Actor Mikhail Pugovkin, whose biography has always interested his loyal fans and grateful spectators, is rightfully considered the king of Soviet comedies. During his life, this man starred in almost a hundred films, and also managed to play many characters on the theater stage. Regardless of whether he played a major or secondary role, all his characters were very vivid and memorable. Looking at his works, few people could think that a smiling man with burning eyes and charisma, attracting the views of the audience to him, was never a darling of fate.
The artist Mikhail Pugovkin, whose biography was not easy, was born in a poor family, went through the war, was seriously injured and could even lose his leg. His second wife, with whom they had been married for more than 30 years, died. The actor himself suffered from a severe form of diabetes and had serious problems with drinking alcohol. Mikhail Pugovkin (a biography, a photo of which will be considered in our article) lived a difficult life, but the vivid images of his heroes were forever remembered by thousands of spectators.
A similar example is his role played in films such as “The Wedding in the Robin”, “Operation“ Y ”, “ Visit to the Minotaur ”, “ 12 Chairs ”.
Mikhail Pugovkin: biography, family
Those who knew Misha little could not even imagine that almost the most brilliant comedic actor of Soviet and then Russian cinema would grow out of him. Biography of Mikhail Pugovkin began in the village of Rameshki, Kostroma province. It was there that he was born in July 1923 in a completely simple family. Mom, Natalya Mikhailovna, was an ordinary peasant, father, Ivan Mikhailovich, worked as a butcher. The family was poor, and little Mikhail Pugovkin, whose biography has not been cloudless since childhood, managed to finish only three classes in a local school. Further, the boy was forced to drop out of school and provide all possible assistance to his parents.
In one of his interviews, the actor recalled that he was determined to become an artist as early as 10 years old. This happened after watching a movie in a village club. Of course, when Misha announced his intention to friends and relatives, they laughed at him. It seemed that the simple poor rural boy had no chance to get to the coveted blue screen, by and large. But fate decreed otherwise.
The decisive move to the capital
Biography of Mikhail Pugovkin dramatically changes after in 1936 his parents decided to move to Moscow. Work in the field required great health and strength, and living in the village in another way was almost impossible. For this reason, they decided to try to somehow settle in the city.
At the time of the move, the guy was 13 years old. Once in Moscow, he got a job at the brake plant. Kaganovich.
He was accepted as an apprentice electrician. This work could not be called easy, but the young and active guy, full of youthful enthusiasm and ambition, had enough time and energy for a hobby. Despite all the difficulties of that difficult time, he did not say goodbye to his dream of acting. Misha enrolled in one of the Moscow drama circles, which worked at the club to them. Kalyaeva, and with incredible pleasure attended classes held there after work.
First theater experience
The artist of this drama club was the national artist A. Shagov. It was he who first saw in his seemingly unremarkable boy his natural acting talent and entrusted him with the main role in the play “Our People - Let's Count”, based on the play of the same name by Ostrovsky.
First recognition of talent
Then fate nevertheless showed its favor for the teenager: during the next performance, one of the workers of art - F.N. Kaverin. At that time, he directed the Moscow Drama Theater and suggested that the young talent-nugget try to play “for real, ” on the same stage with professional actors. Pugovkin Mikhail Ivanovich, whose biography is radically changing after such a proposal, accepted it without the slightest doubt. Once in the state of actors, a guy without an acting education playing in the drama theater on Sretenka basically got roles in the crowd and was accepted into the reserve playing staff.
Mikhail film debut
A young man who dreams of a scene was quite happy with this state of affairs. He took a direct part in preparing the performances, observed the work of already recognized masters, could learn from them and even sometimes perform on the same stage with them.
At the time of the start of Pugovkin’s work in the theater on Sretenka, he was only 17 years old. One of the most beautiful days, George Roshal came to this theater in search of the right artist. The famous film director was looking for a young actor for the role of the merchant Barsky in the film “The Artamonov Case”. According to the script, this character at the wedding tried to dance the main character. The filmmaker asked which of the artists in the theater can dance and sing well. Young Mikhail Pugovkin, without hesitation, offered his candidacy (although he didn’t really know how to sing or dance). Roshal could not help but notice the talented, charismatic young man, and as a result, Misha was approved for the first movie role in his life.
In the early summer of 1941, the shooting of the film was coming to an end, but they did not manage to voice the film, as the war began.
Service in the ranks of the Soviet army and injured
Despite the successful film debut, further the biography of Mikhail Pugovkin continued at the front. Already on the second day after the start of World War II, the guy voluntarily went to the front. He fought as part of one of the rifle regiments, was a scout. Being near Voroshilovgrad, the young actor was very seriously injured in the leg. He began a serious complication in the form of gangrene. Military medicine at that time had many problems: due to the lack of medicines and equipment for any complications, field doctors were most often forced to take drastic measures - to amputate the limbs. In the event of such an operation, it is difficult to imagine how a further biography of Mikhail Pugovkin could have developed.
