The main woman in the life of a womanizer and cutie Leonid Markov: The difficult fate of a talented artist

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

Almost 30 years have passed since the great master of the theatrical stage, the actor, passed away - Leonid Markov. Blond curly hair, tall stature, open masculinity and a bewitching voice made him a star of Soviet cinema. He easily got used to any dramatic role that literally entered him like an infection. And, apparently, that is why each of his works is a vivid story, life-long, hard-won and conveyed to the very heart of the viewer. But, few people know what kind of drama life prepared for him and how he experienced it. The actor was loved by many women, but in his fate there was always only one, who carried incredible tender and tremulous love through all the vicissitudes of his life's paths.

It so happened by fate that many of them were simply considered namesakes - they were so different in appearance, as well as in temperament and attitude towards life. And only very close ones knew: Leonid and Rimma Markov are not just siblings. They are an inseparable whole. However, due to the steel nature of Rimma, ironically, she was forced to change roles with her brother throughout her life. Her indestructible decisiveness and self-sacrifice have always been on the scales, in contrast to which were the actions of Leonid, unfortunately, not always worthy men.

Childhood and youth

Rimma (1925) and Leonid (1927) were born two years apart in the family of Vasily Demyanovich, who served as an actor in the provincial theater and make-up artist - Maria Petrovna. The Markov family was simple but very creative. They often moved, in search of a better fate, until they finally settled in Saratov. The father of the family was an incredible joker and storyteller, in a word, an original incredibly talented artist. His creative abilities were passed on to his children, who soon began to appear on stage in extras and small roles. And, curiously, in the distribution of roles in the productions, a tall, strong physique, with a tough character, Rimma got the roles of boys, and curly, with refined features of Leonid, the roles of girls.

However, unlike his sister, little Lenya was not particularly drawn to theatrical art, his preference was drawing, he also liked to make something with his own hands, carve from wood, sculpt from clay. Markov Jr. dreamed of becoming an artist. But, alas … it didn't work out.

It just so happened that in the Markov family everything was divided equally: glory and joy, misfortune and 400 grams of black bread, when the war began. And this is probably why, when the brother and sister grew up, they entered the studio school at the Vologda Regional Drama Theater together. Once there, they were noticed by the visiting Moscow director Ivan Bersenev. He incomprehensibly discerned talent in the Markovs and invited them to his Moscow theater after graduation.

No sooner said than done … After graduating from the studio, Rimma and his brother went to Moscow. True, without money and with a full suitcase of pears, which they hoped to sell in the capital and help out money for the first time. The director kept his promise by taking both Markovs to the theater studio at Lenkom. However, they had to eat the pears ourselves, and spend the night at the Kazan station. Soon, a place was found for the young artists in the attic of the theater, and later in a small room in the theater hostel, where they managed to receive friends and amicably share everything they had with them. And again, everything, as in childhood, was ruled and ruled by an older sister.

And although Markov gradually became an actor of the first magnitude, having played dozens of roles on the stage, for his older sister he forever remained a blond, quiet boy, for whom she took responsibility from childhood. - recalled the actress. -

The gap that nearly cost Rimma her life

They served together in the theater for about five years. But only Leonid managed to make a serious career in Lenkom. After a change of leadership, Rimma was unexpectedly fired, motivating her with a non-standard appearance. She really, having a perfectly built figure, was excessively tall and large. For this reason, it was difficult to use her in performances where the partners were a whole head lower. However, the most offensive in this situation for the actress was that Leonid, who already had a weighty word in the troupe, did not intercede for her. Behind Markova, they began to whisper that nature had rested on her. Whether her brother is handsome. It was impossible not to fall in love with him. His velvet voice drove everyone crazy.

What happened … Why brother and sister, inseparable from childhood, have become so strangers to each other. The extra custody of his sister, although it infuriated the matured Leonid, and although he was still to some extent afraid of his sister, at the same time he loved her very much. Everything changed when Markov got married. And the actress Lenkoma Tamara Basova forced his first wife to end the relationship with his sister. The actress, jealous to the point of madness, for the slightest glance of her husband "on the side" could arrange a grandiose scandalous scene. Gallant and sensitive by nature, Markov was very worried about these conflicts every time. And after one of these tricks, saying to be sick, he did not appear in the theater for several days.

