Alexander Leonidovich Kaidanovsky (russian: Алекса́ндр Леони́дович Кайдано́вский; 23 July 1946 — 3 December 1995) was a

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

and

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

and

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, p ...

. His best known roles are in

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

s such as '' At Home Among Strangers'' (1974), ''

The Bodyguard A bodyguard is an individual who protects another from harm or threats. Bodyguard may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * The Bodyguard (1944 film), ''The Bodyguard'' (1944 film), a Tom and Jerry short * Bodyguard (1948 film), ...

'' (1979) and ''

Stalker Stalking is unwanted and/or repeated surveillance by an individual or group toward another person. Stalking behaviors are interrelated to harassment and intimidation and may include following the victim in person or monitoring them. The term ...

'' (1979). Prior to pursuing an acting career, Kaidanovsky attended technical college where he was training to become a welder. In 1965 he started studying acting at The Rostov Theatre School and the Schukin Institute in Moscow. Before completing the course he took his first part in the film '' The Mysterious Wall'' (1967) and upon graduation in 1969, he worked as stage actor. In 1985 he directed ''

A Simple Death ''A Simple Death'' (russian: Простая смерть, Prostaya Smert') is a 1985 Soviet drama film directed by Alexander Kaidanovsky, based on Leo Tolstoy's ''The Death of Ivan Ilyich''. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at th ...

'', which was screened in the

Un Certain Regard (, meaning 'a certain glance') is a section of the Cannes Film Festival's official selection. It is run at the Debussy, parallel to the competition for the . This section was introduced in 1978 by Gilles Jacob. The section presents 20 films w ...

section at the

1987 Cannes Film Festival The 40th Cannes Film Festival was held from 7 to 19 May 1987 in film, 1987. The Palme d'Or went to the ''Under the Sun of Satan (film), Sous le soleil de Satan'' by Maurice Pialat, a choice which was considered "highly controversial" and the prize ...

. Kaidanovsky made his theatre debut at the

Vakhtangov Theatre Yevgeny Bagrationovich Vakhtangov (also spelled Evgeny or Eugene; russian: Евге́ний Багратио́нович Вахта́нгов; 13 February 1883 – 29 May 1922) was a Russian-Armenian actor and theatre director who founded the ...

in 1969. In 1971 he was invited to join the

Moscow Arts Theatre The Moscow Art Theatre (or MAT; russian: Московский Художественный академический театр (МХАТ), ''Moskovskiy Hudojestvenny Akademicheskiy Teatr'' (МHАТ)) was a theatre company in Moscow. It was f ...

, the best classical theatre in Russia, a rare privilege for a 25-year-old graduate. He made his major film debut in '' At Home Among Strangers'' (1974), and over the next few years appeared in some two dozen films, including the satirical comedy ''Diamonds for Dictatorship of the Proletariat'' (1976) and ''The Life of Beethoven'' (1980). At his peak in the '70s Kaidanovsky was among Soviet Russia's most popular actors, and it was at this point that famed Soviet director

Andrei Tarkovsky Andrei Arsenyevich Tarkovsky ( rus, Андрей Арсеньевич Тарковский, p=ɐnˈdrʲej ɐrˈsʲenʲjɪvʲɪtɕ tɐrˈkofskʲɪj; 4 April 1932 – 29 December 1986) was a Russian filmmaker. Widely considered one of the greates ...

, impressed by the looks and the acting technique of Kaidanovsky in ''Diamonds'', invited him to play the title-role in his new film, ''

'' (1979). This role earned Kaidanovsky international acclaim.

Selected filmography

*'' Anna Karenina'' (1967) as Jules Lando *'' The Mysterious Wall'' (1967) as Someone *'' Red Square'' (1970) as Kashchei * ''The Hound of the Baskervilles'' (1971) as Stapleton *''

Investigation Held by ZnaToKi ''Investigation Led by ZnaToKi'', or ''Investigation Led by Experts'' (russian: Следствие ведут ЗнаТоКи, translit. ''Sledstvie vedut ZnaToKi'') was a popular 1971-1989 Soviet detective TV-series with two Russian series (2 ...

