Actor Viktor Avilov: biography, personal life, films, cause of death

April 19, 2019
Art
Natalia Vorobyova

In the Soviet Union there were a huge number of truly talented, good actors - those whose works you wanted to watch again and again. If you start listing such artists, there won’t be enough notebook paper. Among them was the wonderful master of theater and cinema, Viktor Avilov, whose biography is offered to your attention below.

Childhood

In the biography of Viktor Avilov there is no exact mention of the place where he was born. “Outskirts of Moscow” - and that’s it. This happy event happened on a summer day in early August 1953. The family of the future actor was the most ordinary; both parents came from the working class. The same working people were around, and the boys of the same age with whom young Vitya played in the yard were absolutely “his fields of berries.”

It cannot be said that little Vitya was a model of meekness and obedience. Quite the contrary. He fought a lot, behaved like a hooligan, skipped school - and, in the end, his parents, tired of fighting with their son, gave up on him. To Victor’s credit, it must be said that, having matured a little, he finally came to his senses - and graduated from school quite successfully.

Biography

“The actor plays heroes who are dominated by fate,” journalists wrote about Viktor Avilov. And all his life he remained an optimist, played heroes and was remembered for his strength and independence.

Actor Viktor Avilov

Viktor Avilov was born on August 8, 1953 on the outskirts of Moscow. The parents of the future actor are an ordinary working class, his friends are boys from courtyards near Moscow, and Victor himself grew up as a slob, a hooligan, and skipped school. The parents were tired of fighting with their son and gave up.

Victor graduated from school, entered an industrial technical school and went to serve in the army. In the army I learned to drive a car and received a license. Avilov did not think about any theater at that time, he was not interested in art. Recalling that period of his life, the actor said that he was fickle. I didn’t stay at each new place of work for more than a few months, and only then so that my work experience would not be interrupted and I wouldn’t get an article for parasitism. Avilov was a driver, installed equipment, and was an adjuster of automation systems. I literally got onto the theater stage from behind the wheel of a car.

Victor Avilov in his youth

Viktor Vasilyevich did not have an acting education, but he had a friend, Sergei Belyakovich, whose brother, Valery, was obsessed with the idea of creating a theater, which infected Viktor as well. Before Avilov had time to come to his senses, he found himself at the Theater in the South-West, founded in 1975. Victor had a younger sister, Olga Vavilova, who was also interested in theater. Later, the girl married Sergei Belyakovich and became an actress at the Theater in the South-West. Olga died of pulmonary edema in 1990.

Youth

After graduating from secondary school, Victor, like many young people at that time, went to technical school. His choice fell on the Mokovsky Industrial Institute - he graduated from it in 1972, at the age of nineteen, becoming the owner of the specialty “Installation and adjustment of automation control systems.” And then he went to repay his debt to his homeland - straight into the army.

Victor served for another two years and during this time, in parallel with fulfilling his soldier’s duties, he managed to obtain his license. Returning home, he began the career of an ordinary working man - the same as his parents and everyone around him. Avilov was not interested in any theater or art in general at that time. Accordingly, I didn’t even think about an acting career. Much later, telling journalists the details of his biography, Viktor Avilov self-critically noted that he was very fickle, and worked only because otherwise the article would have been accused of parasitism. Indeed, he did not stay at any one duty station - and changed so many of them that it is surprising. He worked as an installer, an adjuster, and a driver - and everything he did! Ultimately, for the time being, all of his work pursued only one goal: as long as his work experience continued to drip, and it didn’t matter what to do about it...

Childhood and studies

Viktor Vasilyevich Avilov was born on August 8, 1953 in the capital, on Krasnaya Presnya, and at the age of six he and his parents moved to the village. Vostryakovo (on the route of the Kyiv Railway). But little Victor grew up, one might say, without a father: in order to feed his family, he “plowed” in the North for eight whole years, and communicated with his son only through letters (of course, he sent money to the family).

But sometimes dad still came. Victor Avilov once recalled in his interview how his father brought a can of caviar (as much as three liters!), and his mother, who worked at the factory, forced her to eat all the time, because caviar is very healthy. Years passed, he became Viktor Vasilyevich, but he still couldn’t fall in love with caviar...

At school, Victor began to act like a hooligan, skipping classes, until his parents got tired of fighting with their son and gave up on his upbringing out of futility. After graduating from school, the boy became a student at an industrial technical school. While serving in the army, namely in the battalion supporting the educational process of the chemical troops, Viktor Avilov learned to drive a car and received a license. And after completing his service, he became a student at the Moscow Industrial College.

