Birth name: Menachem-Man Neukhovich Neiman Date of birth: 09.25.1911 Place of birth: Nezhin, Chernigov province Height : 163 cm Zodiac sign: Libra When died : 08.16.1969 Cause of death: lung cancer Where buried: Novodevichy Cemetery
The famous actor and chansonnier Mark Bernes was called an outstanding artist during his lifetime, which does not happen often. His biography and personal life were not always successful. With his songs, the performer inspired Soviet soldiers to victory. His musical compositions were included in the golden fund of the song heritage of the USSR.
The actor's childhood and family
Bernes Mark (real name Menachem-Man Neukhovich Neumann) was born on October 8, 1911 in the Ukrainian city of Nizhyn, Chernigov region. He is Jewish by nationality.
Mom - Fruma-Makhlya Lipovna, did not work anywhere, kept house. Father - Naum Samoilovich, worked at a company collecting recyclable materials. There was always music in their house; the parents introduced their son to art from a young age.
In 1916, the Neumanns changed their place of residence to the city of Kharkov, where Mark spent his childhood and youth. At the age of 7, the boy went to school, and upon graduation he headed to the theater technical school. His parents sent him to master the profession of an accountant.
In parallel with his studies at the technical school, Mark got a job as an extra at the Kharkov Mussoorie Theater. Soon he had a chance to perform in place of the sick artist. The pseudonym Bernes was invented by the young artist right then.
The guy invested himself so much on stage that director Nikolai Sinelnikov even praised him. From that day on, Mark occasionally played small roles in productions.
When the young artist turned 17, having received a certificate of completion of theater courses, Bernes went to Moscow. Here completely different horizons opened up for him. Mark was simultaneously accepted as an extra at the Bolshoi and Maly theaters. He was happy with this kind of work. After some time, directors began to single out the talented artist from the crowd and began to trust him with small roles. The guy considered actor Nikolai Radin his teacher.
Childhood and family of Mark Bernes
Mark Naumovich Neiman (and this is exactly what the musician’s real name sounds like) was born in the small town of Nizhyn, which today is located in the Chernihiv region of Ukraine. His father worked in a special cooperative that collected waste materials, and his mother was an ordinary housewife.
Singer and actor Mark Bernes became a legend of the Soviet Union
When the future musician was only five years old, his family moved to another Ukrainian city - Kharkov. In this place, our today's hero began to attend a seven-year school, and then, having matured a little, he also began to attend classes at a theater technical school. During this period, Mark Neyman first appeared on the theater stage. At first he performed mainly in semi-amateur productions, but then he managed to get a job as an extra in one of the largest theaters in Kharkov, “Mussoorie”. It was here, replacing sick and retired artists, that the young guy played his first theatrical roles. As noted in a number of sources, it was during this period that our today’s hero began to perform for the first time, appearing on stage under the pseudonym “Bernes”.
In 1929, the seventeen-year-old Ukrainian artist moved to Moscow, where he soon got a job as an extra in several theaters at once. In the early thirties, our today's hero often appeared on the stage of the Moscow Drama Theater, where he played mainly small roles.
Filmography
His film debut took place in 1935. It was an episode in the film “Prisoners”. On the set of the film, Mark met with director Sergei Yutkevich, who was just searching for an actor to play the role of a spy in the film “Miners”.
Artist in his youth
A year later, Yutkevich again directed Mark in his film “Man with a Gun.” In this film, the young artist performed the composition “Clouds over the City of Steel.” After the film was released, Bernes became famous throughout the Union, and the song sung became a folk song.
Films with the actor that the audience loved: “Fighters”, “Big Life”, “Crime and Punishment”.
Glory came at the beginning of the Great Patriotic War. Over 4 years, Bernes starred in 10 films. He starred as pilot Fedenko in “The Last Line”, a commentator in “Valery Chkalov”, General Kozhukhov in “Road to the Stars”, Arkady Dzyubin in “Two Fighters”, Kozyrev in “The Main Land”. The directors liked not only Mark Naumovich's performance, but also his soulful voice. In almost every film he performed a song, and in some more. It often happened that Mark participated in the creation of the film only as a performer, without entering the frame.
