From the very first roles, the actor Leonid Bakshtaev was given the image of a romantic hero. In the cinema and theater, he most often turned into officers and soldiers, and women of all ages admired these characters. The actor was rightly considered one of the most beautiful men in Soviet cinema, and, of course, he had many fans. But in life, Leonid Bakshtaev was monogamous.
Biography
The future actor was born on 05/10/1934 in Belarus, in the village of Dobryn. In the family, he was the youngest child of three children. He lost his parents early, he and his older sisters were raised by grandparents. According to Leonid Bakshtaev himself, he inherited his creative abilities from his grandfather. In school years he participated in amateur performances and was a theater star. At the same time, teachers did not like the boy for the fact that he skillfully parodied them. Once Lenya copied the head teacher, and he was suspended for several weeks.
After graduation, Bakshtaev entered the Minsk Theater Institute. In 1958 he graduated from it and began to work in the distribution at the Lesya Ukrainka Kiev Drama Theater. Leonid’s theatrical career was quite successful, but the thirst for change and a rebellious character all the time pushed him to experiment. The actor periodically changed his place of service, managed to work in the theaters of Dnepropetrovsk and Nikolaev, but then settled in Kiev.
Movie work
If in the theater Leonid Bakshtaev played diverse roles, then he was remembered by moviegoers for his military images. He began acting in films in 1967, when he was given the supporting role in the movie Unforgettable. This tape determined the role of the actor. Subsequently, he starred in such military films as “On the Kiev Direction”, “Bumbarash”, “Aty-bats, soldiers were coming”, “Commissars”, “Order: Do not open fire”, “Scarlet epaulettes”, “Secret of the partisan dugout” , "The War of the West."
Sometimes directors sent Leonid Bakshtaev to the opposite camp. For example, in the film "Nina", the actor played an officer of the SS troops Schulz, and in the joint Soviet-Yugoslav film "Wedding" - a German major.
Personal life
Leonid Bakshtaev was a favorite of women. His charming smile haunted the fans, and they often waited for the actor at home and at the movie studio. Although everyone knew that Bakshtaev was married and loves his wife Maria without memory. Leonid belonged to those rare men who fall in love once and for life. He lived with his wife for more than thirty-five years, two daughters were born in the family: Marina and Alesia.
Last years
In the early 1990s. the actor was diagnosed with leukemia. All attempts to save Leonid Bakshtayev were unsuccessful, and on July 29, 1995 he was gone. A talented artist was interred in Kiev Forest Cemetery.
Shortly before his death, the actor finished work on the story-memoir “Interrupted Confession,” which was published in 1996.
According to the wife of Leonid Bakshtayev, after his death, one unusual event occurred. During his lifetime, the actor planted a birch in the courtyard of a house in Kiev. Ten years later, it became a magnificent tree, but someone sawed it off. Imagine Mary's surprise when she once saw a growing young birch tree on her husband’s grave, although no one planted it.
The tree still grows there, and relatives of Leonid Bakshtayev believe that this is proof that their loved one is still next to them.