Semyon Teodorovich Altov is a popular Russian satirist, director, screenwriter, laureate of the Festival of satire and humor "Golden Ostap". Based on his works, performances were staged at the Theater of Satire. He publishes a humor magazine and writes books.
Semyon Altov was not going to become a writer. Having received his first fee after the publication of the aphorisms in the newspaper, Altov decided to continue his creative career more due to financial considerations. Fame came to him at the age of 26 thanks to his demeanor on stage and a memorable low voice. Today, not only he himself, but also many famous comedians read stories and monologues written by him from the stage.
Childhood
The biography of Semyon Altov began in Sverdlovsk, in 1945, on January 17. His family was evacuated to the Urals and moved to Leningrad almost immediately after the end of the war. The boy was not yet a year old. His father taught at the shipbuilding institute, and his mother is an architect by profession, devoted herself all her life to children, raising them.
In Leningrad, the family lived in a huge communal apartment with a large number of rooms, two toilets, a long corridor and a shared kitchen. There was nothing surprising in this, because many families in Leningrad lived this way in the post-war years, and not everyone got a separate apartment.
As a child, Semyon did not show creative abilities, he went in for sports and studied in a regular school. When the boy was 8 years old, his parents presented him with the "Young Chemist" set. No one even thought that an exciting game would help Semyon choose his future profession.
In the summer, the children went to a rented dacha in the village of Lisiy Nos near Leningrad. A large number of summer residents with children gathered there, and the guys always spent time together. Altov recalls that in the evenings they gathered in one small room, where Aunt Lisa told them terrible tales and retells the books of Edgar Poe, after which they could not sleep for a long time and were afraid of every rustle.
After graduating first from school and then from college, Semyon enters the Technological Institute and receives a diploma in chemistry-technologist. After graduating from high school, he goes to work in his specialty, but his childhood hobby for chemistry, which later turned into a profession, did not become the work of his whole life.
The creative path of the writer
While studying at the institute, Semyon began to write aphorisms and short stories.
In 1971, several of his aphorisms were published in Literaturnaya Gazeta, for which the author received a fee, a very large one at that time - 36 rubles. This finally confirmed him in the idea of continuing to write and publish his works.
After some time, Altov performed for the first time on the stage of the theater, where the Lenconcert commission selected young performers. It happened because one of the artists fell ill and urgently needed someone to replace him. Altova was found in the dressing room of someone's suit several sizes larger than necessary and persuaded to go on stage. The commission liked his performance very much, especially his posture when he was forced to hold his falling pants with one hand all the time. So Altov gets to work at Lenconcert. From that moment on, Semyon Teodorovich became a professional satirist, performing on stage, and his work began to delight the audience throughout the country.
Together with Gennady Khazanov, already a well-known pop performer at that time, Semyon begins touring the country as the author of his works. The famous satirist gives the young author the opportunity to perform at his concerts with his stories, thanks to which Altov is becoming an increasingly recognizable and popular comedian.
In the mid-1980s, having gathered around himself satirical writers, Altov created a pop program, with which they began to tour. Together with Altov in "Show-01" there are: Yan Arlazorov, Leonid Yakubovich, Vyacheslav Polunin with the theater "Litsedei" and many other well-known artists, writers and comedians. The pop show was a great success with the audience thanks to sparkling and topical jokes.
In the mid-1990s, the TV series "Knees" was released, the script for which was written by Altov. Famous and beloved actors are invited to the main roles: Semyon Furman, Viktor Sukhorukov and many others.
The famous Arkady Isaakovich Raikin played in the play "Peace to thy house" staged at the Variety Theater according to a script written by Altov. They happened to meet and make friends when Raikin was already at a very old age. Arkady Isaakovich at first completely criticized the script and said that he would never have success. But the premiere took place and literally made a splash, and after the show, Raikin said that it was one of his most successful roles on stage. Until now, Altov fondly recalls these meetings and joint work, and thanks the fate that brought him together with the great actor.
Semyon Teodorovich wrote and published several books, which immediately went into quotations. It works fruitfully today. He writes stories not only for his performances, but also for many famous comedians who starred on television and tour Russia. The performances of Altov himself gather full houses and are held with invariable success. One of his author's programs - "100 reasons to laugh" - is still sold out. He tries not to touch on political topics, and his works are a story about relationships between people, about friendship, love, kindness and about human friends - animals. The writer says that humor helps people in difficult life situations and allows them to look at life with optimism.
Family and personal life of the writer
The satirist's wife is Larisa Vasilievna Altova. Altov speaks of his acquaintance with her as a curious and a bit funny situation.
The writer managed to get to know his future wife three times, and each time it was like the first time because of his terrible forgetfulness. First, he saw Larisa in one of the Leningrad Palaces of Culture and immediately drew attention to her. Altov invited her to a concert, from which the girl very quickly left. Less than a year later, he saw her at the institute, where he studied at that moment, and was again struck by the beauty of the girl. She sat at the piano and played. Semyon immediately invited Larisa to the concert, but she did not come. Another year passed, and in one of the companies they met again. Altov once again tried to invite her to a concert, and then it turned out that this was their third acquaintance. After this meeting, the young people decided that it was love and destiny, and got married.
The husband and wife have been living together for many years and are very happy. The couple had a child - a son, Pavel. The father really wanted his son to become a writer too and from an early age made him sit down to write stories. The boy diligently wrote fairy tales, but in the end he never turned into a writer. Now Pavel is a producer and is engaged in his father's concert activities. He has a family and three wonderful children.
