The humble genius. Innokenty Mikhailovich Smoktunovsky

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“I went through all the war just because I love my Fatherland, I love my Motherland, I love my people before I forget myself. I did all this only so that there would be peace, so that my country could survive and prove not only its viability, but also its dignity, to prove that we, Russians, we Russians, were, are and will be. ”
THEM. Smoktunovsky


Innokenty Mikhailovich Smoktunovich (real name of the actor) was born 28 March 1925 in a peasant family in the village Tatyanovka, located in the Tomsk province. His great-grandfather worked as a huntsman in the Belovezhskaya Forest and was sent to Siberia with his relatives for the unintentional killing of a bison. In the family, Innocent was the second of six children. The future actor said about his parents: “They had no education at all - they were just good Russian people, which is called“ from the ground ”. Mother, Anna Akimovna, is a small, kind and very quiet woman. Father, Mikhail Petrovich, - in all its direct opposite. A two-meter tall, incredibly strong, red-haired, rollicking character ... "

In 1929, the Smoktunovichi left their native village. In the country at that time collectivization was going on at full speed, and Innocent's parents, not eager to go to the collective farm, moved to Tomsk. They failed to settle there and moved on to Krasnoyarsk, where the father’s relatives lived. Upon arrival in the city, Mikhail Petrovich found work as a port loader, and Anna Akimovna got a job at the sausage factory. The childhood of the great actor took place in difficult conditions - a large family was far from the world of books, museums, theaters and could barely make ends meet. In one interview, Smoktunovsky said: “In my early years, I did not hear about pocket money. Earn ice cream - a rare joy. " His mother often brought home meat bones from which she made soup. According to Innokenty Mikhailovich, he remembered the taste of that broth for the rest of his life.

Hunger broke out again in 1932 in the country, and Smoktunovsky's mother lost her job. In order to save the children, parents had to resort to extreme measures. Two sons - Volodya and Kesha - they were sent to be raised by Nadezhda Petrovna, the former sister of her father and who had no children. Despite her lack of education, she was a very soulful woman and she loved her nephews with all her heart. Everybody spoiled the kids and Nadezhda Petrovna's husband - Uncle Vasya. Innokenty Mikhailovich recalled how once he gave him an old, battered bicycle - at that time a truly royal gift.

At school Smoktunovsky studied secondary. Teachers disliked him for his incredible stubbornness, as well as constant disputes with them in trying to defend their own, albeit incorrect, point of view. It was in Krasnoyarsk that the young man first met the theater. Innokenty Mikhailovich wrote: “With the move to the city, I discovered a previously unknown thing - a theater. Each visit became a holiday, although there was nothing special there, of course. But it seemed to me that the air itself was filled with mystery, everything was unfamiliar, and this was a bit scary. ” Studying in the sixth grade, Smoktunovsky enrolled in a school drama group led by an actor in a local theater. However, the very first performance in the play on the work of Chekhov “Proposal” ended in failure. Smoktunovsky wrote: “After stepping on the stage for the first time, I was laughing hysterically with excitement, having infected the entire auditorium with laughter. After that, they kicked me out of the circle. ”

The humble genius. Innokenty Mikhailovich SmoktunovskyIn 1941, the war began, and the head of the family, Mikhail Petrovich, went to the front. On Innokentiy, however, laid down the care of the content of relatives. The young man had to combine classes in school with studies in film projection courses. Despite many problems, the theater continued to attract Smoktunovsky, and by hook or by crook, he tried to find time to attend another performance. Of course, he did not have money for tickets, and Innocent went for all sorts of tricks, even to fake them. And after a while he managed to get a theater extra.

However, in the theater Smoktunovsky did not last long. At the end of 1942, the news of the death of his father came, and already in January, the 1943 boy was taken to the Kiev military school, which moved to Achinsk. Smoktunovsky did not stay there either - in August of the same year he was urgently sent as a private to the Kursk Bulge to replenish the 75 Guards Rifle Division. Subsequently, he took part in the crossing of the Dnieper and the battles for the liberation of Kiev. Recalling those years, Innokentiy Mikhailovich said: “Do not believe those who say that it’s not scary in war. It is always scary ... Courage is when you overcome animal horror and go forward. " In the course of the attack on Kiev, a military unit in which Smoktunovsky entered was encircled, and in early December, after a fierce battle near Zhitomir, Innokenty Mikhailovich was captured.