Once Rimma could not stand it and told Leonid everything she thought about his unbalanced wife, and right in front of her, she was not at all shy in expressions. She, like no one else, knew how to bitingly and ironically give an impartial characterization of a person in two or three words. As a result, Markova became enemy number one for her brother's first wife. After this incident, the wife made a promise from Leonid that he would not communicate with his sister under any circumstances. He kept his word, and even when Rimma was fired from the theater, he did not find the courage to violate this prohibition. In desperation, Markova was on the verge of suicide. She believed that Leonid betrayed her, and twice. The first - when he abandoned her for the whims of his wife, and now, when he remained silent and did not intercede for her. And if he had said his weighty word then, everything could have been different. However, he was silent …

One way or another, Rimma found herself outside the walls of the theater, becoming a classic victim of behind-the-scenes intrigue. At the age of 27, she was left without work, without housing, without money and without the slightest prospects. But this did not become a reason for a strong woman to give up. She found a way out pretty soon, having entered the service at a Moscow concert, traveled around the country on tour. And then, having decided to part with the theater forever, the actress switched to cinema, where she would not have been given her dimensions in appearance. In the movies, this is much easier. She sent her photo to all film studios in the country and began to wait patiently, occasionally even agreeing to tiny movie roles. She had to wait for her starring role for quite a long time.

Only at the age of 42 did all-Union fame come to her when she starred in the film "Woman's Kingdom". It was this role that became the stumbling block of the two great actresses of the last century, Rimma Markova and Nonna Mordyukova. In the future, they constantly got in the way of each other. Read about the amazing history of relationships between famous actresses in our publication: Rimma Markova VS Nonna Mordyukova: Because of what the best friends were at enmity for many years.

By the way, after this picture, Markova starred in another 76 films. Only after 42 did she become famous and popular with directors. And although Rimma sometimes starred in the lead roles, she was deservedly called "the queen of the episode." Who knows, many believe that the fate of Rimma would surely have turned out completely differently, if not for the acquaintance and friendship with Mordyukova.

Creative career of Leonid Markov

The life of Leonid Markov developed in a completely different direction after their fates with his sister parted ways. Leonid shone on the stage of Lenkom. He was involved in almost all leading performances of the theater: Sholokhov's Virgin Soil Upturned, Chekhov's Cherry Orchard, Crime and Punishment by Dostoevsky, Zykovs by Gorky and many other productions. On stage, he had no equal in skill. Therefore, many directors in the capital sought to get him into their performance. Throughout his life, Markov changed several theaters (the Pushkin Drama Theater, the Mossovet Theater, the Maly Theater). In the cinema, he was also in demand and popular. His filmography consisted of about fifty films, two dozen television performances, and the artist also played about fifty roles in various theaters.

There were legends about how Leonid Markov prepared for the role. He could be silent for a long time, cutting off his speech in mid-sentence, or rehearse in a crowd, shocking others. Change faces. The role entered him like an infection, affecting his entire body. It is interesting that for all Markov's modesty and inability to “work with his elbows,” he was a surprisingly courageous and principled man, always told the truth, which is why he made many enemies for himself.

Repentance

However, the feeling of guilt, which did not allow the actor to live, dominated him after breaking up with his sister. In 1952, he literally on his knees will beg for forgiveness from Rimma Markova. And she, of course, will forgive her weak-willed and dearly beloved younger brother. And he will continue to selflessly take care of him, pulling him out of various troubles. And there were more than enough of them at that time in the artist's life.

