Academician Vasily Osipovich Klyuchevsky, an outstanding historian of the Russian Empire, was known not only as a talented teacher and scholar. He was distinguished by his brilliant sense of humor, phenomenal memory, and deep knowledge of history. For example, when Fyodor Shalyapin was preparing for the role of the tsar in the production of "Boris Godunov," he decided to learn more about that era and its characters. He turned to Klyuchevsky for consultation. According to Shalyapin's recollections, the academic not only reproduced dialogues between Shuisky and Godunov but also tried to convey the characteristic dialect of that time. "He spoke so vividly that I saw before me those he portrayed. When I heard his Shuisky, I thought: 'What a pity that Vasily Osipovich cannot play Prince Vasily with me,'" Shalyapin recalled.

Klyuchevsky believed that complex topics should be explained simply and accessibly. Perhaps that is why he was known for his wit. For instance, despite being far from poor, Klyuchevsky continued to wear an old, worn-out fur coat, which prompted jokes among friends. When asked why he didn't buy a new coat, he replied: "A coat suits the face." When he was reproached for the stains on the uniform he disliked wearing, he countered: "Even the sun is not without spots."

Students adored Klyuchevsky for his wonderful lectures. If his lecture was canceled, it was a true disaster for them. Once, while climbing to the second floor of Moscow University, he slipped, and his lecture notes scattered. The students tried to gather them but mixed up the order. Klyuchevsky reassured them: "It's okay, I will tell it from memory." And indeed, he delivered the lecture interestingly and without a hitch. It is no surprise that after his death, students carried his coffin to the Don Cemetery on their shoulders.