Movie. Roles and songs
Bernes' first film appearances awaited him in 1935. This was an episode in the film “Prisoners”. He became part of the film crew through friendship, with the leading actor, Mikhail Astangov. A year later, also with the light hand of Astangov, Bernes met Sergei Yutkevich and played the spy Krasovsky in his film “Miners” and a Red Army soldier in the film “Man with a Gun.”
The actor looked for the image of the Red Army soldier himself - in the halls of the Museum of the Revolution. The boy with the accordion and machine-gun belts criss-crossed at the age of 26 made Bernes famous throughout the country. I remember not only the handsome young man himself, but also his song - “Clouds have risen over the city.” The success was consolidated by the new hit song “A Comrade Flies to a Far Land,” which was sung by pilot Sergei Kozhukharov in the film “Fighters.” Bernes became not only a famous actor, but also a favorite performer. The film attracted 27 million viewers in Soviet cinemas.
“He was the only performer I knew who worked with both a poet and a composer. He did not write poetry or music, but nevertheless he was a highly professional connoisseur of song... Sometimes he came and said: “This place needs to be changed,” and made the subtlest comments on the instrumentation. He perceived and felt very accurately and subtly.”
Eduard Kolmanovsky.
Mark Bernes continued to approach the work on images in all his films very thoughtfully. In the film “Two Fighters,” he could not “become” an Odessa resident, even after mastering a peculiar dialect. Chance helped and an inexperienced hairdresser cut Bernes's hair almost to zero. Director Leonid Lukov liked it, and the role took off.
Mark Bernes. Photo: pravmir.ru
Mark Bernes. Photo: ria.ru
Mark Bernes. Photo: vmiremusiki.ru
Along with Bernes, a new song appeared in the film. The melody of “Dark Night” was played almost impromptu at Lukov’s request by Nikita Bogoslovsky. According to the composer’s recollections, Vladimir Agatov wrote the poems, literally on the fly. Having woken up Bernes, they recorded the song in the studio at night, and the next day it was already heard in the episode “Dugout”. As they later said, the first edition of the records with “Dark Night” was rejected even during recording: the studio employees... shed tears on the matrix with which the records were replicated.
Best films
The actor's filmography includes 35 films, of which Bernes starred in only 6 films. Mark’s most famous works: “Replacement Player”, “Zhenya, Zhenechka and Katyusha”, “Maksimka”.
In the 50-60s. on the silver screen, Bernes portrayed characters with difficult fates: in the film “Far from Moscow” - Umar Magomet, in “The Cold Sea” - Eremey Lukich Okladnikov, in “School of Courage” - Chubuk, in “They Were the First” - Rodionov, in “ Night patrol" - Ogonyok.
Wikipedia refutes the information that Mark Bernes was involved in the film “They're Ringing, Open the Door.”
The best films with Mark Bernes
In total, during his life, the talented actor took part in the filming of thirty-five films. The most famous acting works of Mark Bernes were the films “Maximka”, “Zhenya, Zhenechka and Katyusha”, “Replacement Player”, as well as the above-mentioned films “Two Fighters”, “Fighters” and others. In addition, our today's hero was also known as a dubbing artist. His voice can be heard in many foreign films.
Films about the war brought particular success to Mark Bernes.
As for the musical creativity of Mark Bernes, it was somewhat more extensive. The singer’s repertoire included about a hundred different compositions. Subsequently, many of them were published on dozens of different collections and albums.
Thanks to his brilliant creativity, already in the forties and fifties, our today's hero became the number one star in the Soviet Union. He was loved by ordinary people and representatives of the communist leadership. Therefore, the number of awards Mark Bernes has always been impressive. In particular, the artist’s track record included the Stalin Prize, the Order of the Badge of Honor, the Order of the Red Star, and the title of People’s Artist of the RSFSR. It is known that Mark Bernes should have also been awarded the title of People's Artist of the USSR. However, this decree was never signed due to the death of the musician.
