Biography
If correct answers to tricky questions were not the basis of intellectual shows, but a way of earning money, Alexander Druz would be on the peculiar lists of rich people who made a fortune in this way. For his ability to find a way out of hopeless situations, he was awarded the “Diamond Owl” and six “Crystal Owls”, the main prizes of the game “What? Where? When?". Druz is one of the first “immortal” players of the club and the first holder of the Master title.
"What? Where? When?"
Alexander Druz got on television not because of his outstanding appearance or height (according to some media reports, the intellectual’s height is only 168 cm), but because of his incredible knowledge. Even as a child, he watched the intellectual show “What? Where? When?" and easily answered questions posed by viewers. When in 1980 the opportunity arose to try himself as one of the experts and participants in a television program, Alexander immediately decided to take advantage of this opportunity.
Alexander Druz - titled expert
He wrote an application, which, by the way, due to the terrible handwriting of the future expert, his wife had to rewrite, and sent it to Moscow. Alexander was in his fifth year at that time and was preparing to defend his diploma, so he had enough free time to travel to the capital. He successfully passed all the tests and trials that the author and presenter of the program, Vladimir Voroshilov, prepared for novice experts, and already in 1981 he appeared on television as part of the show.
The friend turned out to be quite a gambler and from that moment appeared in almost all episodes of the intelligence show. He was kicked out of the club several times, but the expulsion did not last long, and Alexander safely returned to the show. In 1982, Druz was disqualified for giving a hint.
For the first time, the connoisseur left the project for a long time in 1983, along with two other participants, but a year later, the host of the program, Voroshilov, decided to give them a chance. During the audience voting, the majority of votes were cast for Druz's return to the club. Alexander “flew” from the show three more times, but since December 1992 he has never left the program again.
In 1991, Alexander became a teacher, preparing schoolchildren for the club games “What? Where? When?". Regularly held school and interregional tournaments. For his services in the field of education he received the medal “In Memory of the Tercentenary of St. Petersburg.”
Expert Alexander Druz
Druz is one of the most successful players on the show, with about 50 successful games to his name. He also set a record for the number of games played: as of 2014, Alexander became a participant in 75 episodes of the popular show. The connoisseur was named the best player six times, receiving the club's Crystal Owl award in 1990, 1992, 1995, 2000, 2006 and 2012. He also became the first holder of the title of Master of the Game.
Show “What? Where? When?" brought the expert not only popularity and fame, but also became a source of income for Alexander. Although after deducting all taxes, the amount was not that big.
In March 2020 at the club “What? Where? When?" a loud scandal broke out. Rovshan Askerov's team gave a controversial answer to the question about the tomato and wisdom, but after much persuasion and discussion, the presenter credited the team with the answer. A friend commented on this situation, saying that Askerov risked his reputation in front of an audience of millions. This comment caused a violent reaction from Askerov, who stated that Alexander Druz had no reputation at all, and, therefore, it was not for him to talk about strangers.
Childhood and youth
Alexander was born on May 10, 1955 in Leningrad into a Jewish family. His father served on a submarine, later taught, his mother was a nurse. His parents instilled in their son a love of books - he re-read everything that was in the house, from heavy encyclopedias to works of fiction. But this did not stop the boy from fighting, playing football, breaking prohibitions and going swimming in ponds.
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At school, Druz studied well, although he was not an excellent student. He won his first award at the age of 9 at an evening of entertaining questions. Then he graduated from technical school and with honors from the Institute of Railway Transport Engineers, and managed to work in the construction industry.
A sharp turn in his life happened when he came up with the idea of submitting an application to participate in a television program that he had loved since childhood.
Childhood and family of Alexander Druz
Alexander Druz was born into an ordinary Leningrad family.
Both of his parents were Jewish by nationality, and therefore (no matter how trite) from early childhood Sasha grew up surrounded by books and weighty tomes. Although it cannot be said that this state of affairs in any way interfered with the young guy. While still in elementary school, he began to avidly read various literary works, study encyclopedias, greedily absorbing a variety of interesting knowledge. Despite the fact that in many biographical texts dedicated to Alexander Druz one can find reports that at an early age the future “expert” dreamed of becoming a sailor and fireman, the facts point to a completely different state of affairs. Throughout the life of the legendary polymath, his main passion remained knowledge. So, while still a primary school student at Leningrad Secondary School No. 47, Alexander began to participate in various competitions and shows. In particular, it is known for certain that already at the age of nine (!), our today's hero won his first prize - a book by Vladimir Maximov, given to him as a reward for winning an evening of entertaining questions in a Ukrainian holiday home.
