Millions of viewers are familiar with Maya Menglet from an unforgettable acting duet with Vyacheslav Tikhonov in the film "It Was in Penkov." After the release of this film, she literally woke up famous.
She was immediately christened the "Soviet Sophia Loren" and began to be invited to star in the lead roles. However, the biography of actress Maya Menglet includes not only episodes of creative success. Along with the moments of stardom, in it one can find personal tragedies, and failures in a professional career, and family happiness, and separation from the homeland.
Childhood. The beginning of the biography
Menglet Maya Georgievna was born on August 8, 1935 in Moscow in an artistic family. Her grandfather was of noble origin and had French roots (one of his ancestors was a French officer).
During the Great Patriotic War, the future actress lived with her family in Stalinabad, the capital of Tajikistan, where her father, People's Artist of the USSR Georgy Menglet, directed the drama theater, which consisted mostly of former actors from the studio of director Alexei Dikoy, who was arrested in the late thirties. Georgy Menglet also headed the front theater of the Tajik Republic, which included visited various fronts with performances for fighters.
In 1945, he received an invitation to play at the Moscow Satire Theater and moved with his family to the capital.
As can be seen from the biography of Maya Menglet, the family of the actress's parents was closely associated with the theater. Being brought up in such a family, Maya, from infancy, had a love for the acting profession. For several years she attended the theater circle of the Palace of Pioneers. She made her film debut Maya at the age of nine, starring in the film "Lermontov" in a cameo role.
Youth. Choice of profession
While still a student of the tenth grade, Maya Menglet received an offer to work as a fashion model in England. But, of course, there was no question of working abroad in those days. For one mention of such a desire, she immediately received a slap in the face from her father.
Parents were categorically against their daughter becoming an actress. But, despite this, after graduating from school, Maya, with Igor Kvasha and Svetlana Misery, who were her good friends, went to enter the Shchukin school. There she met Leonid Satanovsky, who later became her husband.
She changed her mind about entering the Shchukin school , and preferred the School-Studio of the Maly Art Academic Theater. Entering the school-studio, she put her unsuspecting parents before the fact of her choice.
Personal life, children
The biography of Maya Menglet is forever connected with the biography of actor Leonid Satanovsky.
Life has linked two fates. Maya Georgievna says she fell in love with her future spouse at first sight. She admits that in men she always valued not external beauty, but spiritual qualities: honesty, sincerity. Leonid also liked her for her plasticity and ability to sing romances beautifully. In 1955, they got married. In the same year, the first son was born to the couple, and after a while the second. The actress lived with her husband for a long 60 years, until his death in 2015.
Popularity
To the question “what is the actress Maya Menglet known for?”, The vast majority of moviegoers will, of course, answer, recalling the main role in the film “It Was in Penkov”. This role really became the hallmark of the actress. She was invited to film screenings when Maya was still a student. And she was lucky! She was chosen from among many actresses, among whom there were many celebrities. Even the wife of the film's director Stanislav Rostotsky claimed for the role.
The choice of the cast was puzzling for many: how can actors with a sophisticated aristocratic appearance, Svetlana Druzhinina and Vyacheslav Tikhonov, play the tractor driver and his wife, daughter of the collective farm chairman?
Maya Menglet’s candidacy for the role of a young graduate of an agricultural institute, who fell in Penkovo ​​by distribution, was also doubtful. However, the film was a huge success. This role, the first in her cinematic career, was a turning point in the biography of the artist Maya Menglet. Portraits of the actress appeared on the covers of magazines, movie posters and postcards, which were sold at every newsstand.
There were numerous rumors about the romantic relationship between Menglet and Tikhonov. But in reality there was no romance. As Maya Menglet was infinitely devoted to her husband, so Vyacheslav Tikhonov was, according to the stories of many of his acquaintances, an exemplary family man.
Sophia Loren and the undivided love of a Soviet official
In addition to the Soviet Union, the film “It was in Penkov” was shown in many countries around the world. Foreign trips began, during which the foreign public often mistook Menglet for Sophia Loren. Maya heard many times how she was addressed, calling her the name of the famous Italian.
One unpleasant episode is associated with this film, which left its mark on the entire future biography and filmography of Maya Menglet. Here is how it was. One of the top fans decided at all costs to achieve reciprocity from the actress. He promised her mountains of gold and best movie roles. But Maya Georgievna remained faithful to her beloved spouse, and the intrusive official received a strict and decisive rebuff.
For the offended feelings, the representative of the Soviet elite brutally avenged. A line appeared in the characterization of the artist, characterizing her appearance as atypical for a Soviet citizen, and herself as unsuitable for Soviet cinema.
As a result, there were not so many invitations to act in films. But Maya Georgievna herself admits that she never worried about this, since she liked the work in the theater more than filming in films. And the main thing in life for her has always been family.