From workers to actors

Quite often it happens that one event or one person radically changes your whole life. This happened with Viktor Avilov, and the man who turned everything that had previously been valuable to Viktor on its head was Valery Belyakovich, the brother of his close friend Sergei. Valery, unlike Victor, loved the theater. No, he didn’t just adore it - he was an actor by profession, he was obsessed with it, he lived it! And he dreamed of creating his own theater. It is difficult to imagine how strong the flame raged in this man’s chest if he was able to captivate not only his brother, but also Victor with his idea.

In the mid-seventies, an amateur troupe was born under the direction of Valery Belyakovich. After some very short time, this amateur group began to be called the Studio Theater in the South-West. Victor Avilov was the calling card of this institution.

The beginning of a theatrical career

Viktor Avilov appeared in the amateur theater studio thanks to his friend Sergei Belyakovich (but curiosity also played a role). At that time, the amateur studio conducted its classes in the village. Vostryakovo, and near the house where Victor lived. And Sergei’s brother, Valery, who was completely absorbed in the dream of creating a theater, recognized his extraordinary talent. He managed to infect Avilov with this idea. And already in 1975 they together created the Theater in the South-West.

First steps in acting

Even when Belyakovich was just trying his hand at creating a theater and giving performances with a small troupe of beginning artists - almost none of them were professionals - Avilov was already taking part in this action. The first play staged by young theatergoers was “Marriage” - Viktor Avilov played the role of Kochkarev in it. At the same time, he had not yet left his main place of duty - then the future artist was a driver.

Viktor Vasilyevich made the decision to take up acting professionally only in 1979. Obviously, by this time he was so imbued with the theater that he could not imagine his future life without it. And he probably felt that he was succeeding, despite the lack of education. It should be noted that even those first performances by a non-professional troupe were a great success - most likely because the young actors had incredible charisma, magnetism - and, undoubtedly, talent.

Death

Rock accompanied Avilov all his life. On tour in Israel in 1995, when The Master and Margarita was performed, the actor twice suffered cardiac arrest and clinical death. Victor dealt with a stomach ulcer and was cured of tuberculosis in 1999, but death did not subside. In the early 2000s, the actor suffered greatly physically, as can be seen from Avilov’s latest photos.

In August 2004, Viktor Avilov was given a fatal diagnosis - stage 4 glandular stomach cancer. The artist was brought to the hospital with back pain that prevented him from working or even moving. Nevertheless, the artist found the strength to go on stage 15-20 times a month. In the summer of 2004, Avilov went to Novosibirsk for treatment, to a doctor who practiced alternative methods of medicine. But the treatment did not help, the aggressive disease caused the actor’s death. On August 21, 2004, Avilov’s heart stopped beating.

The funeral took place in Moscow, Viktor Avilov’s grave is located at the Vostryakovsky cemetery, with a monument by D. Tugarinov, Honored Artist of Russia, erected on it.

Studio theater in the South-West

Since 1977, Belyakovich's troupe officially became known as the Studio Theater in the South-West, and he became its artistic director. And two years later, according to the biography of Viktor Avilov, the actor under study began to be on her staff. It was from this time that he began to engage in theater professionally - as mentioned above.

In the eighties, Valery Belyakovich's theater was sold out. Each performance drew a full house, despite the fact that the theater occupied only a tiny basement. The audience went wild with delight, critics gave laudatory reviews. There were several reasons for this, and among them, of course, was the amazing direction - the audience was thrown into the performance from the first seconds of the performance - and the incredible talent of the actors. Their names are still heard today. And the main star among all was actor Avilov (photo above). He initially attracted attention only with his appearance. To be honest, it was very difficult to call Avilov’s face beautiful or even attractive, however, it was his partly frightening, repulsive appearance that caught the eye and was remembered for the rest of his life. And when Avilov began to play, the audience forgot about everything - and only, holding their breath, watched as he did not play - he lived on stage.

Widow of actor Viktor Avilov: “Vitya conquered me when my husband was at sea”

We met Larisa Avilova in one of the cafes in Odessa - her parents live in this city. Larisa escaped from the house to take a break from household chores and remember her late husband.

— Larisa, how did you meet Victor?

