The Glory and Tragedy of "Mushroom" from "Streets of Broken Lanterns"

Yuri Kuznetsov is a second-tier genius. In his colossal filmography, he mainly has supporting roles, or even tiny episodes. For many, for example, he will forever remain primarily the janitor from "Heart of a Dog," who, for the sake of self-education, decided to read the entire Brockhaus and Efron dictionary in order and broke down on the fifth volume: "I remember one thing: Madrian. What, I wonder, is Madrian? There is no Madrian there. On the left side, there are two Braneckys. One is Mr. Adrian, the other is Marian. And I have Madrian!" A twenty-second episode, but one of the most astonishing in this amazing film. However, for a much larger number of people, Kuznetsov is primarily the "graveyard" German Hofmann from Balabanov's "Brother." Or Major Zhukov from the criminal investigation department of the city of Nardym in the Soviet series "Confrontation" based on Yulian Semyonov's work. But, of course, the whole country perceives him primarily as Lieutenant Colonel of Militia Yuri Alexandrovich Petrenko, nicknamed "Mushroom," the hero of the colossal series "Streets of Broken Lanterns." **Born in Khakassia** Yuri Kuznetsov was born in the capital of Khakassia, the city of Abakan, in a very simple family: his father was a policeman (oh, it’s no coincidence that later in cinema there were so many "cops"!), and his mother was a housewife. He recounted that he joined the drama club at school not so much out of a passionate calling of the heart, but because he really wanted to impress the girls (and also because he was struggling with grades in the natural sciences: this way he could tell teachers, "Have mercy, give me at least a three, I will be an actor anyway!") But he quickly got into it, and after school, he went to apply to become an actor in Vladivostok (he didn't even think about Moscow - it seemed there was no chance). After Vladivostok, he worked for many years in the Khabarovsk Drama Theater, then in Omsk... He thought of nothing else, but at some point, he was called to Leningrad - to audition for the lead role in Alexei German's film "My Friend Ivan Lapshin." The artistic council liked him very much, he was almost approved, but German insisted and announced that he would cast another contender - Andrei Boltnev. And Kuznetsov was offered a supporting role - the head of the district police department. And he filmed it. This was his first role (the work on what is now a classic film took place in the early 80s, but due to censorship issues, it was released later). Then Yuri Alexandrovich got into "Torpedo Bombers," filmed based on the script by the same German and his wife Svetlana Karmalita. Then - in the TV detective "Charlotte's Necklace," which the whole country watched at the end of 1984 (in the role of the main villain, a recidivist criminal, he gained fame). And it took off: only until the end of the decade - two dozen film roles, and far from being in the last films. At the same time, he persistently worked in the theater (already in Leningrad, at the Comedy Theater named after Akimov). He continued to act in the 90s literally without a break, even though this never brought him any big money. It was brought, contrary to expectations, by Mushroom, along with Casanova, Dukalis, and Larin, who enchanted all of Russia at the end of the 20th century. "Streets of Broken Lanterns" Out of 501 episodes of "Streets," he appeared in 135. After that, there were another 73 episodes of "Operatives." This does not include countless shoots in... it seems, everything: the number of films and series in his resume is literally uncountable: 500? 600? Kuznetsov was called everywhere, understanding that his face, practically familiar to millions of viewers, would enhance anything. Not to mention that he is indeed an amazing actor (this is something that was often overlooked). The tragedy happened to him in 2012 when his beloved wife Irina passed away. He endured this with great difficulty, managing to pull through thanks to his daughter and mother. And he continued to act. Again - everywhere. From "Yolki" to the series "Epidemic," from "The Stronghold" based on Prilepin to the historical action film "The Duelist," from the excellent (but little-seen) phantasmagoria "Captain Volkonogov Escaped" to the hit "The Disobedient." Appearing sometimes in minute episodes, but always delighting and leaving a mark.