Fortunately, in 1942, Stalin issued a decree strictly prohibiting military doctors from carrying out amputation of limbs in the field for no good reason. And Pugovkin was incredibly lucky: despite the gangrene that had begun, he was nevertheless sent for treatment to the nearest military hospital, where they managed to save his leg. Further, Mikhail was commissioned and at the same time awarded the Order of the Patriotic War.
Post-war work in the cinema and theaters
In 1943, Pugovkin realized the need for acting education. He enrolled in a studio at the Moscow Art Theater, was enrolled in the course of Ivan Moskvin and soon became a favorite student of the famous actor and teacher. In parallel with his studies, Mikhail worked at the Moscow Drama Theater, which at that time was directed by N. Gorchakov. And it was there that Mikhail played the first major role in his life - Pyotr Ogonkov in Moskvichka.
In 1947, the young actor successfully completed his studies at the Moscow Art Theater School. One season he successfully worked at the Murmansk Theater. The next theater season, 1948-1949, the actor successfully worked in one of the Vilnius theaters. Then he returns to Moscow and works at the Lenin Komsomol Theater. Mikhail Pugovkin, a biography, the filmography of which exactly in this period of his life becomes interesting and rich, begins to actively act in films at the same time as working in the theater. For a short period, he managed to play in such films as:
- "Earth and people";
- “Soldier Ivan Brovkin”;
- “Girl with a guitar”;
- “The Case of the Motley.”
The roles in these tapes brought him recognition, but the real fame came to the actor a little later.
Final departure from the theater
In 1960, Pugovkin made the final decision and left the theater forever. He begins to work as an actor at the legendary Mosfilm film studio. Often the actor preferred the roles of the second plan. But in fact, he was always simply interested in characters who could be modified and played in his own way.
Examples of such roles include popping up in 12 Chairs, a foreman in Operation Y, and, of course, Yashka from Wedding in Robin. The last character, by the way, was remembered by all viewers and brought incredible recognition to Mikhail Pugovkin.
The recognition of a brilliant actor
Over his entire career, Mikhail has starred in almost a hundred films. In addition to the films already mentioned in our article earlier, he played in the following films:
- "Shelmenko-batman";
- "Kutuzov";
- “If there are sails”;
- "Maxim";
- "Restless economy";
- "Suitable for non-combatant";
- "Girls";
- "Sportloto-82."
Pugovkin’s game was always remembered very soon, he became a real favorite of the audience. Throughout his life, Pugovkin has been awarded many prizes, awards and orders and medals. The first official recognition came to him in 1965, when Mikhail received the title of Honored Artist of the RSFSR. A few years later, in 1977, he received the title and People's Artist of the RSFSR.
Among his many awards were the Order of Honor (issued for personal contribution to the development of cinema), the Zhukov Medal, and the prize to them. Luspekaeva "For courage and dignity in the profession."
Three spouses of the great actor
Mikhail Pugovkin, a biography whose personal life was interested in thousands of his fans, was married three times. The actor’s first wife was his classmate, a very beautiful woman, actress Nadezhda Lenina, who is better known to the public under her stage name Nadezhdin. Judging by the recollections of eyewitnesses, young people really loved each other. But they had a chance to live together in a rather difficult post-war time. The everyday life of young theater actors was held in real poverty. When young people were 23 years old, their daughter Elena was born. But, since the couple did not have the proper conditions for raising a child, little Lena spent all her childhood with her maternal grandmother.
Now Elena Pugovkina herself says that she is very grateful to her grandmother for the decision made then to take custody of her. Unfortunately, she cannot boast of warm and tender memories of her parents, although she treats everything with due understanding. According to her, the Pugovkin-Nadezhdin couple was too busy with themselves and their acting work to pay due attention to their daughter. Michael loved to drink and was very jealous of his first wife, against which scandals quite often broke out between spouses. Despite all the difficulties, they managed to live in marriage for a long time. Mikhail and Nadezhda divorced after 12 years of marriage.
The second wife of the artist was a very interesting person - Alexander Lukyanchenko, who, by the way, was 11 years older than Pugovkin. She was a famous performer of folk songs, but for the sake of Pugovkin left her career. We can say that this marriage was successful, because Lukyanchenko managed to do the almost impossible - she managed to save her husband from addiction to alcohol. Michael, in turn, appreciated the care of the new wife and treated her the same way, very warmly and gently. This marriage lasted much longer than the first, they lived together for 32 years, until the death of Alexandra Nikolaevna.
The third wife of the actor was Irina Lavrova. After the death of Lukyanchenko, Pugovkin moved to Yalta, where he met his last wife. Lavrova was once the administrator of the Soyuzkontsert, and, having met with Pugovkin, took the initiative, becoming its administrator. Together they lived for almost 17 years, until the death of the actor in 2008.