The future actor visited camps for prisoners of war in Berdichev, Shepetovka, Zhytomyr. He was well aware of how little his chances of surviving a prison could be, but for the slightest attempt to escape he was followed by an immediate execution. Innokenty Mikhailovich confessed that there was another option: “We were offered to serve in the POA. But this option did not suit me. ” In another interview, Smoktunovsky said: “The terrible minutes before the signal to attack, but the worst thing is captivity, the feeling that your life does not belong to you. Any fascist could come up, put a gun to the back of the head and everything ... ". A chance to escape introduced himself to Smoktunovsky a month later. His closest friend, Rimma Markova, said: “When they were escorted, Innocent became sick with a stomach. He was allowed to fail. Until the end of his life, Smoktunovsky remembered with gratitude the soldier, with a gesture that showed him to sit under the bridge and smeared marks on the snow. ” For almost a day, Innokenty Mikhailovich was in a snowdrift, and after several weeks he wandered through the forests and hid from the Germans. Staggering from hunger, he walked through the thickets until, finally, he came to the village of Dmitrovka. Here the dying fighter was picked up by the locals. From their side, it was an extremely risky act — the Germans shot all the inhabitants of the house for harboring Soviet prisoners of war. Subsequently, Smoktunovsky recalled: “How can I forget the Shevchuk family, who, after escaping, covered me. These sincere, dear people come to us, and we always welcome them cordially. ”

Shevchukov Innokenty Mikhailovich, gaining strength, lived for more than a month, and in February 1944 joined the partisan detachment of the Kamenetz-Podolsk compound. The partisan detachment merged with Red Army units in 1944 in May. After this, Smoktunovsky continued his service as a junior sergeant, commanding the detachment of a company of machine gunners of the 641 Guards Rifle Regiment of the 75 Guards Division. He took part in the liberation of Warsaw, and in January 1945 for the fact that in the battle near the village of Lorzen his fighters were among the first to break into the trenches of the enemy, Innokenty Mikhailovich was awarded the second medal "For Courage". He received his first medal back in 1943. By the way, she was handed to him only forty-nine years later on the stage of the Moscow Art Theater after the performance “Kabala holy”. Smoktunovsky ended the war in the German city of Grevesmühlen. It is surprising that for all the years of battles Innokenty Mikhailovich did not receive a single injury. He himself said on this occasion: “Honestly, I myself am surprised - I fought surrounded, stood at gunpoint, escaped from captivity. He was not injured. True, I once fell asleep with the ground during the bombing - so that only my shoes were sticking out ... ”.

After demobilization in the fall of 1945, Smoktunovsky returned to his native Krasnoyarsk and wondered for a while what to do in the future. First, he went to study as a paramedic, then got a job in the port, and then decided to enter the forestry institute. All this time, his dreams about the theater did not leave him, and in the end, Innokenty Mikhailovich settled into the same theater studio where he used to be an extra in the army. She worked at the Krasnoyarsk Theater, and the students were often involved in the performances. In a short time, Smoktunovsky managed to make several appearances on the stage, however, the lack of theatrical preparation had an effect - he was terribly constrained in public. The great actor recalled: “For fear of the audience, they threw me into a chill. A low voice was made barely audible. I did not know where to go, what to do with legs and arms. ” Despite this, the future actor had a rather unyielding character, he repeatedly expressed his dissatisfaction with the director, and as a result (in 1946) was expelled from the theater.

After that, Innokenty Mikhailovich decided to go to Norilsk. Subsequently, Smoktunovsky explained: “In fact, I could not go anywhere — by order of the passport regime, I, as a former prisoner of war, was forbidden to live in thirty-nine cities of the Soviet Union. I was allowed to go to Krasnoyarsk just because I was born there. ” At the same time, he changed his real name Smoktunovich to a more harmonious Smoktunovsky. In Norilsk, Innokenty Mikhailovich settled into the Second Polar Theater of Musical Comedy and Drama. There were many new productions in the theater, and the young actor was involved in several performances at once. It was at this point that Smoktunovsky went through a professional acting school, and ten premieres per year helped him rigidly and quickly adapt to the conditions of the scene. Many wonderful actors worked in the troupe, and George Zhzhenov became the closest friend of Innokenty Mikhailovich.

