Soviet cinema disappeared as such a very long time ago, along with the communist state that sunk into oblivion. However, old films remain interesting to ordinary people to this day. It goes without saying that the audience still likes the actors of that era. This article will examine the biography of Mihai Volontir. We will look at his life, creative successes and marital status in as much detail as possible.
Birth and early life
The future actor was born in the Moldavian SSR, the village of Glinzheny on March 9, 1934. The biography of Mihai Volontir says that after graduating from school, he graduated from the Orhei Pedagogical College. Therefore, at the age of eighteen, he began working as a teacher in a rural school. Next was the position of head of a club in the village of Lipcheny (Rezinsky district). The young man got into the theater in 1957 thanks to his regular participation in various amateur competitions. He was enrolled in the acting troupe of the Musical Drama Theater. Alexandria (city of Balti).
About the childhood and parents of Mihai Volontir
Father Ermolai Melentievich Volintir was a military man, holder of the St. George Cross. Their family received the surname Volontir later due to an error when changing documents. Perhaps the error was not accidental. After all, when the power in the country changed, Ermolai decided to flee and hid in Romania.
Here, in the village of Glinzheny (after the war, which became part of Moldova), his children were born. To protect them, Volontir Sr. destroyed his awards and everything that connected him with the past. From them, perhaps, it would be possible to learn more about its origin.
Mihai Volontir's parents
My father worked as a forester (according to some sources, he was a huntsman). Since childhood, Mihai learned various tricks from him, helped with the housework, loved horses very much and knew how to handle them. These skills later came in handy in his acting profession. The volunteer was as authentic as possible in his roles. For the sake of filming “Gypsy,” he learned his craft from a local blacksmith.
He believed that he inherited all his best human qualities from his mother. She barely managed to complete two classes under the Tsar, but she was an amazing person and sang beautifully.
Nationwide love
Real recognition and recognition on the street came to Mikhai Ermolaevich when he received an invitation to portray the image of a Soviet paratrooper on the screen in the film “In the Zone of Special Attention.” His partner on the set was the equally famous actor Boris Galkin, with whom the Moldovan subsequently crossed paths again in his creative career. The film turned out to be so successful that at the end of 1978 it firmly took first place at the box office. In the wake of such colossal success, a continuation of the military adventures called “Retaliation” was filmed.
Filmography
- 1967 - We need a gatekeeper - Ivan Turbinca
- 1968 - This moment - Mihai Adam
- 1969 - Ten winters in one summer - Ilievas
- 1969 - One before love - Obade
- 1970 - Coolness - Andrey Spirya
- 1972 - Fourth - Banar
- 1972 - This sweet word is freedom! — Carlos Caro
- 1973 - Bridges - Petrake
- 1973 - Dmitry Kantemir - Dmitry Kantemir
(voiced by Vladimir Kostin) - 1974 - Men turn gray early - Andrey Razlog
(voiced by Yuri Solovyov) - 1975 - In August 44th... - Svirid
(was not completed) - 1976 - The sound of a pipe - Dzhabrail
- 1976 - Don’t believe the cry of a night bird - Ion
- 1977 - In the zone of special attention - warrant officer Alexander Ivanovich Volentir
(voiced by Nikolai Gubenko) - 1977 - The Legend of the Brave Knight Fat-Frumos - Birdcatcher
- 1977 - Root of Life - Lukyan Batyr
- 1978 - Centaurs - Evaristo
- 1978 - Secret Service Agent - Ignat Valuta
- 1979 - Gypsy - Budulai
- 1979 - Unrequited Love - Doctor
- 1980 - From the Bug to the Vistula - Pyotr Petrovich Vershigora
(voiced by Pavel Morozenko) - 1981 - Return move - Ensign Volentir
- 1981 - The only man - Mikhail Mikhailovich
- 1981 - Deer Hunt - Golovin
- 1982 - This male friendship - Anton Grecu
- 1982 - Case in square 36-80 - Sergei Nikolaevich Skiba
- 1983 - Be happy, Julia! — Radu
- 1983 - Prosecution - investigator Yarosh
- 1984 - I am responsible for you
- 1985 - Return of Budulai - Budulai
- 1986 - Traces of a Werewolf - Hugo Vinchero
- 1988 - Let's Remain Faithful - Rodriguez
- 1989 - Knock on the door
- 1992 - Am I to blame... - Sanya
- 2003 - Chandra - projectionist
Personal qualities
Volontir Mikhai Ermolaevich, whose biography is interesting to people even several years after his death, was a very modest and calm person during his lifetime. He was philosophical about his fame, believing that all the hype around him was meaningless. The actor even refused to move to Moscow when he received relevant offers. But not only Belokamennaya was unable to lure the artist into its walls, even Chisinau did not become his home. This outstanding personality spent his entire life in his hometown of Balti. There, Volontir not only acted as an actor, but even tried his hand at directing, staging the beloved comedy “A May Night’s Dream” on the theater stage. It is also worth noting that Volontir took a rather tough civic position. In adulthood, he regularly made accusations against Russia, considering this country an invader and enslaver. In a word, Mikhai could well be considered a real Russophobes.