— Friends once suggested to me: “Would you like to go work at the Odessa Film Studio?” I agreed and became a “cracker” - announcing takes. This is, as it were, the lowest rank at a film studio, but without this you can’t get anywhere. It was eighty-nine. A little later that year I met Victor. We were brought together by a mutual friend Andrei Bortsov, an aspiring film director who needed to film his thesis. There was little money for this, and he began to collect familiar actors who would agree to act for pennies. He called Victor. I then had a serious relationship with a man - I was married to a sailor. And Vitya was married. But everything somehow turned around, Vitya began to look after her very beautifully.

- How exactly did you look after him? On a grand scale?

“In winter, he brought a huge bouquet of red roses and put it in a vase for me at my workplace - this is the first thing I remember. Everyone began to walk around and whisper: “I’ve won the actor’s heart!” And then I had not yet seen a single film with Vita’s participation! Although The Prisoner of the Chateau d'If has already been released. The first thing that struck me was, of course, Vitina’s appearance. But then I looked at him as an adult man with very great talents - he simply transformed incredibly on the set, it was impossible to recognize him there. I was eighteen years old then, Vita was thirty-six. At first I kept him at a distance and refused invitations to go somewhere. But my husband went to sea for nine months. As Vitya later said, rubbing his hands: “Who leaves such a young girl alone for such a time? And in Odessa too!”

— Did the candy and bouquet story drag on for a long time?

— This period actually lasted two whole years - it was only in 1991 that I moved to Vita in Moscow. Before that, he came to me in Odessa almost every week - he played a performance in Moscow, bought a ticket and “torn his claws” to me. Of course, then we didn’t think at all that he would hurt his family, that there was a person behind me for whom I was responsible... We just plunged headlong into feelings and thought only about each other - such is the selfishness of lovers. I was interested in horse riding then, and the stuntmen took me to work for them. We were filming some kind of film about the White Guards on the ship: I jumped from the deck into the icy water on a horse. At this time, Vitya arrived, came to the shooting, saw all this horror and forbade me to work with stuntmen. “Lara, I value you very much and I don’t want you to give your soul to God together with this horse,” he said.

— And you listened, despite the fact that the stuntmen were paid decent money?

- Try not to listen to him! On the one hand, he was kind and loving, but he could also be very tough. In my understanding, this is a real man.

- And what happened next?

— Vitya flew in and out, then Yungvald-Khilkevich began filming “The Musketeers 20 Years Later,” and Vitya went to Tallinn to film. He called me from there: “Come over, I can’t live without you.” I bought a ticket, flew in, and calmly settled in Vitya’s room - it was much simpler then. And then my husband returns from the flight! Of course, mutual friends told him that his wife was having an affair. It turned out ugly: after all, I had to tell him about it first. So, a bell rings in Avilov’s room, I pick up the phone, and my husband is on the line. His name was also Vitya. He says: “Well, hello, my love!” Like, I know everything, no excuses, come home, I’m waiting for you tomorrow in Odessa. I explained to Avilov that I needed to go and resolve the situation, Vitya went to accompany me. We cried at the airport, we were sure that everything was over, we had lost each other.

— Apparently, you were able to come to an agreement with your husband?

“We must give credit to my ex-husband - he is an understanding person. I explained to him that everything was very serious, that this was not just a hobby. Everything was very difficult - our marriage was also for love. Now we don’t maintain a relationship - I’m one hundred percent to blame for him. But he's doing well.

— Avilov, with all his charisma, easily won this fight?

“If he wanted to please a girl, he used all his talents. Let's say he knew that I loved daisies and wildflowers - he gave only them. I asked my friends what kind of candy I like...

— How did you introduce him to your parents? Your dad is a strict man, a military man...

— I was sitting at home. And Vitya went to the Odessa hippodrome, made an agreement, and took a charabanc - an open carriage. I bought gladioli for my mom who were taller than me, and for my dad some kind of alcohol. And in this carriage, in a white shirt, he drove up to my house. And he took me to Moscow two weeks later.

— At first, as far as I know, it was not easy for you in Moscow...

- Yes. We rented apartments and wandered all over Moscow. Vitya left all his property to his family - he left behind two children. This restless period lasted until 1995. Vitya also paid alimony, but I couldn’t work because I was a citizen of Ukraine. Then Vitina’s grandmother died - she lived in a two-room apartment. Only his elderly uncle remained there - we began to live with him, I looked after the old man. Then Vitya received an apartment from the theater, in new buildings. When Vitya passed away, I gave this apartment to Vitya’s youngest daughter.

— Did you somehow help your husband creatively, give advice on roles?

“Vitya always decided everything on his own. The only thing is that I helped him learn the role. I remember how once Vita even had to memorize the text of a role in Japanese when his theater was touring in Japan.