Legend “What? Where? When?" Alexander Druz is Jewish by nationality
After that victory, others followed. Thus, Alexander repeatedly won competitions at his home school, and in the tenth grade he even became the winner of the prestigious quiz “You are a Leningrader,” in which teenagers were tested on their knowledge of their home city.
In one of his interviews, Alexander Druz quite succinctly explained such a large number of different competitions and intellectual quizzes that remained behind him. “I’ve never been afraid to appear stupid,” the legendary polymath said when asked how he was able to achieve so many victories on various forums. And here it’s difficult to add anything else.
A television
In 1981, at the invitation of Vladimir Voroshilov, Druz entered the “What? Where? When?". He turned out to be a gambler and appeared in almost all episodes, becoming the record holder for the number of games played and victories won. Alexander also holds an anti-record: he is the first member of the club to be kicked out for giving tips to his colleagues.
The friend was expelled for similar offenses more than once, but the expulsion did not last long, and he returned safely.
In 1991, Alexander Abramovich retrained as a teacher - he was preparing children for the club games “What? Where? When?”, held school and interregional tournaments. For services to education he received the medal “In Memory of the Tercentenary of St. Petersburg.”
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There is one more page in Druz’s television biography - the Brain Ring program. The first year of participation ended with him winning and being awarded the Golden Brain. He also received the cup in 1991, 1994 and 2000.
Victories in the intellectual show “Own Game” brought Alexander the main prize - a car. He did not have the funds to pay the tax on his winnings, so Druz took the cash equivalent and bought a Zhiguli. Of the 35 games played on the project, he won 22 and became the owner of the two maximum wins in one game in the history of the program.
The famous intellectual periodically plays for the Nikita Mobile TeTe team in the sports analogue of “What? Where? When?" and "Brain Ring". Now he also hosts the educational program “Hour of Truth” on the “365 Days of TV” channel.
Television projects
Besides “What? Where? When?" Alexander Druz took an active part in other television intellectual shows. So, since 1990, the expert became a participant in the Brain Ring , the author of this project was the creator of What? Where? When?" — Vladimir Voroshilov. Already in the first year of the game, Druz was about. Gold cups were also awarded to the connoisseur in 1994 and 2000.
Alexander Abramovich and Viktor Sidnev in the program “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire”
Since 1995, Druz has been a regular participant in the TV program “Own Game”. From the first broadcasts, Alexander became the undisputed favorite of the show: he won 22 games out of 35 played. The connoisseur also holds his own record: the two largest wins in one game in the history of the TV show. In addition, Alexander Abramovich managed to become the owner of a car - the main prize of the program. However, Druz took the reward in cash, as he did not have enough funds to pay the required tax on the prize. For the money he received, the connoisseur bought himself a Zhiguli; this car served Alexander Abramovich for seven years.
Since 2009, Alexander Druz can sometimes be seen playing in the sports analogue of ChGK as part of the Nikita Mobile TeTe team. The famous expert also took part in the Brain Ring championships in Uzbekistan, Israel, Great Britain and Ukraine, where he repeatedly won.
Friends and Urgant
In May 2011, Alexander Druz first appeared on the screen of the 365 Days TV channel as the host of the television program “Hour of Truth.” Alexander Abramovich and the invited guests of the show discuss interesting historical moments, making this program extremely educational for all viewers.
Alexander Druz is a frequent guest of such TV programs as “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?”, “Evening Urgant”, “While Everyone is Home” and “Guess the Melody”.
Business
Alexander Abramovich was the head of programs at the St. Petersburg television station, which supplied content for the Kultura and REN-TV channels, and headed the gaming program department on the 100 TV channel. Sotka was considered a pioneer on Russian television in terms of 24-hour online broadcasting on the Internet.
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In 2007, Druz founded, which was engaged in the wholesale trade of building materials. The other, Trans-Agio, specialized in freight transportation. Later, the owner sold the business because there was not enough time for its development, and the crisis in this area also affected.
Takeoff
Having received an engineering diploma, Druz quickly found a job and proved himself to be excellent. However, soon his real passion became the games “What? Where? When?".
It should be noted that in 1980, when Druz applied to participate in the project, hundreds of other applicants did the same. Alexander was among the lucky few who formed the basis of the “newborn” intellectual club. His first game took place in 1981.
Among the many subsequent achievements of Druz, there is one small anti-record. It was he who once became the first person to be removed from the hall for violating the rules of the club. The fact is that Alexander tried to give tips to his colleagues at the round table, for which he paid.
However, after many years, this “achievement” no longer seems something to be ashamed of. On the contrary, it brings a smile and adds sweet human hooligan traits to the portrait of an inveterate intellectual.
If you set a goal, then all the awards received by Druz in the club can be counted. Suffice it to say that he won 46 fights and was repeatedly recognized as the best player of the year. In 1995, he became the first of all experts to receive the title of Master of Intellectual Casino.