In Norilsk Smoktunovsky worked for four years. In the end, poor nutrition and harsh climate did their job. The actor developed vitamin deficiency, and he began to get sick often. George Stepanovich strongly urged his comrade to leave the city and go to Leningrad. In this regard, he even sent a letter of recommendation to Arkady Raikin. As a result, Innokentiy Mikhailovich really left Norilsk for 1952, but he didn’t go to the northern capital of Russia, but to sunny Makhachkala. Upon arrival in the city, he got a job in the Dagestan Russian Drama Theater. Here he met the famous Soviet actress Rimma Markova, who became his good friend for life. Subsequently, she recalled: "The first time I saw him in the local theater ... I understood what kind of artist it was and caught fire to Moscow." Rimma Vasilievna wrote about Smoktunovsky to theater director Sofia Giacintova. Among other things, the letter contained the following words: "If you take it, you can safely throw out the half-theater." Sofia Vladimirovna, interested, answered. A sluggish correspondence ensued, and Innokenty Mikhailovich, meanwhile (at 1953), moved to Stalingrad. He later wrote about his presence in the Makhachkala theater: “During the year I worked, I“ baked ”five main roles that did not bring me any true professional experience, joy or even ordinary ability to analyze the actions and thoughts of the image.” By the way, not only the impoverished situation in the local theater, but also personal motives prompted the actor to relocate - Smoktunovsky married for the first time. His wife was later known actress Rimma Bykova, who was offered a job in Stalingrad.

The city on the Volga, almost to the ground destroyed during the war, in the early fifties, with the support of the whole country, rose from the ruins. Much attention was paid to cultural life - in particular, in 1952 with the help of metropolitan architects, the local theater was restored. Gorky. The first production was Gorky’s play “At the Bottom,” the second, Shakespeare’s play The Taming of the Shrew, in which Innokenty Mikhailovich played the episodic role of the servant Biondello. However, he played this small role so well that he was awarded a laudatory review in the All-Union magazine "Theater". And the subsequent performances "Big Trouble" by Lang and "Profitable Place" by Ostrovsky allowed Smoktunovsky to win the sympathy of the local public. It seemed that the actor, in the end, found his team and his theater, but behind the ostentatious well-being there were serious problems. Innocent Mikhailovich had differences with theater director Firs Shishigin, who, by the way, was endowed with dictatorial manners and literally suppressed the young actor with his temperament. In addition, Smoktunovsky faced troubles on the family front. His young wife suddenly broke out a romance with one of the actors. The clarification of the relationship ended in a fight, and the trade union committee who met the next day decided that one of the spouses was obliged to leave the troupe. Innokenty Mikhailovich left his wife and at the same time the theater. In the yard was January 1955.

Encouraged by the correspondence with Giatsintovoy, Smoktunovsky beat off a telegram to Sofia Vladimirovna: “I am ready for a permanent job. Let me know when you can give a debut. ” And although Sofia Vladimirovna was restrained in her answer and did not promise the actor anything, Innokenty Mikhailovich went to conquer Moscow. This was a very difficult matter. Despite the help of Rimma Markova, Lenk Smoktunovsky was not accepted. He was not struck by anyone either at the Theater of Satire, the Central Theater of the Soviet Army, the Theater of Drama and Comedy, the Theater-Studio of the Film Actor, the Theater of Drama. Stanislavsky. As a result, Smoktunovsky visited all the capital's theaters with the exception of Vakhtangov, Maly and the Moscow Art Theater, which, he said, "was afraid to approach". You shouldn’t talk about the “unsuspectingness” of the administration and the directors of metropolitan theaters, who missed genius. They all saw in front of them a thirty-year-old man from the province of dubious appearance and slippery biography, whose drama education had been exhausted by six months of training in the Krasnoyarsk studio. Of course, the front-line past inspired respect, but it was alarming to be in captivity. The situation was also aggravated by the lack of Moscow registration.