“In recent years he has been very ill...

— Vitya first contracted tuberculosis from somewhere unknown. He didn’t drive a car - the Mercedes was parked under the house, and there was never enough time to fix it. I rode the subway, and that’s where I probably got infected. His temperature rose to over forty, he lay down on the sofa in the theater. An ambulance arrived and took him to the tuberculosis clinic. For three months he could not leave the room, I only handed him bags of food. For a whole year, Vitya fell out of the picture. I've been reading all this time. I brought him a lot of literature - Vitya was fond of esotericism.

— By the way, is it true that he was almost a healer?

“He had a very strong biofield. He could relieve pain with his hands. I have had bad kidneys since childhood, so when Vitya was at home, I didn’t need any pills. Vitya treated me and the pain went away. I remember Vitya cured one grandmother’s eye in a week – she had a thorn. I don’t know how to explain this.

- Is it true that he foresaw his death?

“When he started having pain, we didn’t immediately realize that it was cancer. Vitya once had a back injury - he believed that it was bothering him again. And before the tour in Israel with “The Master and Margarita” he began to have really severe pain. He didn’t sleep at night and one morning he said: “Lara, I have cancer.” But we still went on tour then.

— Was Avilov right?

— It was stomach cancer. The doctors said: “Hire a nurse, stock up on drugs.” It was too late to operate, metastases had spread to the spine, hip, liver... We rented an apartment in Novosibirsk and were treated by one doctor - in his practice there were cases when he cured even such hopeless patients. But everything was so neglected that, in fact, Vitya died of cardiac arrest. I took the “young fighter course” - I learned how to insert a catheter and give injections. Fans collected money, Vitya had his blood cleaned. His birthday was August 8 - he was allowed to drink non-alcoholic beer and smoke a cigarette. He was very pleased, and on the 21st he died. After Vitya drank beer, he began to have pain again. They started injecting him with drugs.

—Has he ever thought about the posthumous fame of the “damned artist”?

“If he had such thoughts, then he didn’t talk about it to me, so as not to upset me.” He behaved this way with me - if he saw that I was not in the mood, he would simply say: “Do you even remember that I love you?”

— Was Victor a religious person?

“He always said: “God is in me.” I’m closer to God in my kitchen than many in church.” He didn't go to church.

- They say that actors don’t know how to save money...

- But their wives can! I tried to manage the family budget, I said: “Vitya, this is how much we need to pay for the apartment.” And it didn’t matter whether he was acting in films at that time or not, he always put this amount on the table every month. And everything else goes into the nightstand.

— How did you rest?

— We loved to come to Odessa whenever possible, we went to establishments on Deribasovskaya. We ate crayfish and drank fresh beer. Vitya did not like to swim on the beach during the day - he was embarrassed by his thinness. So we went to the beach either early in the morning or late in the evening. We swam and ate barbecue. And in Moscow, Vitya went fishing - the Moscow River was not far from home. On his 50th birthday, by the way, Vitya gathered the whole theater at the table, rented a boat, roasted an ox on a spit - as he felt that this was the last time.

We weren’t able to relax just the two of us very often - either touring or filming. One day I got sick and Vitya took me to Crimea for a month. We went to the Eagle's Nest, climbed the mountains, admired the ancient ruins - this will be remembered for a long time.

— You can fully be called his muse?

- I loved and was loved. I love and they understand me - this is happiness. What kind of muse is there? I'm an easy person. When a creative person begins to feel some kind of confusion, I can say: “Calmly, go behind my back, I will arrange everything, prepare it, and you will be creative, I won’t bother you.”

- But Victor was not a helpless person in everyday life...

— Yes, his ex-wife always remembers how Vitya whittled spoons himself. He really loved working with wood. He had a special carving kit and he used it. For a long time we couldn’t find a computer desk for ourselves, so Vitya made it with his own hands, it’s still in my apartment. There were no problems in terms of fixing anything. But, by the way, I repaired the irons myself - I’m just good at it.

— Do you keep in touch with his fans?

— There is a group of active Moscow fans, numbering three people, they are working on the website. I don’t really communicate with them - they somehow immediately disliked me.

- For what?