Song repertoire
Bernes became famous as a singer in the late 40s. At first his songs were heard in the Houses of Creative Unions and on the radio. Without ceasing to act, Mark Naumovich devoted more and more time to the stage. Many songwriters dreamed of him performing their compositions. Because the songs that the artist sang quickly became hits, and composers and poets woke up famous.
The performer, having no musical education, made high demands on the texts and musical accompaniment. At the same time, his colleagues recalled that the singer did not know musical notation. There were legends about the intolerable character of the performer among the composers' guild. As a rule, he called them at night or early in the morning and demanded that they rewrite the part of the text they didn’t like, or elements of the melody. After much debate, the creators gave up. After a while, they realized that Mark was right, it was his version that the listener fell in love with.
Latest photos
The heyday of his career in the musical field occurred in the 50-60s. During these years, hits appeared in his repertoire: “Muscovites”, “If only the boys of the whole earth”, “I love you life”.
The song “Enemies Burned Their Home,” performed by Bernes at the Luzhniki stadium in 1960, found a second life. Before him, in 1945, V. Nechaev once sang it, but could not reveal the tragic meaning. Mark Naumovich interpreted the composition in such a way that it became popular.
Subsequently, other songs were released that the whole country sang: “Do the Russians want war,” “I’m in a hurry, excuse me,” “I work as a magician.” The composition “Where the Motherland Begins” was performed in the 4-episode film “Shield and Sword”.
Bernes's repertoire consisted of 82 songs, half of them were written at the request of the performer and under his constant control. Records with his compositions were released in millions of copies and quickly sold out. With the advent of CD players, recordings were transferred to digital format. The album “Unknown Mark Bernes” includes takes of phonograms that have never been published before.
The artist toured extensively throughout his country, and also gave concerts in Bulgaria, Romania, Poland, Czechoslovakia, and Poland.
Films and songs
The cinematic and musical biography of Mark Bernes developed in parallel. He was first seen on the big screen in the propaganda drama Prisoners (1936), where he had a cameo role.
Within a couple of years, Bernes was entrusted with a prominent role in the revolutionary film “Man with a Gun.” In 1939, he played key characters in the dramas The Fighters and Big Life. It is curious that it was in the “Big Life” that the legendary song “Dark Mounds Sleep” was first heard.
The Soviet audience liked the natural charm and sense of humor of Mark Bernes. The actor gained particular popularity during the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945). In 1943, the premiere of the war film “Two Soldiers” took place.
Mark Bernes in the film "Two Fighters"
In this film, Bernes not only played the main role, but also became the performer of the songs “Scows Full of Mullets” and “Dark Night”. These compositions quickly gained all-Union recognition, becoming classics of the Soviet stage.
It is worth noting that Mark did not have any outstanding vocal abilities, but his soulful and heartfelt performance touched the heart of every compatriot of the artist. It is through “Dark Night” that many people today know and remember Bernes.
In the post-war years, the man starred in such iconic films as “Big Life”, “The Third Strike”, “Maksimka”, “Case No. 306”, etc. In 1957, viewers saw Mark in the detective story “Night Patrol”, in which he performed "Song of the Motherland".
In the 60s, the most iconic films with Bernes’s participation were “It Happened at the Police Station” and “Zhenya, Zhenechka and the Katyusha.” It is worth noting that in 1966, for the film story “I Come From Childhood,” songs by Vladimir Vysotsky were used, 2 of which were performed by the author, and all the rest by Mark Naumovich.
Over the years of his creative biography, Bernes starred in more than 40 films, many of which featured compositions performed by him. Moreover, his song repertoire included over 80 works. It is important to note that he was demanding of the quality of texts and music, as a result of which he collaborated with poets and composers for a long time and meticulously.
About half of Mark Bernes' songs were written on his order or with his direct participation. In addition to the compositions already listed, his most famous hits are “Beloved City”, “Front Path”, “I Love You, Life”, “Enemies Burnt My Home”, “Where the Motherland Begins”, etc.