Thus, the actor got into a completely hopeless situation. The money soon ran out, but Smoktunovsky was in no hurry to leave the capital, gradually selling off his belongings. Fortunately, at that moment he was supported by Leonid and Rimma Markov, who fed the actor and provided shelter. However, more often hungry, in a battered ski suit (his only toilet) Innokenty Mikhailovich wandered around the summer city, sleeping in attics. In the end, he managed to get a job in Lenkom, where he went on one-time roles without words. They paid for a similar exit, by the way, seven rubles each.



In one of these difficult days, Smoktunovsky met Shulamith Kushnir. Subsequently, she said: “I was born in Jerusalem. My mother - a young idealist from Lithuania - came to organize communes in Palestine, and then moved to the USSR to build a new life ... When I met Innokenty Mikhailovich, I was about thirty and I didn't know any serious relationship ... Was it a sunstroke? Not. Rather, the feeling has burst all the time. The fullest understanding of each other, deep love, my awareness of its purpose came later. ” Soon after the acquaintance, the actor made a proposal to Sulamif Mikhailovna, and to his surprise, she agreed. Smoktunovsky affectionately called his second wife Solomka, and she really appeared to him the very straw, clinging to which he swam towards a new life, his glory and his success. Sulamif Mikhailovna was a famous costume designer and had many friends in the Moscow artistic environment. One of them was the famous director Leonid Trauberg. Thanks to his help, Smoktunovsky turned out to present Ivan Pyryev. On this occasion, Leonid Zakharovich said: “Once I told Pyryev: one wildish actor from the province lives in Moscow. They say that he is talented, but has neither theater nor angle. According to the role - something like a "neurotic". Pyryev then dismissed: “What kind of talent is he, if he is not a member of the Theater of actor? All talents and super talents are there! Okay, let there be at least one neurotic without talent. We should give him a room in a hostel ... ". After this conversation, Ivan Alexandrovich wrote a letter to the leadership of the Theater-Studio of the film actor with a request to take Innokenty Mikhailovich to his staff. His wish was fulfilled, but they took the word from the newcomer - not to try to get into the movies. Subsequently, Smoktunovsky did just that - if the role was not offered to him, he himself never asked for it.

In the theater studio of film actor Innocent M. to play a role in the show “How he lied to her husband”. His partner was the wife of the famous director Mikhail Romm Elena Kuzmina. She recommended Smoktunovsky to her spouse, who was making Murder on Dante Street at the time. Mikhail Ilyich heeded her advice and invited the actor to the small role of a young doctor who worked with the Germans. The episode in which Smoktunovsky was busy, the plot lasted only a few seconds, but his filming suddenly took a long time. Actor Mikhail Kozakov recalled: “In the frame, Innokenty Mikhailovich looked squeezed, constantly made a reservation and“ flogged ”the duplicates, then stopped and apologized ... Romm soothed him and announced new doubles, however story repeated ... Shooting did not go well, and the nerve of a debutant was transmitted to everyone around it. Assistant director ran up, offering to replace a talentless actor. Suddenly Romm turned purple and in a whisper evil said: “Well, stop fussing! The actor feels it all and it bothers him. He is removed for the first time. Don't you see how talented he is? ” It must be said that everyone, including me, to my shame, was surprised at Romm’s words about the talents of this seemingly unremarkable provincial. ”

In the same 1956, Innokentiy Mikhailovich played in Ivanov’s film Soldiers. The image of Lieutenant Farber, created by the actor, was very memorable and alive. This film changed his fate - on one of the views of Smoktunovsky he saw Tovstonogov, who was the director of the Leningrad Grand Drama Theater. The eyes of the actor literally captivated George Alexandrovich. In those days, the BDT was staging Dostoevsky's Idiot, and the great director could not get rid of the idea that Smoktunovsky had Myshkin's eyes. When Innokenty Mikhailovich appeared in the theater, the role of the prince was played by another actor. In this regard, the input of the "Varyag" performance by the majority of the troupe was met with hostility. For some time, Smoktunovsky stoically demolished all ridicule and resentment, but then he could not stand it and wrote first one, and soon a second resignation letter. However, Georgy Alexandrovich, sensitive to acting talents, in some incomprehensible way persuaded him to change the decision. Supported the brilliant actor and his spouse, reassuring: “Humble, Kesha. You have a great helper - Fyodor Dostoevsky. All you get.

