Alexei Makarovich Smirnov was a great Soviet film actor who was loved by many audiences. Even the small comedic roles he plays will be seen as the main character by the audience. His life was filled with legends of bravery and fearlessness, and he was also permeated with Russian-style sadness.
A future actor was born on February 28, 1920, in a small town in Danilov, Yaroslav Oblast. As early as the mid-1920s, the family moved to Leningrad. Alexei and his younger brother Arcadia were raised alone by their mother, who died very early. The great comedian of the future showed his interest in theatre early on and already showed his talent in amateur acting in elementary school. After graduation, he entered the Leningrad Musical Comedy Theatre. However, he did not work there for a long time - he enlisted in the army and then took part in the Great Patriotic War.
Alexei Makarovich Smirnov
Alexei Makarovich Smirnov joined the Red Army in October 1940. He served in the army at the beginning of World War II. He served as a chemistry instructor and later as a platoon commander in the 3rd Artillery Company of the 169th Mortar Regiment of the Red Flag 3rd Breakthrough Artillery Division. As part of the troops, Alexei Smirnov took part in the fighting of the Western Front, the Bryansk Front, the 1st Ukrainian Front and the 2nd Belorussian Front. He scouted many times and infiltrated behind enemy lines. The award of the Medal of Courage, awarded on 22 July 1943, indicates that he killed three Nazis with submachine guns during a reconnaissance mission. In place of the mortar squad commander who was not on duty, he opened fire violently, destroying 2 enemy infantry platoons.
Photograph of Alexei Makarovich Smirnov with a captured MG-42 during the war.
On March 4, 1944, during a battle to break through the German lines in the area of the village of Onatskovsky, Smirnov and his platoon eliminated a mortar fire point, a heavy machine gun and up to 30 enemy troops. After breaking through Onatskovsky's defensive line, the artillery platoon continued to advance, and the Soviets captured the old city of Konstantinov on March 9. In that battle, Sergeant Smirnov and his platoon eliminated 2 heavy machine guns, a 75 mm gun and 35 enemy infantry. Because of the courage shown in these battles, Smirnov was recommended to be awarded the Order of the Great Patriotic War of the First Class, but was awarded the Order of the Red Star of the second class.
On July 20, 1944, during the battle on Hill 293, an enemy force of 40 Nazis attacked the artillery company. Smirnov charged the battlefield, inspired the fighters, and eventually repelled the German attack. In that battle, the Germans lost 17 soldiers and he himself captured 7 Nazis. A week later, near the village of Churavka, Smirnov and three of his soldiers encountered a small enemy force of 16 men while choosing a new firing position. The Germans tried to capture the Soviet soldiers, but they fought back, killing 9 Germans and capturing 5. For the personal courage shown in these battles, Smirnov was awarded the Order of Honor of the Third Class.
Smirnov in the war
During Operation Vistula-Oder on 17 January 1945, Smirnov's artillery company was ambushed by Germans near Storschevice. Smirnov led three Red Army soldiers to attack the Germans. Alexei Makarovich killed 3 Germans and took 2 prisoners, paving the way for further advances. On 22 January 1945, while crossing the Oder River, Smirnov considered and delivered a mortar to the other side of the river. They fortified on the left bank, destroying two machine gun fire points and eliminating as many as 20 enemy troops. This allowed the 36th Guards Infantry Regiment to maintain and expand the bridgehead in the area of the village of Eichingrid, and Smirnov was awarded the Order of Honor II.
Notably, Smirnov also led the amateur art troupe with his talent: from May to July 1944 alone, Smirnov organized 10 concerts for the soldiers of the Red Army, with a total audience of up to 6500 people. Smirnov's amateur art troupe participated in the Red Army Amateur Art Exhibition in 1943 and 1944, and both ranked first in the division. Smirnov was recommended for the Order of the Red Star during the same period, but was awarded a less important medal for military merit.
Smirnov the Elder unsuccessfully ended his military career at the Battle of Berlin: he was wounded in a battle, causing a severe concussion and receiving long-term treatment in hospital. After the war he returned to the Leningrad Musical Comedy Theatre, but the long-lost peacetime was still heavy. The trauma of the war had left him infertile, so he decided to leave his fiancée, who had been waiting for him for a long time, and his former fiancée did not know the truth years later. The war shattered his life, his brother failed to return from the war, he remained unmarried all his life, and he lived with his old mother. His mother was seriously ill with mental illness and needed care and companionship and money. He traveled from various posts in the theater, but when the gold finally shone, he succeeded in playing Peter I in "Captain Tobacco" in the 50s. He began appearing in films in 1957 and became known to audiences by creating small comedic roles, such as the villains in Operation Y and Other Adventures of Schulik. In 1964, he met Leonid Bekov and forged a deep friendship. In leonid Bekov's film Only Veterans Go to Battle, he played the role of an old mechanic and proved to the world that he was not just suitable for comedy. Later, he would say bitterly: "It's a pity that I found my director so late!" ”
In Operation Y and Schulik's Other Adventures, the villain in the cap is a classic created by Smirnov.
The classic image of Smirnov in "Only the Veterans Go to Fight".
Behind the actor who brought joy was a wound, and the war wounds made his health extremely deteriorate, he left the theater and could only rely on the remuneration of small roles to survive, and he still lived humbly with his old mother in the public house he deserved. His poor health also prevented him from starring in the last film of his friend Leonid Bykov. On April 12, 1979, he learned that his good friend Leonid Bekov had died in a car accident, and the news caused Alexei Smirnov to fall into great sorrow. He had another heart attack and went to the hospital. On 7 May, Alexei Smirnov passed away. He was buried with his mother in the South Cemetery in Leningrad.
The cemetery of Smirnov and his mother, who died in 1981.
Behind the old artist's smile is hardship.
"Dear friends! If you laugh at least once, I'll be happy because your lifespan will be extended by a second. I wish you all the best. ”
Alexei Makarovich Smirnov