Actor Ivan Pereverzev in the film “The Crown of the Russian Empire, or the Elusive One Again.”
For my grandfather’s generation, he was a star. Ivan Pereverzev, the star of the film “The First Glove” (1947). Tall, impressive, persistent. When this film came out, there was no one who did not sing the song:
“Be quiet if you want to be healthy! Try to forget about doctors. Douse yourself with cold water if you want to be healthy! The sun, the air and the water are most beneficial to us, they always help us against illnesses. Of all illnesses, the sun, the air and the water are most useful to us!…”
There, of course, as in all sports films, the plot is quite predictable: two communities compete, “Meteor” and “Motor”. Both need a guy who appeared out of nowhere, a retired military man with excellent fighting skills. Moreover, the guy is in love. Soon there will be a big fight with the Moscow boxing champion, but then all sorts of troubles and foul play against the hero will begin.
The wife went to Todorovsky.
It is interesting that Ivan Pereverzev met his beloved, actress Nadezhda Cherednichenko, on the set of “The First Glove”. At first she did not like him. I came to the first shooting in a drunken state, but then I courted him so actively that I had no strength to resist.
Everything in the film was authentic: both love and boxing. Before the film, Pereverzev had never boxed, but for the sake of the film he trained in the ring every day. And sometimes they really beat him. And the partner at the end of the film was also a real boxer. And Pereverzev’s love, Nadezhda Cherednichenko, at that time a 19-year-old student at VGIK, married the actor and gave birth to his son. But this marriage did not last long: his wife fell in love with Pyotr Todorovsky. Then he was just a cameraman, but Nadezhda and her son moved on to another life. Another life without Pereverzev did not go well and Nadezhda returned. Moreover, he snatched away the beautiful Alla Larionova, who was already pregnant, from her ex-husband. And then Larionova went to Nikolai Rybnikov, and Nadezhda again disappeared from the actor’s overly drunken life.
The General Secretary ordered Pereverzev not to touch
There are many stories about him. For example, how the two-meter-tall Ivan met the musician and actor Paul Robeson on a plane in Crimea. Paul Robeson flew to Nikita Khrushchev. Khrushchev was on vacation in Livadia, it was 1958. But at the reception, Paul Robeson did not let go of Ivan Pereverzev. Khrushchev even sent specially trained employees to be able to communicate, but this was not possible. There are two versions: one is very peaceful, and persuasion is just around the corner. And there is another: as if Khrushchev had arrived himself, and Pereverzev said: “Nikita, you should leave.” The second version is voiced, for example, by the actor’s grandson, Sergei Pereverzev. But, nevertheless, there was still a sea of witnesses of how the General Secretary was unexpectedly sent somewhere and then said: “Don’t touch Pereverzev.” Ivan Pereverzev himself was a peasant son from the village of Kuzminki in the Oryol region. He got into the world of theatre for company: a friend called a mechanic from the factory; And Pereverzev was generally willing to work at the Sharikopodshipnik plant. I dreamed of being a sailor, but it didn’t work out. And then, as often happens in these stories, he was accepted into drama school, but his friend was not. Theatres began to appear, and a film career began. He even went to sea. At the beginning of the war, Ivan Pereverzev ended up in Odessa. The Sea Hawk (1942) was filmed. All the actors in the film asked to go to the front, but they were left in the city to finish the film. Ivan Fedorovich thoroughly studied the naval orders. And after the war, a new star role would appear in his life – Admiral Ushakov in Mikhail Romm’s dilogy “Admiral Ushakov” (1953). It was not very well known what Ushakov looked like. The famous anthropologist Gerasimov in Soviet times tried to recreate the appearance from the remains. And the most famous portrait was painted a century after the admiral’s death, so there was no sensible support. And the sculpture was still made later, inspired only by Pereverzev’s appearance and Gerasimov’s version. They say that once, on the set of Stanislav Govorukhin’s film “Angel’s Day” (1968), Pereverzev stood by the monument to the admiral in Kherson, and he had the feeling that everyone around him saw two Ushakovs or two Pereverzevs. It was hard work. Mikhail Romm immediately said that Pereverzev should be an admiral not only in the frame. He had to be the admiral of the entire team at all times. Then Pereverzev introduced an interesting rule – the admiral’s hundred grams. In his opinion, no one will be able to sniff out how much he drank. However, he was not so frivolous. Pereverzev read everything he could find about Ushakov. And he said he was not ashamed of that role. Favorite role. A beautiful color film about the winner: yes, the awards, the love of the public, the sea.
He defeated the real captain.
He played many roles, sometimes five in one year. There were main ones and there were uncredited ones. Even in “The Elusive Avengers” (1967) Pereverzev is there. He also played Assol’s father in Scarlet Sails. But his time, the giant from “The First Glove”, was running out. His last love was also connected with cinema, namely with the filming of the film “Angel’s Day” (1968). Olga Solovyova was an assistant to the casting director, but she turned out to be a bride. It was 1967, the filming took place between Batumi and Odessa, on a ship. Olga had a fiancé, a real ship captain. And Pereverzev played only the role of the captain. 26 years old versus 53. And the Polish perfume “Maybe”, which is so actively advertised today. There was a wedding. A son was born. Ivan Pereverzev stopped drinking and smoking. He devoted himself to his family, but died at the age of 63.
Best Butler Briggs
I started the story with my grandfather’s favorite film, “The First Glove.” And my favorite film is A Very English Murder (1974). The role of a butler who is not a murderer – sorry for the spoiler, but the film is old. Butler Briggs. Irreproachable. I’m not sure Anthony Hopkins was better as a butler. Pereverzev existed so much in the picture that one could believe that there were lords and ladies around him. Although they were not up to par. They somehow moved nervously, walking around the mansion as if they were on the stage of a theater. They did not live, they portrayed foreign life, as they said in the “Pokrovsky Gates.” But Briggs was real. The film was released in 1974, so he is now 50 years old. At that time Ivan Pereverzev was almost deaf. But he acted impeccably. And his friend from the Maly Theater, actor Evgeny Vesnik, gave him a voice. 62 years old. Children and grandchildren are scattered all over the world. Today there is silence.