To say that Smoktunovsky has succeeded is to say nothing. The premiere that took place on December 31 1957, had an incredible success. It was a sensation, a sensation, an event in theatrical life. Critics wrote: “Not a playing, but a living actor appeared in the BDT”. Rimma Markova said: “When the performances had already gone, he called me:“ Will you ever come? I buy two tickets for everyone, I hope everything. ” And I went. That was the height! With delight and shock, my teeth hurt as well ... After a while, I found myself in the company of folk-folk artists discussing Smoktunovsky's play. One of them argued: “Yes, which one is an actor? Only froth comes from the mouth. ” I could not restrain myself: “I don’t know where it comes from and what it’s going to, but it’s there (I pointed up), and you are here (and showed it to the floor).” For the actor himself, "Idiot" was a fateful performance. Years later, he wrote: “My only great work on stage in Idiot. It is legendary, eternal — I saw them tremble in the faces of the audience ... I don’t know how my creative life would have been if I hadn’t come across Dostoevsky’s legacy. ” In the future, Smoktunovsky measured all of his heroes on the “Myshkin scale” invented by him.

Despite the success, it was easier to work in the BDT team for the actor, and, having played in several more performances, he went to cinema in 1960. The period from 1960 to 1966 was the most fruitful in Smoktunovsky’s biography. It all started with the film “Nine Days of One Year” by Mikhail Romm. Initially, the main characters were supposed to play Yuri Yakovlev and Alexei Batalov, but before the start of filming Yury Vasilyevich had an accident. It took an urgent need to find a replacement, and then script writer Daniel Khrabrovitsky remembered Innokenty Mikhailovich. The picture came out on screens in 1962 and had a huge audience success, and Smoktunovsky at the thirteenth film festival in Karlovy Vary was awarded the prize for best actor. Even more success awaited him two years later (in 1964), when the world saw Hamlet by Kozintsev, in which Innokenty Mikhailovich played the Prince of Denmark. The idea to call on Smoktunovsky for this role came to the director by chance, he himself said: “There were no hesitations, doubts, a film test, there was no photo test. There was only such a Hamlet and no other! ”. Motion pictures triumphantly bypassed the whole world. Wiesbaden, Venice, San Sebastian, Panama, San Francisco, Lima - this is not a complete list of film festivals, where the film was awarded high prizes. At 1965 in England, Hamlet was voted the best foreign film of the year, and Innokenti Mikhailovich the best foreign actor. In the same year, Smoktunovsky was awarded the Lenin Prize.

By the mid-sixties, Innokenty Mikhailovich was already world-famous. Among his colleagues, he had an extremely high prestige, the audience often chose him as the best film actor of the year, and most novice artists sought to play "under Smoktunovsky". There was no difficulty with the work - among the directors, he was snapped up. At this time, Ilya Olshvanger called Smoktunovsky in the film “On One Planet” for the role of Vladimir Lenin. The confused Innokenty Mikhailovich tried to refuse such “honor”. However, it did not work out - the actor was called to the Leningrad Regional Committee, where he was persuaded to withdraw. The film, as expected, came out mediocre and was hardly noticed by either the critics or the audience. And in 1965, Eldar Ryazanov invited the actor to play in his new film "Beware of the car." The cinematographic authorities immediately stated that the actor who played Lenin could not play the rogue. Ryazanov was worth a great deal of work to convince the leadership, he kept saying to the Minister of Cinematography himself: “We have a deeply positive character, a“ rogue ”noble”. Fortunately, Smoktunovsky was allowed to be shot, and “Beware of the car” became for many years one of the most favorite films of Soviet citizens.