“They believe that I ruined Vitya’s life by destroying his previous family.” No one is saying that it was his choice. Vitin's ex-wife Galina continues to play in the theater, and his eldest daughter also plays there. Galya now pretends that she doesn’t even know me. When Vitya was dying, she still couldn’t understand why I didn’t give him the phone. Well, imagine: a person lies under the influence of painkillers, drugs, he is not even able to recognize his voice. I explain: “Galya, of course, I can answer the phone, but Vitya won’t hear you. Understand, it’s cancer, not a cold.” She was very offended. And then, when Vitya passed away, I called her and told her about it, asked her to tell her parents. I didn't want them to find out about it from the press. Now she suddenly says that she called me herself, said that Vitya died and hung up. These are the things that are incomprehensible and offensive to me. Although I didn’t cross her path, it was Vitya’s choice. I was, I repeat, only eighteen years old, and he was an adult who decided everything.

- How do you live now?

— After Vitya’s death, I got a dog - it helped me come to my senses. You don't lie in bed all day, but walk her, take care of her. Now I'm married again. She gave birth to a son. After all, I was already thirty-eight, there was nowhere to delay. Vitya and I somehow didn’t work out with our children - we had a miscarriage in the sixth month. And then I met a man six years ago - he also respected me and loved me. My son Alyosha is now five years old. My parents still live in Odessa. I myself live in Moscow, but every year I come to Odessa and bring my grandson to my grandparents. Odessa is my favorite city. Although in fact I was born in Orenburg, it feels like I’m still from Odessa. It seems that I will die here!

CHIEF PRISONER

Name: Viktor Avilov Born: 08/08/1953 in Moscow (Russia)

Avilov graduated from the Moscow Industrial College in 1972. In 1972-1974 he served in the Soviet army. In 1987, he made his film debut in the film “Barefoot on the Grass.” The actor's fame and star status came from his role as the Count of Monte Cristo in The Prisoner of the Chateau d'If (1988). The success was cemented by the hit movie “Mister Decorator” (1989). He also starred in the films “Winter Cherry 2”, “The Art of Living in Odessa”, “Wolf Blood”. The star role in the theater was the mystical Woland in the play “The Master and Margarita” based on Mikhail Bulgakov. He was married three times, leaving two daughters.

Subscribe to our telegram

Only the most important and interesting

interview with actor Avilov

Subscribe to our newsletter

Magnetic game

Viktor Vasilyevich knew how to transform into any character in the most incredible way. If according to his role he was supposed to be small and hunched over, the tall, thin Avilov shrank and hunched over so that it was impossible to recognize him as the slender man he was behind the stage.

The actor himself later admitted that he always followed the rule: the game should be akin to hypnosis. He was really good at hypnotizing the viewer. His performance was noted even by the most serious critics, and the British generally recognized Hamlet, played by the actor Avilov (his biography includes many different roles, and we will return to them a little later) as the best of all that were performed over four centuries.

Larisa, wife of Viktor Avilov: I don’t think that my husband was ruined by the role of Woland

He managed to star in three dozen films, and played in the theater even more. But national love came to Viktor Avilov after the film “The Prisoner of the Chateau d’If.” The Russian Count of Monte Cristo passed away two weeks after his 51st birthday. He suffered from a terrible illness, and not a single doctor would treat him.

LEFT WITHOUT SCANDALS

Larisa Avilova lives in Moscow, works as a kindergarten teacher. She married again, gave birth to a son, but decided to keep her surname Avilova. She remembers the 14 years she spent married to the actor with warmth and tenderness. And she believes that Victor is watching from heaven, sees how her fate has turned out, and is happy for her.

— Vitya has always been an intelligent, decent person. “He left cleanly, without scandals,” says the widow. “I didn’t leave any unfinished business—I managed to get everything done, and said goodbye to everyone.”

Relatives of famous people always squabble over their inheritance after their death. The squabbles among his loved ones did not darken Avilov’s memory.

— There were no trials or proceedings with the former family. I gave the apartment that Victor received from the theater to his youngest daughter Olga (the actor had two girls in his second marriage. - Ed.).

DEATH CONQUERED TWICE

Viktor Avilov thought that he would live to a ripe old age and still have time to look after his great-grandchildren.

“In June 2004, Vitya and I returned from a tour in Israel; he was suffering from terrible back pain,” recalls the actor’s last wife, Larisa. “He thought he had a cold, it would hurt and it would go away.” Vitya was lively and emotional... And when it really got to him, he went to get examined. It turned out that it was cancer, the last stage, the tumor was progressing. We sent faxes to all Russian and foreign clinics and waited to see who would undertake the treatment. And in response - silence. When they called, they told us bluntly: glandular stomach cancer at this stage is incurable. Vitya knew about this. But it was not in his nature to simply sit and wait.

