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Ludmila AlfimovaHonored Artist of the USSR
Date of Birth: 04.09.1935
Country:  Ukraine |
Content:
Biography of Lyudmila Alfimova
Lyudmila Ivanovna Alfimova, a Merited Artist of the USSR, jokingly claims that she was a man in her past life. In her early youth, the actress dreamed of a career as a pilot, and in her mature years, she confidently handled cars, motorcycles, and tractors. She was born on September 4, 1935, in Kharkiv, just a year before it lost its status as the capital of the Ukrainian SSR. Her maiden name was Kadygrob. Her father was a worker, and her mother was a nurse. From an early age, Lyudmila stood out for her attractive appearance, singing, and dancing abilities. However, her dream was not the theatrical stage but the sky. In her senior years of school, Lyuda trained at the Kharkiv Aero Club, where she flew a Yak-40 aircraft and performed aerobatic maneuvers. However, to fly a jet aircraft, she needed to graduate from a flight school that did not accept female students. Felix Alfimov, a graduate of the Borisoglebsk Aviation School whom Lyudmila met at the airfield, suggested that she apply to the theater institute, as actresses could embody not only princesses and revolutionaries but also female pilots. In the Kharkiv forge of acting talent, her teachers were Les Serdyuk, Mikhail Pokotylo, and Boris Stavitsky. After graduating from the university, Lyudmila, who had married and changed her surname to Alfimova, joined the Kiev Young Spectator Theater (her husband, Felix, was studying at the Civil Aviation Institute in the capital of the Ukrainian SSR). In 1963, she officially became a member of the Alexander Dovzhenko Film Studio.
Movies
Lyudmila made her film debut as Mariyka in the film adaptation of Ivan Senchenko's novel, "His Generation." In the musical comedy "Young Years," she was credited as N. Anfilova. In the drama "Kyivlianochka," Lyudmila acted alongside the Soviet film legends Boris Chirkov, Ivan Pereverzev, and Margarita Krinitsyna, with whom she would later star in her most memorable films. Her father, Pavel Grubnik, also appeared in the film about the life of a Kiev family over 40 years, but Lyudmila's role was so small that she was not even mentioned in the credits. In the film adaptation of Mikhail Staritsky's play, "Chasing Two Hares," Krinitsyna played the main female role of Pronya Prokopovna, while Alfimova created a memorable image of Mironya, the aunt's friend. In the film "Wedding in Malinovka," which entered the golden collection of Soviet cinema, the roles of the actresses were reversed: Lyudmila Ivanovna transformed into Sofia, the wife of the main character Nazar Duma, while Margarita Vasilyevna played an episodic character, the gangster Ryuzhaya. The actresses also starred together in the comedy "Among High Loaves" and the film "Yurka's Dawns." During the filming of the disaster film "Storm Warning," Alfimova crossed paths with the young actor Igor Taradaikin, who would later become known as a dubbing master. It is worth noting that Lyudmila Ivanovna made a significant contribution to voice acting. Thanks to her, more than a hundred heroines in Ukrainian-speaking films came to life.
Personal Life
Lyudmila Ivanovna had two children with her first husband, Felix Mikhailovich, who worked at the Kiev Design Bureau after an unsuccessful ejection and graduation from the Academy. Her daughters, Elizaveta and Elena (nicknamed Alenka at home), were born eight years apart. The eldest daughter, Elizaveta, followed in her mother's footsteps and became an actress. The younger daughter inherited her grandmother's medical profession and currently lives and works in the United States with her husband. A turning point in Lyudmila Ivanovna's personal life occurred in 1973 when she met the chairman of the collective farm, Ivan Sergeyevich Kalnitsky, during the filming of the comedy "Goodbye, Pharaohs." Ivan had been in love with Alfimova since the time of "Wedding in Malinovka" and had never let go of her photo. Realizing that the feelings between her and Ivan were mutual, the actress ended her marriage with her first husband. However, it took 20 years from their first meeting for their relationship to be legalized. Ivan was married and harbored feelings of respect and gratitude towards his wife. Ivan's wife, who was 25 years older than Alfimova, had saved a young wounded partisan named Ivan during the war and not only healed his wounds but also cured him of tuberculosis. Lyudmila Ivanovna's lover took care of his elderly wife, and only in 1993, after her death and a year of mourning, did he marry the actress. Their marriage lasted 13 years, and they traveled to the United States twice to visit Lyudmila Ivanovna's younger daughter. Ivan Sergeyevich passed away in 2006. In 2013, Alfimova presented the documentary film "How Cinema Came to the Village" in Vinnitsa, which told the story of her acquaintance and love with Ivan Kalnitsky. In the same year, she put up for sale a mansion belonging to Count Pototsky, where she had lived after her second marriage. The property, with a total area of 200 square meters and a fruit garden of 70 acres, was located in the village of Pechera in the Tulchyn district of the Vinnitsa region. However, Alfimova chose to continue living in the village, which holds so many memories for her. Interestingly, the main character in the film "The Return," in which the actress starred in 1987 as Tatyana Aleksandrovna, made the same decision. In an interview, Lyudmila Ivanovna mentioned that her greatest pleasure is fast driving in a Mercedes car.
Lyudmila Alfimova Today
In 2018, the creator of the character Sophia in "Wedding in Malinovka" participated in a homemade borscht festival and shared the secret recipe: beets should be baked in an oven. On her 85th birthday, September 4, 2020, Sergei Borzov, the head of the Vinnytsia Regional State Administration, while observing COVID-19 safety measures, presented Lyudmila Ivanovna with the Order of Princess Olga, III class.
