September 2, 1926
Actor Yevgeny Leonov was born in Moscow.
He grew up in a communal apartment. His mother, a gifted storyteller, could spend hours discussing the simplest stories with her neighbors, bringing everyone to hysterical laughter. This talent was passed on to her son.
When the war began, seventh-grader Yevgeny Leonov found work as an apprentice lathe operator at an aircraft factory. He later became interested in amateur performances and went to work in the theater. For a long time, he didn't get serious roles, playing extras. To support himself, he worked part-time on film sets.
He became famous in 1961, after the release of the comedy "Striped Flight": 32 million people watched it in its first year. Almost every Soviet director wanted to film Leonov.
Even after becoming a superstar, he remained modest, shy and timid.
You're evil because you're weak. Being kind is always harder.
The actor was gifted with a wide variety of roles, from comedic to piercingly tragic. He appeared in over 70 films. His most famous ones are: "Zigzag of Fortune", "Belorussky Station", "Gentlemen of Fortune", "Afonya", "The Eldest Son", "An Ordinary Miracle", "Kin-dza-dza", "The Big Change".
A distinctive feature is a muffled, hoarse voice. In 1969, it was in this voice that Winnie the Pooh.
He was fanatically devoted to the theater. He would go on stage with a fever of nearly 40°C (104°F) and pneumonia. In 1988, while on tour in Germany, he experienced clinical death and spent 16 days in a coma. He returned to the theater six months later.
A person wears out not from creativity, but from fate. From constantly fighting for a place in the sun. For the right to a role.
On January 29, 1994, a few hours before going on stage, he died of a blood clot. Throughout the performance, audience members stood outside the theater holding candles purchased at a nearby church. No one returned their tickets to the box office.
His wife, a film scholar, outlived him by 17 years. His son became an actor, playing the lead role in "Daddy's Daughters." Leonov's little granddaughter long believed her grandfather wasn't dead, but living on television. The youngest grandson told friends he was Winnie-the-Pooh's grandson.
