Alexander Menaker: biography, creativity

Alexander Menaker is a Soviet variety artist. Today, he is remembered primarily as the father of actor Andrei Mironov. The biography of the artist is the topic of the article.

Childhood

Menaker Alexander Semenovich was born in 1913. His father was a St. Petersburg lawyer. Alexander showed love for art from an early age. He attended theater almost every evening. Once on a tour in Leningrad arrived Vakhtangov troupe. Alexander conquered the art of Moscow actors. In particular, the play "The Princess Turandot".

Theater and music

In his youth Alexander Menaker organized a noise orchestra, in which mainly pots, bottles and pipes were used as tools. And in 1929 he became one of the pupils of the art studio. At this time, the student began to perform in the framework of a musical ensemble.

Alexander Menaker entered the directing department, and two years after graduation he became the artistic director of one of the musical theaters in Kharkov. It is noteworthy that it was at this time that his future wife developed his career. One of the most famous in the forties was the duo Maria Mironova and Alexander Menaker. The miniatures in their performance were first heard by the audience of the Variety Theater.

Mironova and Menaker

In 1938, the hero of this article was invited to the Theater of Variety and Miniatures. It was then that he met his future wife. Maria Mironova occupied a significant place in the theater. She played in almost all the performances. Menaker was not inferior to Mironova in variety talent. He was only twenty-six years old when he became famous enough in theater circles. The audience loved him for his magnificent singing and virtuosic improvisation on the piano. By the way, by this time Alexander Menaker was already married, and Mironov is not free.

Under the southern sky

Once they went together on tour in Rostov-on-Don. From this trip, you can say, and began their family life. While on tour, Mironova sent her husband a letter, in which she asked for a divorce.

In order to characterize a man like Alexander Menaker, a few words should be said about Mironova's first husband. And they were directed by Mikhail Slutsky. At the time when the romance between Mironova and Menaker began, this man was arrested. However, the ex-wife did not leave him in trouble. Mironova, along with her new husband, carried Slutsky to prison. At the same time, they realized what they could do for them.

Family life

Alexander Menaker married Mironova in 1939. The young couple moved to Moscow, where they settled in one of the old capital alleys. About the mother of the star of the Soviet cinema Maria Mironova, there were many rumors. About the outbreak of her anger wrote in her diary and Menaker. However, he was a kind and kind person. And in the records of these there was not a trace of resentment.

War

In 1941 Alexander Menaker was sent to the evacuation. The biography of the artist describes a difficult period, which, incidentally, has nothing to do with military actions. In the evacuation of a seriously ill son. He was barely able to save. Together with his wife they were actors of the front brigade. The place of their performances was often served by dilapidated houses.

Mironova and Menaker successfully performed not only at home, but also abroad. Especially popular performances were "Talking Letters", "Family Affairs". These artists harmoniously complemented each other. He, as a rule, appeared on stage in the image of a soft and irresolute spouse. She played an ignorant and despotic woman. In the cinematography, the talent of the hero of this article has not found application. In some films, he was involved in the episodes, but this was nothing more than a continuation of the variety room.

Personal life

In the life of Menaker and Mironova there were many difficulties. Both in personal and professional spheres. But still their family life was a success. Andrei Mironov grew up in an atmosphere of absolute love and order. From an early age he was attached to art. In the apartment of talented artists, merry talented people often gathered. Among them were Grigory Gorin and Zinoviy Gerdt.

Andrei Mironov recalled his father as a real intellectual. This person loved people, was able sincerely and from the heart to rejoice in the success of another.

Menaker Alexander Semenovich died in 1982. Death came suddenly as a result of a heart attack.