For all his talent, Smoktunovsky remained an unusually shy and modest person who was not accustomed to his popularity. On this occasion, Rimma Markova noted: “He himself was well aware that he was much more talented than the majority of actors. However, I was not so sure of myself ... When I received an invitation to the cinema, every time I said: “Everything, today I will fail.” And one of his contemporaries wrote: "Acknowledging that he was a genius, Smoktunovsky confusedly lowered his eyes, as if he was embarrassed, and could not help but note an indisputable fact." At the same time, a sense of humor never left the actor in any situation. A well-known conversation between Ephraim and Smoktunovsky, when they flew from a tour. On the plane, the actors were sitting next to each other, and Oleg Nikolaevich decided to ask: “Kesha, how do you think I was playing?”. Innokenty Mikhailovich replied: “Well, you are a wonderful artist”. Then Efremov asked: "Well, and then you are, what kind of artist?" Smoktunovsky sighed: "And I, Oleg, space ...". Efremov later admitted that he didn’t know the whole way what to object to.

In 1966, Innokenty Mikhailovich responded to an offer from Tovstonogov, who had gathered to show the play “Idiot” abroad. Tours in London and Paris lasted a month, Smoktunovsky played seventeen performances, and each was a resounding success. British critics wrote: "The performance of the role of Prince Myshkin Smoktunovsky rises above all the impressions of the season." But soon after arriving home, the actor began having health problems, and for almost a year he practically did not appear on the scene. The triumphant return occurred in 1968, when Smoktunovsky played two bright roles in the cinema - Porfiry Petrovich in Lev Kulidzhanov’s film Crime and Punishment and Pyotr Tchaikovsky in Igor Talankin’s movie of the same name. Works have noted numerous awards and prizes, Innokenty Mikhailovich was again named the best actor of the year. And in 1973, Smoktunovsky was offered a place in the Maly Theater. He agreed, but for a long time did not stay there, going to 1976 in the Moscow Art Theater, where he worked until the end of his life.

Smoktunovsky's real support in all life situations was his strong family. The great actor said about her: “For me, family is, above all, a wife: here is love, warmth, comfort, faith, hope, dignity, and morality, and morality. And if you ask what Smoktunovsky is, then in many ways this is my wife. ” Innokenty Mikhailovich called his wife from everywhere, where he was filming or was on tour, always brought a lot of gifts. Not a single question in his creative biography was resolved without discussion with his wife. When the actor was difficult, he doubted himself, the spouse said: "Do not be shy, do not cry the blues, do not complain - you are a gifted person." And when Innokenty Mikhailovich used to be picky, he silently endured orders and medals to him, and the actor felt ashamed. In March, 1956 had their first child, Nadezhda, but their daughter died in September of the same year. Philip was born in 1957, and daughter Maria in 1965. Sulamif Mikhailovna said: “We lived modestly, and we taught our children to the same. Kesh himself in everyday life was absolutely undemanding, far from showing off and social life. ” And the actress Yevgeniya Simonova said: “When I saw him in an official or public situation, and then in ordinary life, I had a feeling that this was a different person. In interviews, TV shows, various speeches there were poses, intonations, hints, halftones, twisted arms. In everyday communication, I did not observe anything of this. He was attentive, sincere, simple. I even wanted to ask: “Innokenty Mikhailovich - is it your second nature or do you play any role?”. Smoktunovsky's daughter recalled: “My father loved the holidays, sit at the table. He loved the soup, respected Japanese and Chinese cuisine, even learned to eat with chopsticks. The family was his fortress. He spent his free hours only at home. By the way, he was very economical and skillful, he loved to equip his life, often he drilled something, screwed, nailed it. True, at times he could not be distracted. Let's say the dish washes and whispers something to himself. You ask: "What?", And he reproachfully: "Well, I'm rehearsing!". It is known that Smoktunovsky loved to drive a car. Of all the brands, the actor preferred the “Volga”, the wheel of which for the first time sat on the set of the film “Beware of the car”.

Innokenty Mikhailovich was eager to have his daughter Masha become an actress, and from childhood he took her with him to the shooting. Maria Innokentievna said: “Dad often rehearsed with me, trying not to be limited to the external picture of the role, but to reincarnate completely ... He was demanding, even strict, said that self-discipline is important in the work of an actor ...”. Maria played in more than ten films, however, when she grew up, she wanted to become a ballerina. Later she entered the choreographic school, and after graduation she got a job in the corps de ballet of the Bolshoi Theater.