Biography[ | ]
Mihai Volontir was born on March 9, 1934 in the village of Glinzheni, which at that time was part of the Kingdom of Romania (now in the Soldanesti region of Moldova).
According to the actor himself, he was born in the house of forester Ermolai Melentyevich Volintir, near the Olishkany commune of Orhei County. Later, when changing documents in the village council, not only the name of the administrative unit was distorted, but also the last name. All families in the village of Glinzheny whose last names were Volintir
, began to be called
Volontir
[2].
At the age of 18 he began teaching at a rural school in the village of Popouci. In 1955 he graduated from the Orhei Pedagogical College and became the head of a club in the village of Lipcheni, Rezina district[3].
In 1957, after a republican amateur show, he was invited to the training acting group of the Alexandri Musical and Drama Theater in Balti (now the Vasile Alexandri National Theater), and later became an actor at this theater[3].
His debut in the theater was the role of a figurant
in the comedy “Kiritsa in Iasi” by V. Aleksandri. He played more than 120 main roles in the theater[3].
He sang on theater and stage stages, in films, on radio and television. His music library contains more than 50 songs, many of which became hits[2].
He began acting in films in 1967. The film “In the Zone of Special Attention” (1977) is widely known, in which the main roles were played by Mihai Volontir ( ensign Volentir
) and Boris Galkin (
Lieutenant Tarasov
). In 1981, the sequel film “Retaliation” was released, where the same actors played the main roles.
Volontir became most famous for the serial film “Gypsy” (1979), in which the actor played the role of the gypsy Budulai
wandering around the world in search of freedom and happiness. The film was a great success with audiences, and a sequel was released in 1985, “The Return of Budulai.”
Member of the Union of Cinematographers of the USSR[4].
Despite all-Union fame and glory, Mihai Volontir never left his city of Balti, where he continued to act and direct at the Vasile Alecsandri National Theater. In 2009, he staged a musical comedy there based on the play “A May Night’s Dream” by B. Hasdeu. In 2014, the first documentary film about the life and work of M. Volontir was released.[5]
Deputy of the Supreme Council of the Moldavian SSR of the XII convocation (1990-1993), which unanimously adopted the Declaration of Independence of the Republic of Moldova on August 27, 1991. National Democrat. As a supporter of Moldavian statehood, he became famous for his speeches in the Supreme Council of the Moldavian SSR (in April 1990) against the “damned Russian occupiers”
and for the “cultural Moldovan language”[6][7][8][9]. Later, after the war broke out in Transnistria, Volontir asked for forgiveness from his viewers for harsh words addressed to the Russian-speaking population of Moldova.
In the last years of his life he suffered from diabetes mellitus, complicated by diabetic angiopathy and retinopathy. Since the late 1990s, he has undergone several operations. The operations were carried out at the Military Medical Academy of St. Petersburg. Financial assistance to the actor was provided by the Government of Moscow, the Republic of Moldova, Russian entrepreneurs, the country's theatrical community and loyal fans of his work from all over the former Union.[10][11]
Before his death, he was on constant inpatient treatment in a hospital in Balti for more than two months, then in the Republican Clinical Hospital in Chisinau[12], where he died on September 15, 2020[13][3][14][15][16]. He was buried at the Central Cemetery in Chisinau.
World fame
However, all the films that Mihai Volontir’s biography is rich in literally pale in comparison to his role in the TV series “Gypsy.” The film told about travels around the world in search of love and freedom of a man named Budulai. The film was able to gather an audience of millions, and the actor himself began to be firmly associated by the public with his extraordinary film character. And therefore, many ordinary people quite seriously believed that Mikhai was called that in life - Budulai. Such success led to the decision to film a continuation of the story called “The Return of Budulai.” Despite the success and popular love that befell Volontir, he continued to work and live in his native city, remaining an open and simple person, absolutely devoid of any manifestations of the “star” disease.”
