You can’t envy the actor’s fate.
The role of Nestor Petrovich in the film “Big Change” in 1973 made Mikhail Kononov an absolute star. But the actor initially refused the hero. When he read the script, he openly stated that he did not like the plot.
Nevertheless, it was the character of the teacher at the evening school that ensured the artist’s popularity in the USSR. Thanks to this, his filmography was replenished with 60 projects. However, in the 1990s, his active career came to an end.
Kononov criticized the new Russian cinema and refused offers to star in numerous TV series. In addition, the actor became a hostage to his own comical appearance: he was not even considered for serious roles.
Lack of demand in the profession soon turned into poverty. Kononov was unable to survive on his pension. He exchanged his apartment in the capital for a small house in a remote village. The actor made his living by selling vegetables from his garden.
At the same time, the star of “Big Change” became addicted to alcohol. He published a book of memoirs, but did not find a publishing house willing to publish it. In 2007, 67-year-old screen Nestor Petrovich died of thromboembolism. By that time, he was already suffering from heart failure, the consequences of a heart attack and pneumonia.