In the eighties, Innokenty Mikhailovich played the main roles in the films “Late Love”, “Little Tragedies”, “Children of the Sun”, “The Case of Sukhovo-Kobylin” and “Heart is not a Stone”. For his role in the film “Ladies' Tailor” in 1991, the actor was awarded “Nicky” and was awarded a diploma at the San Remo film festival. After the split of the Moscow Art Theater in 1987, Smoktunovsky and Efremov ended up in a theater called the Chekhov Moscow Art Theater. The two actors who made up the brilliant duet in the film “Beware of the car”, in the following years, with undisguised pleasure, played together in the “Possible meeting” of Bartz and “Kabale the Holy” by Bulgakov.

Since the beginning of the nineties, Smoktunovsky has increasingly agreed to play the roles of “through passage”. The reason was commonplace - there was not enough livelihood. The actor himself said: “I used to be more strict in my choice of roles ... And now, with shame, I say this — I am guided by something else. I am informed: “How much will you pay me for this disgrace?”. However, in the “continuous” roles the great actor continued to demonstrate his talent and skill. Innokenty Mikhailovich once said about his life as a whole: “I am a happy person, and it seems to me that I have achieved something. I have a lot of awards for creativity, there are also military ones. Awards are great, but not the most important. More significant is that my people recognized me. And I am happy that I did not disappoint his expectations and hopes. Isn't it a blessing to hear how a person who spent two or three hours watching a performance or a movie, says: “Look, this long one is still good, even if it’s already old.”

On the last year of Smoktunovsky's life, his daughter said: “In February, 1994’s father had a microinfarct, but he quickly got better. And nevertheless, the Pope did not heal, continuing to shoot at once in two films “White Holiday” by Naumov and “Attraction of the Sun” by Apasyan. He was filmed with passion, and when it was over, he went to the sanatorium to recover. But after a few days I asked to pick it up, did not like it there. However, we did not have time, there was a second heart attack ... ”.

In one of the last conversations, Smoktunovsky said: "You can not win the role without knocking your heart out." 4 August 1994 at three o'clock in the morning, resting in the sanatorium Smoktunovsky suddenly felt unwell. Doctors were called, an emergency ambulance arrived at the scene, but the doctors were powerless. The outstanding actor was buried at the Novodevichy cemetery. On his last journey, the first of the Russian actors, was escorted by a standing ovation, and one of the eyewitnesses wrote: “On this day, Innokenty Mikhailovich had everything as always.”

