The comrades in leg warmers weren't just a figment of my imagination, but were also mentioned in a mid-80's LA Times article about RAND pirating TV from the soviets.
From an occasional flashy aerobics class with slim women in leg-warmers
I think it's legit, because besides the leg warmers, they also mentioned chess:
and a weekly chess show ("horrendous," Griffin said--"instant narcolepsy") ... "Only in Russia would they begin sports news with chess."
and I've noticed that chess is fairly popular in russian music videos.
Not only do provincial policemen play:
ЛЮБЭ "Березы"
but also vacationing hippie-dippies:
Отава Ё - Иванушка-рачек
and even alcoholics/hooligans/parasites:
Гарик Сукачев - Полюби меня
(Сукачев not only plays the down-and-out in that video; he is better known for "my grandmother smokes a pipe", Моя бабушка курит трубку, than for portraying high culture)
There has been one significant exception I've noticed: the protagonist of Leningrad's "Patriot" may have two passports and multiple cars, and even a shiny samovar, but she lacks the chessboard.
Ленинград — Патриотка