He was described as a pleasant official in all respects, charming and secular, with a fair amount of he althy cynicism. Mikhail Shvydkoy, probably, fully corresponds to his surname, which, when translated from Ukrainian, means "nimble" and "fast". Many note his ability to find a common language with people of various beliefs, he is his own everywhere both among "patriots" and among "liberals".
Early years
Mikhail Efimovich Shvydkoy was born on September 5, 1948 in the small Kyrgyz town of Kant. His father, a veteran of the Great Patriotic War and a regular military man, was sent there to serve. Mom came by distribution, after graduating from a medical institute. When he was 5 years old, his parents divorced. His stepfather is a musician (played the trombone), as is his brother, who plays the trumpet at the Bolshoi Theatre.
Mikhail's upbringing was mainly done by his grandmother, although he himself says that his stepfather is wonderful. They livednot rich, little Mikhail always wore the same shapeless sweatshirt. His classmate, popular actor Igor Kostolevsky, recalls that Mikhail had a phenomenal memory. He could read a page of text and immediately recite it by heart.
In the Moscow school where he studied, he had no equal in physics and mathematics. Performance in other subjects was also excellent. Together with a friend, they organized a jazz band, the only real instrument in which was the piano, on which Mikhail Shvydkoy played well. He was probably too emotional to choose natural sciences, so after school he applied to the State Institute of Theater Arts.
Workdays
After graduating from the institute with a degree in theater studies, he was assigned to Ulan-Ude to teach foreign literature at the East Siberian Institute of Culture. After honestly working for three years (from 1971 to 1973), he returned to Moscow, where he got a job as a correspondent for the Theater magazine. Here he worked until 1990, gradually rising through the ranks, reaching the position of deputy editor-in-chief.
During these years, for the sake of earning money, Mikhail Shvydkoy took on almost any job: he wrote articles and books on theater and cinema, taught at institutes, rode around the country with lectures. When with his school friend Kostolevsky (through the "Knowledge" society) he went to give lectures in the outback, he was listened to with no less interest than a popular actor. he himselfwarmly recalls those times, especially when he went on business trips abroad with some theater. They tried to save on everything, and once he even boiled soup in the sink using a water heater.
Career takeoff
With the start of perestroika, Mikhail Shvydkoy took the position of general director of the Kultura editorial and publishing complex. Which closed in 1993, according to its former employees, largely due to the fact that it was engaged in art projects, ignoring the commercial component. The director of the bankrupt enterprise was invited to work as deputy minister of culture.
In 1997, he worked in senior positions at the All-Russian State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company. He was one of the founders of the Kultura TV channel, on which he hosted the weekly talk show Cultural Revolution for a long time.
Minister of Restitution
From 2000 to 2004, he served as the Russian Minister of Culture. He gained fame as a supporter of the restitution of art objects, in particular, the return of Germany, the so-called Bremen collection of graphics. A valuable collection of watercolors and drawings was brought to the USSR by Captain Baldin after the war. In 2004, he took the position of Chairman of the Federal Agency for Culture and Cinematography.
After the abolition of the agency in 2008, he was appointed special representative of the president. Mikhail Efimovich Shvydkoi is responsible for the development of the internationalCultural Cooperation, in particular, deals with issues of cooperation in the restoration of cultural monuments in Syria. At the same time, he is responsible for culture in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as an ambassador-at-large. Shvydkoy also teaches at a number of higher educational institutions, writes books.
Personal Information
The first time he married the daughter of a popular screenwriter Olga Printseva. Now the family of Mikhail Efimovich Shvydkoy consists of his wife Marina and two sons - Sergey and Alexander.
Marina Polyak is a theater actress who served for a long time on the stage of the theater on Malaya Bronnaya. One of the few roles in the cinema, probably, will be remembered by many: she played a flight attendant, who was shouted at in the film "Mimino" by the co-pilot performed by Vakhtang Kikabidze. Currently works as an editor of the television program "Theater + TV".
Since his time at the magazine, he loves suits and ties, it's more comfortable for him. Shvydkoy himself explains: when you put on a suit, a white shirt with a tie, you immediately pull yourself up. And such clothes serve as a kind of protection, even when they are called to the "carpet" to the authorities.