And suddenly Dmitry Chubarov, a businessman with whom Avilov had been friends for more than twenty years, called.

— There is a physicist-doctor in Novosibirsk who treats in an unconventional way. He promises that in a month or two the tumor will recede,” said Dmitry. - Like, no chemotherapy, uses some kind of herbal balms...

It’s hard to take it at face value, but the Avilovs hoped for a miracle. After all, by this time the actor had already experienced two clinical deaths due to a perforated ulcer and both times returned from the other world.

“They didn’t give us any guarantees, they just agreed to help, so to speak, as an experiment,” recalls the actor’s widow. - But Vitya was happy: “Come on, Lariska, let’s fight!” He flew to Novosibirsk in a very serious condition - he could no longer walk on his own, Dima carried him out of the plane in his arms. I injected him with painkillers several times during the flight.

Residents of the Novosibirsk Khrushchev block had no idea that a famous actor was dying of cancer next to them. Photo: Andrey KOPALOV/KP - Novosibirsk

THE WHOLE WORLD FUNDED FOR TREATMENT

Two months of daily trips to the Novosibirsk clinic, several blood purification procedures, a constant struggle for life. The treatment cost a lot of money; the actor’s family did not have enough funds. Although Avilov worked his ass off, the fees were modest. Colleagues opened an account to collect help and managed to collect more than ten thousand dollars.

“He was happy like a child.” I thought that despite everything I would be able to get out.

Shortly before death there was an improvement. Avilov got to his feet on his own, even went outside...

“That night I dreamed of Vitya - so bright, clean, in a white shirt, he climbs the stairs and says: “I’m going to play, I’m on stage,” Larisa says quietly. “And the next day, August 21, he was gone.

Immediately after the death of Viktor Avilov, colleagues and spectators started talking about mysticism. After all, he played the role of Woland in “The Master and Margarita” in his native Studio Theater in the South-West. And among actors, Bulgakov’s production is considered cursed. They also remembered that it was during the tour with this performance in Berlin that those same two clinical deaths happened to him.

— I don’t think that this role ruined Vitya. “These are nothing more than actors’ tales,” Larisa shakes her head. “He was sick, didn’t look at the symptoms in time, let it go, and when he rushed in, it was already too late. I was on fire at work, so I burned out. That's life. No mysticism.

The actor himself believed in the other world.

“I just know that the forces discussed in Bulgakov’s novel exist,” he admitted to Komsomolskaya Pravda.

All the money collected for treatment was never spent. For the remaining part, they ordered a bronze monument at the Vostryakovsky cemetery. There he is as his relatives and fans remember him: sharp facial features, a piercing, direct gaze, in which something demonic is felt. And on the costume there were collected elements of clothing of the heroes he played: the lapel of the jacket from “Mr. Decorator”, Hamlet’s vest, the collar of the shirt from Edmond Dantes, on the back - the bells of the gaier Folial, which he played in the play “Portrait of a Fool”.

QUESTION - RIB

Was the artist treated by a false scientist?

When we crossed the threshold of the Novosibirsk clinic in July 2004, it looked more like a post office: parcels, parcels, boxes with “cocktails” rolled up and ready to be sent. We never met any patients, only dozens of laudatory reviews on the website in the spirit of “Thank you, we got you back on your feet!”

It is unlikely that official medicine will have any complaints about herbal balms - if they do not cure, then at least they will not harm. But experts are suspicious of another local “therapeutic brainchild” - a neutrino gun that supposedly disperses cancer cells.

— These are complex devices that weigh several tons. This doctor simply has no idea how “neutrino guns” work,” said the late Academician Kruglyakov, who headed the RAS commission on pseudoscience. - He doesn’t know physics, but he undertakes to treat!

SEE PHOTO GALLERY:

In memory of the Count of Monte Cristo of Russian cinema Viktor Avilov

Cinema

Yes, Avilov was popular. Many went to the Studio Theater in the South-West solely for him. But still, this glory was intimate - and Viktor Vasilyevich wanted more, much more. He was very ambitious, and therefore it is not surprising that he dreamed of other heights. This is how cinema appeared in his life.

Avilov played his first film role in 1987 - in the film “Barefoot on the Grass.” However, this film, as well as the next one (“The Great Game”), did not bring the desired result to Avilov. But the third film - “Mr. Decorator” - became for Viktor Vasilyevich a lucky ticket in the cinematic world. It brought Avilov the desired fame, but at the same time became an ominous harbinger of a tragic end. The character played by Avilov challenged God, trying to delay his death and change the world. Joking with higher powers is scary - even if it’s just an artistic game...