Having survived three unhappy marriages, Markov often went on spree and binges. It was rumored that fellow actors deliberately soldered the stage star out of jealousy. And all this time, my sister was worried about him. When he plunged into protracted revelry, his sister took a desperate step, dispersing the company of drinking companions with her fists. Binges alternated with Don Juan adventures of Leonidas, around whom predators constantly hovered, striving to live at the expense of the actor. And then Rimma came to the rescue, quickly discouraging those who like to profit at someone else's expense. The actor's admirers did not give him a pass. The artist's attention was constantly sought by women. Moreover, Markov never did anything to conquer them. They themselves "clung" to him, intoxicated by his charm and gallantry. At the same time, it seemed to each that he was in love only with her alone.

And Markov himself was constantly in a state of passionate love, which quickly disappeared at the sight of a new object for passion. The list of abandoned girlfriends grew rapidly. Many people for advice: how to return a chilled lover, ran to Rimma, and she, in turn, said that he is what he is and cannot be changed … Probably, throughout his life, Markov subconsciously sought in each of his new darlings for features similar to his sister … For only with her did he feel protected in the full sense of the word.

New life

And once, when he was already over forty, he found it. In the person of Elena, a TV engineer at one of the film studios, he finally found what he had been looking for for many years. And in order to fall in love with Leonid, she needed to throw a couple of phrases with him. In a normal work environment, he was disciplined and obedient like a child and immediately subdued her with this. When he met her, he changed a lot. The carousing and drinking stopped. He was madly in love and was very afraid of losing his beloved. When 27-year-old Elena and 42-year-old Leonid got married, no one expected their marriage to last long. They lived together for 20 years, until Markov's death. However, life with Markov for Elena did not become harmonious at once. From the long single and reckless life of Leonid, she inherited not only the habit of revelry, but also debts, an addiction to drinking, night calls of the mistresses thrown by Markov.

Markov settled down very quickly, and his reputation as a heartthrob began to weigh him down a lot. He found himself a hobby which, albeit remotely, but reminded of his past amorous adventures. Now he was making bows and arrows at the dacha, and very sophisticated ones. Every free minute he now tried to be closer to his beloved wife. Soft and wise, Elena managed to surround her husband with the care, warmth and attention that he so needed.

However, the older sister was still on the alert. She could not believe that the young wife would sincerely love and take care of her brother, and even more so she would live with him until the end of his days. Fortunately, she was wrong. Peace and balance finally reigned in the lives of Rimma and Leonidas. Now it seemed to live and live. But not much time will pass, and the only thing that will be unbearably painful for Markov is the early departure from the life of his beloved brother. At the beginning of 1991, Leonid Vasilyevich suddenly died of cancer. He was 63 …

Many associated his death with mysticism. About five years before his death, Leonid Markov played in the movie "Snake" (1985) a man dying of cancer. It was said that he thus brought this terrible disease to himself. Was in his life and the last fatal role in the film "Hotel" Eden "(1991), where he was offered the role of Satan, and he agreed. Many famous artists refused this role. Filming ended at the end of February 1991 and voice acting began. The last phrase that the actor said on behalf of Satan: "Ugliness on earth begins when a pure, bright soul appears on it." Immediately after that, he suddenly became ill and was taken to the hospital. Two days later, the actor was gone.

The older sister survived her brother by twenty-five years.

P. S. Weakness of a strong woman

- so the actress herself spoke about her strong character.

However, the weak link in this steel woman has always been he - her brother Lenya. She was also for him a guardian angel and a faithful guide along the roads of life. Rimma herself has repeatedly tried to arrange her personal life. But, by and large, all the men who were present in her life walked through her fate, like an oblique rain - in passing. From her second marriage, Markova gave birth to a daughter, and when she became pregnant with her third husband, the Spanish aristocrat Jose Ganzalez, she got rid of the child without regret, so as not to go with him to Spain.

Yes, and she could not leave her younger brother alone in the Union, although Leonid Vasilyevich already seemed to have found his family happiness, and did not need such a sacrifice at all. He begged her to leave for Spain. Rimma was adamant. Marriage with a Spanish baron and the title of baroness did not force her to change her life positions.

Read more about how the personal life of the great actress of Russian cinema developed in our publication: С Illy woman Rimma Markova: Two marriages at the behest of the heart and one on the instructions of the Central Committee of the CPSU.