Leonid Kulikov Children's Soviet poet Date of Birth: 07.08.1924

1. <h2>Early Life and Childhood</h2>
2. <h2>Illness and Immobility</h2>
3. <h2>Evacuation and Poetry</h2>
4. <h2>Literary Career and Success</h2>
5. <h2>Life in Kurgan</h2>
6. <h2>Legacy</h2>

<h2>Early Life and Childhood</h2>

Leonid Ivanovich Kulikov was born on August 7, 1924, in Ivanovo-Voznesensk (now Ivanovo), Russia. His mother, Antonina Semyonovna, was a history teacher, and his father, Ivan Karpovich, was a legal advisor. His maternal grandfather, Semyon Aleksandrovich Voronin, had been a workers' deputy in the Third State Duma during the Tsarist period. In 1931, the Kulikov family relocated to Gatchina.

<h2>Illness and Immobility</h2>

On February 16, 1940, 16-year-old Leonid fell ill with a high fever and joint pain. He spent six months in a Leningrad hospital and remained bedridden thereafter, with only his hands being mobile.

<h2>Evacuation and Poetry</h2>

In October 1941, the Kulikovs were evacuated to Siberia. However, during their journey to Novosibirsk, Leonid's condition worsened, and his family was disembarked at Shumikha station in the Kurgan region. By chance, the Kulikovs settled in the village of Polovinoe, where they resided until the early 1960s. While bedridden in Polovinoe, Leonid began writing poetry for children. His first works, "Na pustyre" and "Pro kota," were published in "Pionerskaya Pravda" in 1946, when he was 22 years old.

<h2>Literary Career and Success</h2>

Leonid Kulikov found his calling as a poet for children. From 1951 to 1970, he published 11 books with a total circulation of 1,920,000 copies. The All-Union firm "Melodiya" released several records of his poems and fairy tales.

<h2>Life in Kurgan</h2>

In 1961, Kulikov and his mother moved to the city of Kurgan, where they lived until his passing. Throughout his years in Kurgan, the Kulikov family maintained close ties with local school students. They accompanied the poet to theaters and cinemas, and commissioned him to write poems on specific topics.

<h2>Legacy</h2>

Leonid Kulikov passed away on September 7, 1980. In 1982, a library named after him was opened in Kurgan.