Project “What? Where? When?" Alexander Druz was not the only one who graced with his participation. It's about "Own Game", various foreign games. Repeatedly he himself organized competitions, mainly for children and youth.
Personal life
Alexander arranged his personal life once and for all in his youth. He knew his wife Elena from school. The girl was friends with him out of self-interest - the friend did her homework for her. We got married while we were in college.
Daughters Inna and Marina grew up in the family. Both graduated from the University of Economics and Finance, speak three foreign languages, live in America, but speak only Russian at home. Inna is a PhD candidate. Parents read books to girls from the age of 3 months, developing their intelligence and thirst for knowledge. As a result, they followed in their father’s footsteps - they played “What? Where? When?”, received “Crystal Owls”.
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Alexander Druz and his family His
wife is a psychologist by profession. Alexander considers this miniature (compared to his 178 cm height) woman, endowed with wisdom and patience, to be the main gain in fate. The first photo on Instagram of the connoisseur is with Elena.
Druz is the grandfather of four granddaughters, Alisa, Alina, Roni and Ensley. In addition to the head of the family, there was another master in the house - a Scottish Fold cat, Master Skimbleshanks Monami, who was called Sean in everyday life, in honor of Sean Connery, donated by the club for the anniversary.
Alexander’s favorite leisure activity is reading. He himself wrote a children's book about the adventures of a cat and a girl, “Enya, Thomas and Others,” and a guide to St. Petersburg.
Childhood and adolescence
The boy was born in Leningrad in 1955 on May 10 in a cultural Jewish family. From early childhood, Alexander became interested in reading the home library: he read not only works of fiction by various authors, but also encyclopedias. Despite his passion for books, little Sasha loved to run in the yard, play football, and even fight with boys and secretly swim in ponds. At that time, the boy saw himself as a sailor or fireman.
Friend Alexander with his parents
Sasha did not attend kindergarten; his mother raised him. The boy's father was a career military man and devoted all his time to work.
Young Druz was always a good student, but not an excellent student, and became a regular participant in all school intellectual competitions. Sasha won his first prize at the age of nine at an evening of entertaining questions.
Friend Alexander in his youth
After graduating from school, Druz went to a technical school to receive a specialty in electrical engineering, and then became a student at the Leningrad Institute of Railway Transport Engineers. Alexander received the profession of systems engineer, and graduated from the university with honors in 1980. However, the young man still had one B in his diploma: due to Alexander’s personal conflict with the teachers of the department, the young man’s grade in the subject “political economy of socialism” was lowered.
Alexander Druz now
Legend “What? Where? When?" does not deny himself the pleasure of participating in other intellectual projects. In 2018, the show “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?” became one of these. Alexander came to Dmitry Dibrov’s studio in the company of master Viktor Sidnev. The program, in the final of which the experts lost, was successfully aired, but in February 2020 a scandal broke out.
The editor-in-chief of Millionaire, Ilya Ber, accused Druz of attempting to bribe. Allegedly, he offered to share part of the winnings in exchange for answers to some questions. Ilya made a deal, recorded the conversation on a tape recorder, but at the last moment replaced questions 10 to 15. That is why Alexander and Victor received only a fireproof amount.
A friend presented the situation from the other side. Behr, in his words, made a similar proposal himself, but he just wanted to play along and see what would come of it. And he knew the answer to the last question based on past experience, and after discussing the situation with Sidnev, he decided to “lose.”
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Alexander Druz in 2020
Channel One suspended both from participating in television games during the proceedings. The editor filed a complaint with the International Association of Clubs “What? Where? When?" and asked to evaluate Alexander’s “dishonest actions.”
On this basis, rumors arose that Druz was leaving for America. However, it turned out that this was only about the presentation of the book. Later, either the name and recognition of the intellectual, or the apologies he made played a role, but the passions subsided. Alexander returned to the club, albeit with a ban from playing until the end of the season. The association also retained his post of vice-president, although he was excluded from the ethics commission.
Results of the scandal: Friends are in great demand at corporate events, and deputy Ilya Ber is looking for part-time work
Just a couple of weeks ago, the editor of the program “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?”, expert Ilya Ber, accused ChGK master Alexander Druz of making an obscene proposal. According to Behr, Druz promised him a share of the winnings for leaking questions in “Millionaire.” The friend responded by saying that Ber himself provoked him by offering a deal. As a result, both were removed from Channel One’s projects “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?” So what? Where? When?". Ber lost his permanent job, but Master Druz only suffered from his reputation.
