He once started a fire in the hotel, and didn’t even notice.

Evgeni Evstigneev

Photo: Mosfilm-info

Lyudmila Ivanova prepared a book of memories together with the journalist of “7 Days” Angelica Pakhomova. And let the idea of a book is unlikely to be able to translate — not enough
few months the unique material had accumulated a lot: the stories about Oleg Efremov, Galina Volchek, Lyudmila Gurchenko, Valentin Gaft, and many others. These memories we share with our readers.

Here is an excerpt from the recorded from the words of Lyudmila Ivanovny about the wonderful actor Eugene Evstigneev.

“Oleg Yefremov had long built their plays, but then everything could be covered from the distraction of our beloved Zhenya Evstigneeva. He was the leading actor of our theater, everyone thought he was a genius. But Eugene had a weakness for reservations. He once played Lunacharsky in the play about Lenin’s “Bolsheviks”. Efremov shaking over this piece. We were forced to visit places of glory of the revolutionaries and said: “Bolsheviks” is our “Chaika”!” And here Evstigneev needs in the role of Sergeant give the order: “Put guards at the entrance to the Kremlin and the CEC”. This is the stage when Lenin was just shot and his life is in danger. That is all seriously. But Jack says: “Put guards at the entrance to the Kremlin and to the CIRCUS”. Hall laughed, and then the actors side by side. And Jack a handkerchief to his face pressed down and pretends to cry — well that he was Lenin’s mind. In General, closed the curtain, and then another scene began. How then Yefremov at the meeting were Eugene pesochin!

We all, of course, Evstigneeva loved, but he did have some unexplained oddities… On tour in Bulgaria, he almost burned the hotel. We all had immersion heaters, and where do without them? Jack missed his teapot, and he lit up the table. But instead of extinguishing, Jack stepped out of the room, began to walk down the corridor and ask: “Comrades, don’t you think that somewhere smells like smoke? Maybe something is burning?” Until someone ran into his room and scream “Fire!”, Eugene admitted that it burns it…unfortunately, over time, Evstigneev, who all his life followed by Ephraim, was disappointed in him…”

All the material here.