Except that it's not Khruschev's apartments. The building which interior we see on the photo is obviously not new, and Khruschev was in power for only 8 years,

Except that it's not Khruschev's apartments. The building which interior we see on the photo is obviously not new, and Khruschev was in power for only 8 years, 1956-1964. So it couldn't be in that poor state in 'early 60s', those blocks have been brand new back then, or most of them, not even built yet. 'Khruschevkis' have been built since ca. 1959 through in fact, late 1970s (and very little, mainly in Moscow, were built before Khruschev was ousted), and they actually had thin walls through which you can hear. Most people in Khruschev's era lived in wooden temporary buildings (many of them stand till now, completely uninhabitable) built right after the war, or dormitories, or communal apartments (which were build in Stalin era and were normally very well built, except a family got a single room in 6-8 room apartment). Very few, upper class people could get a whole apartment of that kind. These indeed, had thick walls, high ceilings, were well-designed and still form a highly sought after part of real estate in Russian cities (while not many were built). And yes, Khruschevkis were a good thing because they, as primitive and oversimplified as they were, were the only way for most families to move to the city from countryside, or to get their private housing for the first time.