Elena Alexandrovna Maksimova (23.11.1905—23.09.1986) was born in Moscow to a grocer father (he sold non-perishable goods) and a housewife mother, who was often ill. Apart from her, there were two other daughters in the family. Following her father's death in 1920, her mother was forced by poverty to send all three daughters to Orphanage No. 55, located in the Sokolniki district. Shortly after, in 1922, her mother also passed. Thus, at the age of 17, she was left completely orphaned.

From an early age, Elena Maximova had dreamed of becoming an actress. When she finished schooling in 1925, she immediately went to the film studio attached to ‘Moskprofobor’ (Москпрофобр) to sit her entrance exams. There was only one free place available, and it went to Elena – as the most talented of all the applicants. From 1925 to 1927, she trained under the guidance of renowned film masters Vladimir Gardin and Konstantin Eggert. Alongside her studies at the film studio, Elena Maksimova had to work as a press operator at a button factory.

She worked in film since 1927, appearing in productions by various film studios in Moscow and Leningrad. Between 1940 and 1964, she was an actress at the Soyuzdetfilm studio (now the Gorky Film Studio).

Honoured Artist of the RSFSR (30 September 1958). The characters she portrayed were distinguished by their realism and attention to everyday detail. Her heroines were most often active, energetic and impetuous, yet she was equally at home with gentle, lyrical roles. She served Soviet cinema for nearly fifty years, and her work was modest and selfless — rarely in supporting roles, but more often in small cameos.