And yet, in Bernes’s creative biography, not everything always went smoothly. In the spring of 1958, he took part in a concert attended by Nikita Khrushchev and his son-in-law Alexei Adzhubey. Mark had to perform only 2 songs, as required by the established regulations.
However, the audience did not want to let the artist go so quickly, so they demanded that the performance continue. Bernes did not act without permission and did not go on stage again. Adzhubey interpreted this behavior as saying that Mark simply “got starstruck,” as he told Khrushchev.
As a result, the Soviet leader gave the go-ahead, and soon persecution began against Bernes. This led to the fact that he was constantly reproached in the press for certain flaws, and radio and television companies refused to cooperate with him. At the same time, a dark streak began in the singer’s personal biography.
His wife died of cancer, leaving Mark with a little daughter in his arms. He suffered a heart attack from everything that happened. Only in 1960 did a “thaw” come, as a result of which his songs began to be broadcast on the radio again.
A year later, director Pavel Armand took a risk by inviting Mark Bernes to star in his film “The Devil's Dozen.” After this, the artist repeatedly went on major tours not only throughout the USSR, but also abroad, where he also received a warm welcome.
Personal life of the actor
The artist’s first wife, Paola (Polina) Semyonovna Linetskaya, worked at the Korsha Theater. When the young people met, she was married to an engineer. The woman chose Mark Naumovich, and in 1932 the couple registered a relationship. In 1954, a daughter, Natasha, was born into this marriage. She subsequently graduated from the Institute of Oriental Languages and now lives in the USA.
The artist with his daughter Natasha
Polina died 2 years after the birth of the girl from cancer. For Bernes this was a strong blow. He loved his wife very much, but during the 2 months that she was ill, he never visited her. Before this, Mark’s sister and father died of cancer in Mark’s family; the artist feared that he, too, might contract the contagious disease. He told the housekeeper to divide the house into 2 parts and divided things up. No one could convince Bernes that oncology is not transmitted by airborne droplets.
Mark saw his second wife, Lilia Bodrova, on September 1, 1960. At their first meeting, he decided that he would take her away from her husband. They brought the children to 1st grade: Bernes’s daughter Natalia, the woman’s son Jean. The children quickly became friends, which subsequently brought their parents closer.
He was happy with Liliya Bodrova
Artist with children
Just 2 months later, Lilia, who was 17 years younger than the artist, took her son and left her husband, a famous photojournalist for the Pari-Match publication, for Mark. She was tired of his constant affairs on the side. Since then they have not parted. Bodrova hosted the singer's concerts. Bernes adopted Jean. After graduating from school, he entered the camera department of VGIK, and now lives in Moscow.
Childhood and youth
Menachem-Man Neukhovich Neumann was born on September 25 (October 8, new style) 1911 in the city of Nezhin , Chernigov province of the Russian Empire, into a Jewish family.
The boy's father, Neukh (Naum) Shmuelevich Neiman , served in an artel that collected waste materials. Mother, Fruma-Makhlya (Fanya) Lipovna Vishnevskaya , was a housewife.
Mark Bernes in childhood
When the boy was 5 years old, the family moved to Kharkov . Mark went to school there. After graduating from 7th grade, the teenager entered the Kharkov Theater College . In his free time, he worked part-time by putting up theater posters, and then got a job as an extra at the Mussoorie Theater.
One day an actor from the troupe fell ill, and Mark was entrusted with replacing him. The director of the production, Nikolai Nikolaevich Sinelnikov, was pleased with the work of the young artist. At the same time, the pseudonym “Bernes” .
At the age of 17, the young man left for Moscow to continue his theatrical career.
In the film "Miners" (1937)
Cause of death
In the summer of 1969, after a concert, the singer became ill and lost consciousness backstage. The doctors who came to the call suggested that the artist had infectious radiculitis. But after a more thorough examination, a disappointing diagnosis was announced - inoperable lung root cancer.