Health status
At the dawn of the 90s, Mihai Volontir, a biography whose date of death is available in many sources, completely stopped acting in films. At that time, no one had any idea that he was suffering from a dangerous illness - diabetes. The disease was very difficult and had a negative impact on the performer’s eyes. As a result, he was forced to undergo surgery several times, but this did not bring any positive results. And since the actor also began to experience financial difficulties, he had to sell his rare hard drive. The biography of Mihai Volontir indicates that he loved to hunt, and therefore even burst into tears when he gave this old gun to the new owner.
But when the public learned about the artist’s problems, the government of the Moldovan Republic, together with Moscow businessmen and ordinary fans, managed to allocate him the amount necessary for rehabilitation. As a result, Mihai underwent several more operations, thanks to which his vision returned.
Return
After treatment in St. Petersburg, Volontir found himself back in his native land. And in 2003 he appeared on the stage of his native theater in the image of Julius Caesar. The actor also starred in the film “Chandra.” About the filming process in this film, Mihai recalled that he worked almost completely blind. Therefore, the director was forced to print the script for him in very large font. And the artist himself read the text through a special magnifying glass. The actor played a hero who works as a projectionist and literally lives at work among Indian films. As the actor himself said, the filming was extremely difficult for him, but after it he began to feel much better.
Achievements
The biography of actor Mihai Volontir focuses on the fact that he was a people's artist of both the Soviet Union and the Moldavian Republic. For his role as an ensign in the film “In the Zone of Special Attention,” the actor was nominated for a state award. And in 2000, Mihai was named the best actor of the 20th century in Moldova. In addition, the artist has an order, which he was awarded for the promotion and implementation of the multifaceted cultural values of the Moldavian Republic.
Awards and titles
- People's Artist of the Moldavian SSR (1974)
- People's Artist of the USSR (1984)
- State Prize of the Moldavian SSR (1976) - for playing the main role in the film “Dmitry Cantemir” (1974)
- State Prize of the RSFSR named after the Vasilyev brothers (1980) - for his performance as ensign Volentir
in the film “In the Zone of Special Attention” (1977) - Order of the Republic (Moldova)
- Best actor of the 20th century in Moldovan cinema (Academy of Sciences of Moldova, 2000)
- “Honorary Doctor” (“Doctor honoris causa”) (Academy of Sciences of Moldova, 2009)[16]
- Award “Outstanding Personality of the Country” (Theatrical Union of Moldova (UNITEM), 2013)
- Award “10 for Moldova” in the categories “Actors and Directors” and “Most Favorite Moldovan”, awarded as part of the Publika TV campaign “Ten for Moldova” (2013)[17]
- Title “For merits in the promotion of cultural values of the Republic of Moldova”
- Certificates of honor at the Ion Caragiale International Competition (for directing and best actor in the play “The Misfortune” by I. Caragiale)
- Honorary citizen of Balti (2001)
- Honorary citizen of Soldanesti district (2012)
- Honorary citizen of Chisinau (2014).
Personal life
Mihai Volontir (biography, his family is detailed in the article) was a man who never, under any circumstances, complained about fate. According to the actor, he was fully successful professionally and felt happy in his family life. The artist had a legal wife, Eforsinha Dobynde, who also acted in films during Soviet times, a granddaughter Catalina and a daughter Stella. By the way, their direct heir did not want to follow in her parents’ footsteps, choosing to work as a diplomat. Today she is the representative of the Moldavian Republic in France.
Personal life of actor Mihai Volontir
Mikhai Ermolaevich Volontir was a rather attractive man and interested women. But in his heart and life there was only one - his wife Efrosinya Dobyde. The actor lived with her all his life, she gave birth to his daughter Stella, she was support and support, a reliable rear.
The daughter of Mihai Volontir is a fairly successful person; she works as a diplomat at the French Embassy of Moldova. This fact is surprising given the situation with the father’s need in the last years of his life and the inability to receive normal treatment due to lack of funds.
Nevertheless, the actor always happily answered questions from journalists about his daughter and granddaughter Katalina, was very proud of them and rejoiced at every success of his beloved girls.
Before death
For the last few years, Mihai Volontir (biography, date of death, funeral, photos of the actor are widely circulated) lived with his wife in his small homeland, continuing to regularly play on the theater stage of the city of Balti until 2014. In the summer of 2020, Volunteer was admitted to inpatient treatment at a local hospital. In July, his condition became truly critical, there was a direct threat to his life and he was urgently transported to the capital of Moldova, Chisinau. Death overtook the great actor on the night of September 14th to 15th. He was 81 years old.
