stances on various political issues but there is no question that his life and poetry inspired a generation during the Cold War.