Drama in the family of parents
An unexpected blow for Maya was the departure from her father's family. He went to his new lover, actress Nina Arkhipova. Maya Menglet's mother, Valentina Koroleva, passed through this test with dignity. Even after the breakup, the former husband often visited them, and Valentina habitually took care of him: hemmed and ironed clothes, washed for him. Maya, for a long time, held a grudge against her father and could not forgive him.
The yellow press even wrote that they allegedly did not communicate with their father for more than twenty years. In fact, she only the first time refused to talk to him. She felt sorry for her mother. After all, it was Valentina Koroleva who largely contributed to the fact that George Menglet took place as an actor.
She completely relieved him of all household duties, exchanging work in the theater for the role of a housewife.
The bitterness of loss
Maya with her husband and children lived in the same apartment with their parents. In many interviews, answering questions about her biography, Maya Menglet says that in their family, father was the main value. He was admired, revered, he was given all the best. Therefore, she took her father's departure as a betrayal. When Maya's mother died, the father said at her funeral that he loved her all his life. Georgy Pavlovich briefly outlived his ex-wife. He died in the same 2001 year. Publications about the reconciliation of Maya Georgievna with her father’s new wife were also based on false rumors. She talked to her only once in 2001 after the death of Georgy Pavlovich on matters related to the inheritance. And in 2016, Nina Arkhipova also died.
The fate of the children
In the biography of Maya Menglet, 1978 entered as a year of forced separation from his eldest son. Unexpectedly for his relatives, a young actor, a graduate of a theater institute, decided to immigrate to Germany, falling in love with a foreign student at Moscow State University. Having lived in Germany for about two years, the couple moved permanently to Australia. For Maya Georgievna and her husband, this departure was an unexpected blow. Indeed, in those days it was almost impossible to visit relatives living in capitalist countries.
Only after perestroika did she and her husband manage to visit their son. By that time, the youngest son had grown. He chose the career of a chemical scientist for himself and also moved to Australia.
Life changes
The long forty-three years of the creative biography of Maya Menglet were associated with the Moscow Drama Theater. It was in this theater that she dreamed of playing from early childhood. And in adulthood, he became a second home for her and her husband. However, they had to break with the theater because of the dishonesty of the new leader. Maya Georgievna describes this unfortunate incident in this way. In 2002, a few weeks before the release of the new performance, Leonid missed two rehearsals due to illness. For two days they managed to take on another role for his role. When Maya Georgievna found out about this injustice, she went to the director of the theater to clarify the situation. Nobody opened for a knock for a long time. When the door finally opened, it turned out that the director was drunk. He had one answer to all Maya Menglet’s questions: “If you’re not happy, quit!” On the same day, she wrote a statement of her own free will, which she immediately signed. The husband did the same. After that, officials from the Ministry of Culture asked them to return, but they did not want to return to their native theater to see the arbitrariness of the new leadership. Parting with the place to which most of his life was given was one of the saddest pages in the biography of Maya Menglet and her husband.
Australia
Sons came to the rescue. They invited parents to move to them, in Australia.
The first time in a foreign land was not easy. They never thought about leaving their homeland, and therefore were not ready for such a turn in their biography. Maya Menglet often cried. Leonid Moiseevich was also uneasy. Although he tried not to show emotions. There were no offers to play in other Russian theaters. It seemed that everyone forgot about them, except for friends who occasionally called, supported. And then they were offered to play in the Russian drama theater in Canada, where they played a huge number of roles of the classical repertoire. This was a real salvation! They were doing what they loved again, feeling right again.
Another page in the creative biography of Maya Menglet was written by Mikhail Kozakov, inviting her to participate in the tour of his theater in Israel. However, this cooperation did not last long - flights from Australia to Israel are too long.
Loss of husband
For Maya Georgievna, the loss of her beloved husband was a grave shock. He died in 2015. More than 30 years ago he was diagnosed with diabetes. And in the last year of life, kidney problems started. Well-being sharply worsened. Leonid Moiseevich had to undergo several operations. Maya Georgievna until the last day was inseparable from her beloved spouse, she was constantly on duty at the hospital. She admits that despite the acting career of both spouses, with a rather tight tour schedule, they still very rarely parted for a long time. They even tried to spend their holidays together.
Conclusion
The work of their parents continues the eldest son of Maya and Leonid - Alex. He plays at the Drama Theater in Australia. The youngest son also still lives in Australia. Sons often visit Maya Georgievna. She has three granddaughters and one great-granddaughter.
Maya Menglet remains a citizen of Russia and is regularly at home. The last time she appeared on television when they celebrated the anniversary of the film “It was in Penkov,” the first film in the acting biography of Maya Georgievna Menglet.
During her long creative career, she played in sixteen films, two television shows, took part in several dozen performances. And “It was in Penkov,” the film with Maya Menglet in the title role, and today, almost sixty years after the release, remains one of the most popular films of Soviet cinema.