63-year-old Alexander Druz is a working pensioner. Alexander Abramovich had two companies that were engaged in the wholesale trade of building materials, but he sold them long ago and invested the money. Now Druz makes money mainly as a guest presenter or speaker. At the same time, in all interviews he reminds: “What? Where? When?" - This is a hobby; you don’t get paid to take part in a television game. But even in those days when they paid, it was not the kind of money you could live on, so experts always worked in parallel. Participation in the ChGK provided popularity, reputation and acquaintances in business circles.
Now Master Druz is constantly on the move. The impresario of the owner of the Diamond Owl, Maxim Kryazhev, told us that the country’s main connoisseur has a busy schedule. But you can still get into it - if you book Alexander Abramovich a couple of months in advance. Most often, Friends are invited to hold intellectual tournaments, lectures and trainings. Friends are invited to May festivals in Turkey and to the closed reserves of large corporations.
At corporate and entertainment events, the author’s tournament “Friends” “Attention, question!” is in fashion. — teams answer the facilitator’s questions. The cost to “play” is 300 thousand rubles. for two hours of the tournament. For victory, Druz's management offers a "Crystal Owl" to the best player (25 thousand rubles) or books (1 thousand rubles apiece). Of course, you can refuse prizes. A friend also gives lectures on the topic: “Intelligence. Leadership. Decision making" or "Correct decision making. Traps for the mind." Cost from 300 to 400 thousand rubles. Alexander Abramovich pays taxes by offering to transfer money to the account of his individual entrepreneur or LLC.
In addition, Alexander Druz recently published two books - a children's book and a guidebook "St. Petersburg: walking around the city." Now the expert is preparing a couple more manuscripts about St. Petersburg.
Two weeks after the scandal, there was a surge of interest in Druz’s services. Whether or not the scandal will affect the expert’s advertising contracts will become known in a few months.
Ilya Ber seems to be preparing for a political career. Photo: facebook.com
...and deputy Ilya Ber is looking for part-time work
Ilya Ber worked for ten years as editor-in-chief of the TV game “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?” He combined his permanent work with educational projects, deputy membership in the Council of one of the Moscow districts, and teaching to student journalists.
The other day, Behr posted a job search ad on social networks: “Since I have freed up some time, I think it’s time to write about what I can do. So that those who want to involve me in their projects can do so. I'll tell you right away. I now have enough work purely for my soul. So here we will talk about exchanging my time, experience, knowledge and skills for banknotes at a fair rate...” Having lost a permanent source of income, Behr wants to make money by running intellectual games, corporate events in a gaming format, and also describes his other strengths. Ilya strikes iron, advertising his services, until people forget about the scandal and his role in it.
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You and I are no longer friends. After a scandal with accusations of fraud, the great master of knowledge, Alexander Druz, was removed from the airwaves of Channel One
BY THE WAY
The editor of “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire,” who accused Druz of bribery: “I didn’t want a public scandal until recently”
The initiator of the scandal, Ilya Ber, is not yet ready to tell why he considers Druz a “rotten person” (details)
REACTION
President “What? Where? When?" about the scandal with Druz: “Sad! Everyone is wrong. I would like to give everyone a slap!”
President of the international association of clubs “What? Where? When?”, TV director general Natalia Stetsenko for the first time commented on the scandal in which ChGK masters Alexander Druz and Viktor Sidnev were involved.
Let us remind you that on December 22, 2020, Channel One showed the show “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?”, where masters answered questions “What? Where? When?" Alexander Druz and Victor Sidnev. And on February 12, the editor-in-chief of the TV show, Ilya Ber, said that Druz expected to win by dishonest means. (details)
Alexey Blinov about the scandal with Alexander Druz: “This casts a shadow on the entire intellectual community”
Master of the game “What? Where? When?" Alexander Druz is perhaps one of the most intelligent people in Russia. He knows the answers to all questions. It’s just that he can’t cope with the new task yet. Editor of the program “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?” Ilya Ber accused Alexander Abramovich of trying to buy the correct answers to questions from him at a bargain price of 700 thousand rubles. (details)
The beginning of star trek
After graduating from school, Alexander became a student at the Leningrad Industrial Pedagogical College. Here he studied as an electrical technician and industrial training master. He received his second higher education at the Leningrad Institute of Railway Transport Engineers.
After receiving a university diploma, the future owner of the “Diamond Owl” entered the position of systems engineer and immediately applied to become a member of the “What? Where? When?". The first time he was seen live on the popular television program Friends was in 1981.
According to Alexander, his application lay in the editorial office of the program for about a year. Then he had to go through a selection process and only after that he was accepted as a member of the intellectual club. It is worth noting that in 1982, for the first time in the history of “What? Where? When?" the expert was removed from the table after prompting from those present in the hall. It turned out to be Druz.