According to the materials of the sites http://chtoby-pomnili.com/ and http://www.rusactors.ru.
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16 comments
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  1. +16
    12 May 2015 07: 18
    Thanks to the author for a very good article, I read it with pleasure!
  2. +7
    12 May 2015 08: 03
    interesting article, real actor, not like modern shell
  3. Shabay62
    +4
    12 May 2015 08: 36
    The author Olga Zelenko-Zhdanova, thanks for the article. The fact that he knew the veteran, but in more detail, no. Thanks again. hi
  4. +2
    12 May 2015 09: 47
    Thank you for the article! Strange, for some reason the film "Barrier" based on the story by Pavel Vezhinov is not mentioned.
  5. +5
    12 May 2015 09: 55
    What a fate! ..
    "Talents need help, mediocrity will break through on their own ..." - it is true now, unfortunately ...
    1. +3
      12 May 2015 10: 23
      How do you determine this? What criteria to use? Even the article shows that a lot of work is needed. Enduring life's problems. Somewhere luck, chance. And "... mediocrity will break through themselves ..." here I do not agree that these will push through money, connections, cronyism.
  6. +1
    12 May 2015 10: 09
    ACTOR, MAN, CITIZEN and all this with a capital letter. Few of those who have achieved fame manage to keep their heads. Thank you Innokenty Mikhailovich Smoktunovsky for the fact that you succeeded. Thanks to the author for the article. You "+". In the memory of those who saw your performance, you will forever be a "PEOPLE" actor.
  7. +2
    12 May 2015 10: 31
    Yes! This is the real intelligentsia, not Makar and such rubbish !!!! This is a true patriot of the country, its soldiers "" from and to "" .... It is a pity that this galaxy is gone, and the change is unfortunately poisoned by liberalism ..... Thanks for the article IN !!!
    1. +1
      12 May 2015 11: 36
      But I’m not sure about your assessment, I’ll remind you that in 1966 Smoktunovsky signed a collective letter against the rehabilitation of Stalin. For me, Smoktunovsky is a dissident.
      1. +1
        12 May 2015 19: 04
        In 1966, 13 figures of Soviet science, literature and art signed a letter to the Presidium of the CPSU Central Committee against the rehabilitation of I.V. Stalin.
        Here they are:
        1. P.F. Zdradovsky - Full Member of the Academy of Medical Sciences of the USSR, Lenin and Stalin Prize Laureate, Hero of Socialist Labor
        2. V.M. Zhdanov - full member of the USSR Academy of Medical Sciences
        3. I. Nikiforov - an old Bolshevik historian, a member of the party since 1904
        4. S.S. Smirnov - writer, Lenin Prize laureate
        5. I.G. Erenburg - writer, three times winner of the Stalin Prize
        6. I.V. Ilyinsky - People's Artist of the USSR, three times laureate of the Stalin Prize
        7. V.D. Dudintsev - writer
        8. A.N. Kolmogorov - academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences, laureate of the Stalin Prize
        9. B.L. Astaurov - Corresponding Member of the USSR Academy of Sciences
        10. A.I. Alikhanov - academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences, three times laureate of the Stalin Prize
        11. I.L. Knunyants - academician of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, three times laureate of the Stalin Prize
        12. G.N. Chukhrai - Honored Artist of the RSFSR, Lenin Prize Laureate, film director
        13. V.I. Muradeli - composer, twice laureate of the Stalin Prize
        Where did you see IM Smoktunovsky here? Or do you have some other version of the letter against the rehabilitation of Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich. If there is, then a big request to post this letter or at least its signers, because you need to know such people at least by their last name, because they are enemies, no matter ideological or for reasons of conjuncture. When I learned that the well-known and respected director Georgy Chukhrai, as well as the highly respected writer Sergei Sergeevich Smirnov, thanks to whose activities Brest received the title of a hero-fortress (Smirnov published a series of articles and chapters of the story "Brest Fortress" in the Literary newspaper ", in which he was the editor-in-chief. The history of the Brest Fortress shocked everyone, and Smirnov became a laureate of the Lenin Prize in 1965) my respect for these people has sharply diminished.
        I have the honor.
        1. 0
          12 May 2015 22: 23
          The letter to which you refer (letter of thirteen) is dated March 25, 1966, and it was already the second, and before that on February 14, 1966 there was a letter of 25 figures of Soviet science, culture and art to L. I. Brezhnev against the rehabilitation of Stalin.
          I think it makes no sense to give a full letter here, so I can give a link:
          http://www.ihst.ru/projects/sohist/document/letters/antistalin.htm
  8. +1
    12 May 2015 10: 42
    “Possible meeting” Bartz .. Recorded on video, in the 90s still showed performances, then transferred to SD .. There are no such actors now, no .. Love art in yourself, not yourself in art .. Smoktunovsky of these .. from the first .. And today's from the second .. because today's films are mostly rubbish ..
  9. +2
    12 May 2015 12: 15
    Great artist and wonderful person. Peace be upon him.
  10. +1
    12 May 2015 14: 41
    Great article about the Great Actor!
  11. 0
    12 May 2015 19: 18
    Thank you for the article!
  12. +1
    17 May 2015 08: 50
    for me, in that distant 1964, a 13-year-old boy watching the film "Hamlet" was a shock and a reason to rethink my attitude to the classics. After all, it's no secret that at this age things like that are very badly instilled, but after watching this particular film, I SUDDENLY realized the meaning, the meaning of all those events and deeds. Eternal memory to such a Person, Actor, Citizen of my beloved Motherland!

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