Immediately after “Mr. Decorator,” Viktor Vasilyevich showed off his talent in “The Prisoner of the Chateau d’If.” His frightening Count of Monte Cristo has captured the hearts of many. With this tape he strengthened his already allied popularity. Then there were many more roles - some more pedestrian, some more significant.

Star Trek of actor Viktor Avilov: films and theater

In the late eighties, Viktor Avilov organically combined film roles with work in the theater.
In 1987, he played the role of Hamlet at the Edinburgh Theater Festival, and a few months later he starred in the film The Prisoner of the Chateau d'If. These works brought him great success. Victor Avilov - last interview The British press called the production of the Soviet theater the best among foreign works. The named film, which was a huge success at the Soviet box office, brought the actor no less popularity. It was during this period that the small hall of the Theater in the South-West began to literally burst with crowds of enthusiastic spectators. During this period, it seemed that all of Moscow wanted to look at the famous “Count of Monte Cristo” with their own eyes. Subsequently, the actor acted a lot in films and often appeared on the stage of his native theater. The best theaters in Moscow and St. Petersburg repeatedly tried to lure him away, however, Viktor Avilov always remained faithful to his native stage and his mentor Valery Belyakovich.

As for his on-screen roles, there have always been plenty of them. In the nineties, our today's hero played leading roles in the films “Masquerade”, “Safari No. 6”, “Winter Cherry” (2.3), as well as in the continuation of the cult “blockbuster” “The Musketeers Twenty Years Later”. The last film also starred Mikhail Boyarsky, Igor Starygin, Ekaterina Strizhenova and other stars. For these and many other striking works, Viktor Vasilyevich was awarded the title of Honored Artist of the Russian Federation.

"Fatal Characters"

The press, of course, wrote a lot about Avilov, and among other things, that he plays characters over whom “doom prevails.” In fact, this is a correct remark - after all, it was precisely such roles, gloomy, with a difficult fate, that Avilov got. This, however, did not prevent him from transferring his work to life, remaining in it - in real life, that is, an incredibly optimistic person. Many believe that there is only one reason for such a tragic biography of the actor Avilov - these are precisely the roles that the artist played. It was as if he was walking on a thin thread, teasing fate...

Who did actor Viktor Avilov happen to play on the stage? His biography tells of a great variety of roles, including Moliere, Sganarelle, Hamlet, Khlestakov, Caligula, and Woland... In total, during his life he performed more than thirty of the most diverse roles in the theater, and most of them were played in his native Studio theater in the South-West.

As for the film works in the biography of Viktor Avilov, he had, no matter how funny this coincidence is, more than thirty of them. Among the most iconic are Mordaunt in the continuation of “The Musketeers”, Platon Andreevich in “Mr. Decorator”, Count of Monte Cristo, Vladislav Simen in “The Art of Living in Odessa”, Koshchei the Immortal in “Vasilisa” and so on.

Stars

Viktor Vasilievich Avilov was born in Moscow on August 8, 1953. Before the theater he worked as a driver. Since 1975, he has been an actor in the theater, directed by Valery Belyakovich. An actor with no acting education, who built his theater in the company of like-minded people, as he admitted, under duress. Then only this group remained the backbone of the Theater in the South-West. He played images of people “who do not linger in life - they rush into a dream, into death, into immortality.” According to many critics, Avilov became the successor to Vysotsky, the Hamlet of the 80s. With his hoarse voice, huge eyes, and all the appearance of a pagan idol, Avilov could be incredibly beautiful and ugly at the same time. Avilov said: “I see my heroes as calm, very simple, without buskins, without posture, sincere and warm-hearted, but with great inner strength. From them, in my opinion, light should emanate. I try to convey good energy to the audience, I try to convey this both with my eyes and with the plastic means available to me, which, in my understanding, should come from such people.” Avilov did not treat work as work, he lived by it, did not understand work for show. What they have in common with Vysotsky is working to the point of exhaustion, to the point of trembling the spectator’s nerves, bringing these same nerves to the state of a breaking string. The roles in the theater were enviable: Moliere from “The Cabal of the Saints” by Mikhail Bulgakov, Hamlet, Lancelot in “Dragon” by Evgeniy Schwartz, Beranger in “Rhinoceros” by Eugene Ionesco, Caligula in the play of the same name by Albert Camus, (later Woland in “The Master and Margarita” "and Actor in Maxim Gorky's play "At the Lower Depths"). The actor himself was very fond of Shukshin’s dramaturgy and was very worried when the play based on Shukshin was removed from the repertoire, giving priority to Bulgakov. By the way, he treated his role as Woland in “The Master and Margarita” with a degree of mysticism: “I’m not superstitious. I just know that the forces discussed in Bulgakov’s novel exist. We brought The Master and Margarita to Berlin. And there I had two clinical deaths. They pulled me out of the other world.” He starred in three dozen films. In 1987, “Mister Decorator” was released, and then came “The Count of Monte Cristo”, “Love for one’s neighbor”, “Barefoot on the grass”, “The Humble Cemetery”, “St. Petersburg Mysteries”. Avilov considered the film “Mr. Decorator” to be key in his acting biography: “If I hadn’t starred in “Mr. Decorator,” no one would have known me.” Viktor Avilov passed away on August 21, 2004.

