Late love of Marshal Tolbukhin and... Faina Ranevskaya

And it all started as the old joke. Remember: the restaurant falls out drunk, and he saw a man in a Golden cap, and trousers with stripes shouts: — Doorman! Taxi! He replies: — I'm not a doorman. I am Admiral. Admiral?! Then boat to the entrance!

Faina Ranevskaya in 1947, was in Tbilisi. Went with the group to a restaurant for dinner, but undercooked salmon she didn't like it and she left. When I got to her gallantly held the door open for the man in the Golden cap, and trousers with stripes.

— Oh, thank you! Here are the doors that without the help of a doorman I'm always afraid to be sandwiched between the wings.

But I'm sorry, no doorman, sounded slightly offended voice.

Maria looked up. Before her stood a tall, almost military.

Oh, my God! Comrade General, please forgive!

— I'm not a General. again, the offended child's voice answered the military — I'm a Marshal.

Lars looked at him. She haven't seen that such a large, strong, confident men who could so offended. Almost like children.

Must be Tolbukhin was touched by the sincerity of the actress, because immediately suggested:

— I have a car. I can take you. Where you going?

— Why, thank you very much. But after all the flavors of the restaurant, I just need some fresh air outside Tbilisi. Or in my hair will always remain the smell of fried fish.

Twilight had thickened, in the dim light of the lantern Tolbukhin once stared at Ranevskaya and with some timidity said:

Probably her favourite military will remember the movie "the foundling" and rather hateful to her, the phrase "mula not nervous about me." This fame has got the order and a great actress. Normally could not walk down the street. The adults smiled after her and the children ran after her, shouting:

Once she turned to him and unable to withstand the penetrating said:

Is this a huge military now say about the Mul. But he was suddenly embarrassed, just like the boy. Ranevskaya could not see his guilty smile. As if admitting something bad, unseemly for a man of his rank and titles, he shyly replied:

How? — Faina Ranevskaya stopped. — You like my stepmom?

You're referring to?

— You remember my name?

— Professional.

They stood against each other. This short dialogue was for them is akin to the most sincere confession. The tale is an incredible way suddenly brought together people from bared their feelings to the same extent, when all sorts of questions in relation to each other almost disappear.

— May I walk with you? timidly spoke Tolbukhin.

— With pleasure! — answered Maria. — With the Marshal, who loves fairy tales, I'm ready to stay out all night.

Before her was a man, a warrior, under whose command were hundreds of thousands of soldiers. He ordered them, he sent them into battle, made hundreds of thousands of lives. With all this surprisingly soft, almost timid man. She felt a little romantic child sits down in a race Marshal. Faina was just happy that we were able to see him that to her he was a child, was opened.

They began to meet.

Their meeting was not blinded by some extraordinary passion. It was more like a romantic meeting of two very young, inexperienced students, where each valued inner world of another, he kept him protected from the harsh realities of the environment. Tried to stay together. Avoiding crowded places, where both would be in sight. And not because he was afraid of some of the rumors and gossip.

It was good together. They frequently walked the quiet evening streets. During the day, when possible, Tolbukhin took Ranevskaya in the mountains. There, by a quick cold rivers, they arranged a little picnic, drank red wine and talked on different themes. Not to say that Tolbukhin was for him the ideal man. But it was perhaps her only friend, she never told in a playful, humorous, ironic tone.

About any man she could find in his character a certain line for its mild or very spicy twist. But Tolbukhin Faina always spoke with the greatest respect and incredibly maternal tenderness. Who knows, maybe her Tolbukhin was both a man and a son.

In August Ranevskaya was his birthday. Was 1947. Much later, when it will take almost two decades after that day, Faina Ranevskaya in conversation with his girlfriend admits:

Nothing more about this day Faina Ranevskaya is not told. They told us that she was having fun. Talking about the gift that she made Fyodor Tolbukhin. Marshal last of the war conquered and freed six countries (more than some of the other Soviet generals) could showered his beloved gold, furs, jewels, trophy clothes...

It took another two years. All this time they met very often. Tolbukhin as commander of the Transcaucasian military district and often visited Moscow on business, and then it was evening, filled with tenderness and sincere respect each other. Several times Faina Ranevskaya arrived in Tbilisi. They could not be separated.

In 1949, the Marshal of the Soviet Union Fyodor Tolbukhin died. There is a conspiracy theory that insidious Beria on the orders of Stalin poisoned the General. I won't write odes to Stalin, I note that though he was a cruel tyrant, but an idiot clearly were not. Lose the eve of the cold war, one of the best marshals and diplomats... It was he had.

Just Fyodor Tolbukhin despite the apparent health was a very sick man. Few people know that the war he went with diabetes mellitus under insulin injections are on the order of Stalin, he was shipped from America. For a diabetic group I, to pass the war is already a great feat. How many nerves how much health he lost, no one knows.

Fedor Ivanovich Tolbukhin

A cruel destiny Ranevskaya adopted in silence. She helped pass the funeral. Anyone heard a quiet, mournful to the veiled woman, the great Faina Ranevskaya. It will be decades and Alexey Shcheglov, grandson best friends Ranevskaya Paul Wolfe, wrote a book of memoirs about his family.

And there will be a couple of lines about the bottom when quiet and somehow tarnished Faina gave him the enviable gift: clockwork toy car... the one That she once gave her favorite Fedenka Tolbukhin.

She died in 1984. The only being brightened up in old age, her loneliness, had a dog named Boy chosen by her on the street mongrel.

Sometimes, you know, to sit at the window,

And looking, looking, looking into the sky blue:

They say that when you die, I'll meet him there,

And again, then he calls me by name!

What, in essence, funny, the life went out,

Although, what could be prettier

Than to sit on a cloud and legs dangling down,

Each other to call by name!