'' (1972, TV) as Mirkin *'' The Fourth'' (1972) as navigating officer *''

Failure of Engineer Garin ''Failure of Engineer Garin'' (russian: Крах инженера Гарина, translit. Krakh inzhenera Garina) is a 1973 Soviet television film in four parts loosely based on a novel '' Hyperboloid of Engineer Garin'' by Alexei Tolstoy. ...

'' (1973, TV Mini-Series) as Wolf *'' At Home Among Strangers'' (1974) as Lemke, rittmeister *''

The Lost Expedition ''The Lost Expedition'' (russian: Пропавшая экспедиция, Propavshaya ekspeditsiya) is a 1975 Soviet drama film directed by Venyamin Dorman. Plot The film takes place in 1918. The expedition, consisting of two people engaged in ...

'' (1975) as Zimin *'' Diamonds for the Dictatorship of the Proletariat'' (1975) as Vorontsov *''

Inquest of Pilot Pirx ''Inquest of Pilot Pirx'' ( pl, Test pilota Pirxa, russian: Дознание пилота Пиркса, Doznaniye pilota Pirksa, et, Navigaator Pirx) is a joint Polish-Soviet 1979 film directed by . It is based on the short story "The Inquest" ...

'' (1979) as Tom Nowak *''

'' (1979) as Stalker *''

Telokhranitel ''The Bodyguard'' (russian: Телохранитель, ''Telokhranitel'') is a 1979 Soviet action film released by Tadjikfilm. It is one of the best known of the Red Westerns and directed by the veteran feature and documentary maker, Ali Khamra ...

'' (1979) as Bodyguard *''

The Lifeguard ''The Lifeguard'' is a 2013 American drama produced, written, and directed by Liz W. Garcia, and starring Kristen Bell and David Lambert. The film premiered at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival, and was released via video on demand on July 30, ...

'' (1980) as Varaksin *'' Rafferty'' (1980, TV Movie) as prosecutor Ames *''

Faktas ''Faktas'' (russian: Gruppa krovi nol) is a 1981 Soviet Lithuanian-language war film directed by Almantas Grikevicius. It was entered into the 1981 Cannes Film Festival, where Yelena Solovey won the award for Best Supporting Actress. Cast * Re ...

'' (1981) as Stanislav *''Atsiprasau'' (1982) as Pranas *''Khareba da Gogia'' (1987) as Volkhovski *''

And Then There Were None ''And Then There Were None'' is a mystery novel by the English writer Agatha Christie, described by her as the most difficult of her books to write. It was first published in the United Kingdom by the Collins Crime Club on 6 November 1939, as ...

'' (1987) as Captain Philip Lombard *''

New Adventures of a Yankee in King Arthur's Court ''New Adventures of a Yankee in King Arthur's Court. Fantasy over Mark Twain's theme'' (russian: Новые приключения янки при дворе короля Артура. Фантазии на тему Марка Твена) is a 1 ...

'' (1988) as Sir

Lancelot Lancelot du Lac (French for Lancelot of the Lake), also written as Launcelot and other variants (such as early German ''Lanzelet'', early French ''Lanselos'', early Welsh ''Lanslod Lak'', Italian ''Lancillotto'', Spanish ''Lanzarote del Lago' ...

*'' Kerosene Salesman's Wife'' (1988) as Vasily Petrovich (voice) *'' Songlines Segment: For a Million'' (1989, director) *''

Magic Hunter ''Magic Hunter'' ( hu, Bűvös vadász, ger, Freischütz) is a 1994 Hungarian-Swiss-French fantasy film written and directed by Ildikó Enyedi and loosely inspired to the opera Der Freischütz. The film was entered into the main competition at ...

'' (1994) as Maxim

References

External links

*
Alexander Kaidanovsky: articles, filmography and photos
2009-10-25) {{DEFAULTSORT:Kaidanovsky, Alexander 1946 births 1995 deaths Actors from Rostov-on-Don Russian male actors Soviet male actors Jewish Russian actors High Courses for Scriptwriters and Film Directors alumni High Courses for Scriptwriters and Film Directors faculty Russian film directors Soviet film directors Burials at Kuntsevo Cemetery Film people from Rostov-on-Don