Who is Elena Gerinas? Wrap of famous chocolate "Alenka": history of creation

The specific creamy taste of the chocolate "Alenka", which has been leading its history since 1965, is well remembered by many residents of our country. However, few know that the wrapper of the famous sweetness for many years adorned the photo of a real girl, slightly modified by the artist. Elena Gerinas - this is the name of this little girl, who has long been turned into an adult woman. What about her, why her face was on the wrapper?

Elena Gerinas: famous photo

"Alenka" was only 8 months old, when the loving father photographed her, in the yard at the time was 1960. The photographer was really successful in the shot, the brown-eyed little girl dressed in a bright kerchief looked charming. It's not surprising that my parents decided to publish a photo of my daughter.

The first to print a picture on which was depicted a little Elena Gerinas, agreed the magazine "Soviet photo". Then his example was followed by the popular publication "Health", which published a photo in 1962. However, the decision to use this photo when creating a wrapper for "Alenka" was taken only four years later, it happened after a long creative search.

History of chocolate

Chocolate "Alenka" is known for its creamy taste, which he owes to the original recipe. It was developed by specialists of the Krasny Oktyabr plant in 1964. No one knows exactly why the famous chocolate got this name, and not some other one. There were rumors that the creators chose the name of their product in honor of the daughter of the legendary Valentina Tereshkova, but the factory's management refuted them.

The design of the first tiles was significantly different from the one that all dedicated chocolate fans remembered. Initially, themes that artists often used during the days of the Soviet Union were used: May 1, March 8. It is interesting that the chocolate "Alenka" in the first years of its existence did not have a wrapper with the image of a girl.

Creative Quest

Of course, the starry hour of a girl named Elena Gerinas did not come at once. It all started with the fact that the factory management felt that chocolate badly needs a brand name, this should have a positive effect on brand recognition. The first idea, which occurred to the creators, is to involve Alyonushka, depicted on the famous canvas by Vasnetsov.

To abandon the above-mentioned idea, the factory forced a ban imposed by the government. The reasons for this decision were never made public, presumably, the picture did not comply with the norms that were established during the Soviet era. Or the image was considered not optimistic enough to decorate a popular chocolate. Anyway, the leadership of the "Red October" was forced to continue the search, which eventually crowned with the long-awaited success.

Competition

Little Elena Gerinas could never be on the wrapper of the chocolate "Alenka", if not for the contest, which decided to organize the plant management. About its conduct to the residents of the capital told the publication "Evening Moscow", the article said that the contest allowed cute photos of small girls, including those from the family archive.

It is easy to guess which shot managed to win in this match. The face of the cream chocolate was Elena Gerinas, the daughter of the artist Alexander Mikhailovich Gerinas. Above is the photograph in the form in which it was submitted for the competition. The renewed design of the "Alenka" wrapper was purchased already in 1966. It is interesting that the change in the wrapper really had a positive effect on the popularity of the chocolate.

Trial

In early 2000, Elena, whose photo was used by the Krasny Oktyabr factory many years ago, appealed to the court. The woman believed that she could count on a large monetary compensation for many years of illegally replicating her own photo. Gerinas, submitting a lawsuit, expected to receive 5 million rubles. However, the hopes of "Alenka" were not justified.

The brand owners categorically stated that Elena Gerinas is not portrayed on the wrapper. "Alenka" is a chocolate, which is decorated with a collective image. Children's picture of Elena served as only a source of inspiration for the artist Maslov during his work on the wrapper. However, he significantly changed the photo, making the elongated face more elongated, having worked on the shape of the upper lip. Certain changes, albeit difficult to see, survived the shape of the eyebrows. The girl depicted on the wrapper, even the other eye color - blue.

Unfortunately for Elena, the court recognized the rightness of the owners of the Krasny Oktyabr factory, Gerinas refused to pay compensation, finding her claims unreasonable. The drawing on the wrapper was officially declared a creative work, not directly related to the child's photo of a woman.

"Alenka" then and now

Fans of the famous chocolate will be interested to know details about the life of the girl, whose baby photo was used to some extent in creating a wrapper for "Alenka". Who is Elena Gerinas? Biography of the woman claims that she was born in 1959, is a native Muscovite. The girl's parents were a photo correspondent and a journalist. "Posing" for the famous picture made by the father, the 8-month-old child, of course, did not know about it.

Growing up, Elena was not at all a model, as one might suppose, but an ordinary pharmacist. At the moment, a woman who recently celebrated her 56th birthday, lives in the Moscow region of Khimki, where her family owns a house. Gerinas and her husband raised two children, who currently live separately from their parents. The way of life "Alenka" is rather closed, it is not a public person.

Photos of Alenka

At the moment, on the Internet, you can find a lot of photos of different women who shoot themselves next to the chocolate and claim that they are the grown-up "Alenka". A photo of the real Helena Gerinas, whose children's picture was used in the development of the cover design in 1966, can be seen in this article.

It is interesting that for many years now there is no cream-colored chocolate on sale, which depicts a children's photo of Gerinas in a modified form.