Knowing about the doctors’ conclusion, on July 8 Bernes recorded the song “Cranes” from the first take. He died on August 16, 1969. The artist was buried in Moscow at the Novodevichy cemetery. During the funeral procession, instead of a funeral march, songs were performed by a singer. This was his last wish.
Monument at the grave of the great artist
Due to his premature death, he was never given the title of People's Artist of the USSR. Fans already considered Mark Naumovich a people's hero.
After her father's death, Natalya stopped all communication with Lilia. The widow's own son also quarreled with his mother over the apartment. Bodrova set up a museum in it, which Jean really didn’t like. A scandal broke out between them.
When Liliya Mikhailovna died in 2006, it turned out that shortly before that she had sold the apartment to Dmitry Pashkov for 1 million 723 thousand rubles. The woman wanted him to brighten up her loneliness and take care of her.
Having learned about this, the children came together. A trial followed, which dragged on for a year, but the apartment was returned to Jean and Natasha. According to Bodrova’s will, the interior decoration and archives of her grandfather were transferred to her granddaughter Lyudmila.
Death
Life seemed to be getting better. Bernes was full of creative plans. But one day after a concert he suddenly felt ill. Backstage, the artist lost consciousness. At the hospital he was diagnosed with lung cancer.
Shortly before his death, Mark Bernes recorded one of his best songs, “Cranes.” The history of its appearance deserves special attention. Rasul Gamzatov wrote this song, dedicating it to the proud horsemen who, after death, turn into birds. But Mark Naumovich convinced him to change the poems. This is how a lament song about the soldiers who died at the fronts appeared.
Mark Bernes
Mark Naumovich Bernes died on August 16, 1969. At the artist’s funeral, at his last request, there were no speeches or funeral marches. He performed the funeral service for himself. At the funeral service, as the artist requested, four of his favorite songs were performed: “I love you, life,” “For three years I dreamed of you,” “Romance Roshchina” and “Cranes.”
The artist was buried at the Novodevichy cemetery, without having time to confer the title of People's Artist of the USSR. Although for millions of fans it has long been popular.
Mark Bernes's grave
Bernes' death was a terrible blow for his wife. When Mark Naumovich died, Liliya was left alone with two 16-year-old teenagers. There was no talk about any personal life. And even when the children grew up and started their own families, the woman remained alone.
Natalya remained in America and did not communicate with Lilia. In October 1997, Jean began to sue his mother over Mark Naumovich’s apartment. By this time, Bernes's widow had organized a museum in the premises, which Jean did not like at all. But Lilia was not satisfied with the way her son lived - he changed wives one after another. After this scandal, mother and son stopped communicating.
Monument to Mark Bernes
Liliya Bodrova died in August 2006. It turned out that shortly before her death, the woman sold a two-room apartment in the center of Moscow to a certain Dmitry Pashkov for 1 million 723 thousand rubles. Liliya Mikhailovna did this with the goal that the man would look after her and brighten up her loneliness.
True, soon after her death both Natalya and Jean showed up. They filed a lawsuit to be recognized as the legal heirs of the property. The litigation lasted a year, the lawyers managed to prove that the transaction was made fraudulently. And the court retained the heirs’ rights to living space. Liliya Bodrova bequeathed all the furniture and archives of Mark Naumovich to her granddaughter Lyudmila.
Memory of the actor
The following facts indicate that Mark Naumovich is remembered and loved:
- in 1978, a small planet was named after him - 3038 Bernes;
- a memorial plaque was installed on the house in which the artist lived in recent years in 1996;
- on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the singer’s birth in 2011, an updated memorial plaque appeared on the house in which Bernes was born;
- in 2011, a bronze monument to the artist was unveiled. But it stood in Theater Square for a short time; in 2021, the monument was stolen. A day later the monument was found, but in pieces;
- in 2015 in Kharkov, by decision of the city council, Shchorsa Street was renamed in honor of Bernes.
One of the streets of Kramatorsk is named after Mark Naumovich.