Honored Artist of Russia (1993).

Filmography: Actor

Palmist (2005), TV series
The Legend of Kashchei, or In Search of the Thirtieth Kingdom (2004)
Golden Head on the Block (2004)
The Frog Princess (1998)
Petersburg Mysteries (1996)
Wolfblood (1995)
Winter Cherry-3 (1995)
Cockroach Race (1993)
Hurt Me (1993)
Antifaust (1993)
The Musketeers Twenty Years Later (1992)
Dancing Ghosts (1992)
Psychic (1992)
The Kingslayer (1991)
Winter Cherry-2 (1990)
Masquerade (2002)
Safari - 6 (Safari - 6) (1990)
Green Goat Fire (1989)
Humble Cemetery (1989)
The Art of Living in Odessa (1989)
Green Goat Fire (1998)
Prisoner of the Chateau d'If (1988)
Love for Neighbor (1988)
Mister Decorator (1988)
Red Elephants (1988)
Big Game (1988)
Barefoot on the grass (1987)

"The Curse of Woland"

This is exactly what many people call what happened to Viktor Vasilyevich in the early nineties. Just shortly after he played this very Woland...

In 1995, while on tour in Germany, the artist suffered a perforation of an ulcer. For many, surgery in this area is successful, but this is not what happened with Avilov. His heart stopped on the operating table. The doctors rushed to start it up - they started it, but they damaged the stomach. Viktor Vasilyevich survived, pulled out, recovered - but this was only the first “bell”. Just a few years later, in the late nineties, the artist was shocked again - he was diagnosed with tuberculosis. Avilov received the second group of disability.

Nevertheless, Viktor Vasilyevich did not give up. He worked in both theater and cinema, and tried his hand at directing. But my back hurt more and more often, stronger and stronger. Sometimes, tired of these unbearable pains, Avilov repeated: “I have cancer,” but his relatives waved their hands at him - they say, don’t talk nonsense, it’s just an ulcer. However, Viktor Vasilyevich turned out to be right. In 2004, he was diagnosed with inoperable stage 4 liver cancer. He became the cause of the death of actor Avilov.

The artist’s biography reports that his family consulted many doctors in Russia, Germany, and Israel. Nobody wanted to take on a hopeless operation. They agreed only in Novosibirsk - there lived some psychic healer in Akademgorodok who promised to cure the actor with the help of balms and a neutrino gun. In such a situation, you can grasp at any straw - and that’s why Avilov went to Novosibirsk. However, everything turned out to be in vain - two months later the great artist passed away. This happened in August 2004, shortly after his fifty-first birthday.

Gone

In 2004, Avilov was taken to the hospital with severe back pain: they did not allow the artist to even move. Contrary to expectations, the problems turned out not to be with the back at all. This is how glandular stomach cancer manifested itself in stage 4.

Still from the film “The Palmist”, 2005 (Avilov’s last role)

Doctors managed to relieve the symptoms. The strong man performed several dozen performances, and in the summer he went to Novosibirsk to see a famous doctor who practiced non-standard approaches. Avilov believed that the Siberian air, the new atmosphere and self-confidence would heal him. But the disease was already ruling the actor’s entire body. In August of the same year he passed away.

Photo: RIA Novosti

Personal life

Viktor Vasilyevich was married three times. His first wife was called Tatyana, the second was Galina, she gave the artist two children - daughters.

Avilov’s third wife was a woman named Larisa; they met on the set of the film “The Art of Living in Odessa,” when Larisa, among many fans, besieged the set.

Her pressure did not go unnoticed - and as a result, Larisa attracted the attention of the actor.