In 1937 Maretskaya suffered from political execution of her two brothers, journalists Dmitry and Grigory, who were the followers of opposition politician Nikolai Bukharin.

She lost her second husband, a young actor, named Georgy Troitsky, who was killed in action in 1941, during the Second World War.

She shot to fame after the leading role in 'Chlen pravitelstva' (Member of the Government 1940) by directors Aleksandr Zarkhi and Iosif Kheifits.

At that time she created popular radio shows based on her adaptations of Woman Without Love and The Art of Living, both by writer André Maurois.

[2] Maretskaya died on 17 August 1978, aged 72, and was laid to rest in Novodevichy Cemetery in Moscow.