The Silenced Voice: how Vladimir Molchanov changed television

He was called the "voice of perestroika." But that voice was soft and intelligent. And he preferred to talk not about politics, but about culture and people. Vladimir Molchanov, the legendary host of the program "Before and after Midnight", which opened a new era of Russian television, has died. He was also at the origins of REN TV, where he broadcast and showed his documentaries — he shot about 20 of them. Izvestia remembers an outstanding colleague.

From the court to the broadcast

Vladimir Kirillovich was born into the family of the great Soviet composer Kirill Molchanov, whose songs and film music were known throughout the country. "We'll live to see Monday," "It was in Penkov," "And the dawns are quiet here"... And, of course, the musician's apartment in the very center of Moscow, a stone's throw from the largest theaters, was a regular gathering place for great actors, singers, dancers, and performers. Volodya Molchanov grew up in such a creative atmosphere. Years later, he recalled how Maya Plisetskaya told him in Before and After Midnight that he had been in love with her as a child.

However, the boy himself was more interested in sports than music at that time: his older sister, tennis player Anna Dmitrieva, brought him to the court, where he became the USSR youth champion. But at some point, Molchanov realized that he needed to move into another field, and even tried to enroll in the Moscow Art Theater Studio School, but in the end, at the insistence of his parents, he went to the Moscow State University Faculty of Philology. And already in his early 20s he got on television — and almost immediately he was sent as a correspondent to Holland. There he got acquainted with a completely different style of conversation with the audience — more sincere, trusting than was customary in the USSR.

When he began making the evening music program "Before and after Midnight" in 1987, it was this manner, informal and devoid of any formality, that became a distinctive feature not only of Molchanov, but of Perestroika television as a whole. However, it was he who was the first — even before Lyubimov's "Look".

Before and after

The hero of the first show (at first it was called "Have you met them somewhere before") Andrei Mironov became the star — she came out on the night of March 7-8, and the actor was the first, just after midnight, to congratulate Soviet women on the holiday. And Molchanov is his, since Mironov was born on March 8. As it turned out, it was his last birthday.

And immediately the audience noticed how unusual, easy, and ironic Vladimir Molchanov communicated with the guests. During the few years that "Before and after Midnight" was broadcast on Soviet television, Alfred Schnittke and Yves Montand, Elem Klimov and Stanislav Govorukhin were among its guests.… And most importantly, there was music that was previously unthinkable on the Soviet airwaves: from church services to Russian and Western rock.

The author and presenter of the TV show "Before and after midnight" Vladimir Molchanov. March 15th, 1989

Photo: TASS/Vladimir Musaelian

At the same time, Molchanov began working as a commentator for the international department in the editorial office of the Vremya program, and later was appointed a political commentator for Gosteleradio USSR. The management realized that it was with such figures, beloved by the audience, that it was necessary to revive the official programs that had not been trusted for a long time. But it was too late. And Molchanov didn't particularly like working in these formats. He was more attracted to making documentaries. And already in 1991, he made a film about Donetsk miners "Slaughter", where he showed the most difficult conditions in which they worked.

The management agreed to broadcast the picture on the condition that it would be Molchanov's farewell broadcast, and he would write a letter of resignation. He agreed.

From Princes to Durakovo

But just a few months later, in a new country — Russia, not the USSR, "Before and after Midnight" returned to the air: now it was made on a completely new private television company REN TV, which later became a TV channel. Molchanov worked there for eight years. The program was transformed, changed names, but the charming, brilliantly educated presenter always remained its center.

— We worked together for a long time on REN TV. Vladimir Molchanov was a fantastic person for us. He didn't look like any of us. Despite his height and refined intelligence on the screen, he was a man with a "White Nose", quite outspoken, harsh. But at the same time, you can't get away with extraordinary manners and upbringing. The bar he set was a benchmark, unattainable. A height that we didn't even strive for, because we understood that we were from a different background," Alexander Mostoslavsky, a columnist at Izvestia News Center, recalled in an interview with Izvestia. — He found his heroes in the most unexpected places. There was no Internet, information was gathered from regional newspapers. He had an amazing pool of correspondents. We came and lived there. We followed one story, but in the process it turned out that other topics were revealed there. These were almost ethnographic expeditions. Vladimir Molchanov's program perfectly combined reports from the village of Durakovo and material about the prince from the first wave of emigration, who helped Russia to return cultural values.

Vladimir Molchanov really could handle any topic. Not only culture, but also the social sphere, politics, and sports. For example, in 2012, he hosted morning broadcasts from the London Olympics. His partner in this case was sports commentator Georgy Cherdantsev.

— I had seen Vladimir Kirillovich on TV for many years, and then, of course, I could not imagine that one day I would work with him in the frame. He combined all his reading and vast knowledge in various fields perfectly with a serious passion for sports, so he very organically fit into our sports group as a presenter," Georgy Cherdantsev told Izvestia. — It is very difficult to conduct sports broadcasts, because this is maximum improvisation, where it is impossible to prescribe a script for the broadcast. This is constantly updated information that needs to be responded to. And Vladimir Kirillovich, with his charming smile on his face, always got out of the situation. You could never tell from his appearance that he was confused.

In his later years, Vladimir Molchanov began working for Orpheus Radio.

— He was an absolutely amazing man in his pedantry, thoroughness, and insight into the topic. He was fluent in several languages, and was a great, absolutely phenomenal expert on Russian culture. We often met, so to speak, in a narrow circle with the same pianists, violinists, musicologists, and met on various forums. And it has always been a communication that enriched everyone and from all sides. Everyone loved this amazing man," Vladimir Molchanov's colleague, radio host Yossi Tavor, shared with Izvestia.

But always, in all genres and formats, Vladimir Kirillovich retained his intonation, the manner for which the whole country once fell in love with him, sticking to the screens during the broadcasts "Before and after midnight", and — until the last days - did not stop loving him.

Vladimir Molchanov passed away at the age of 76 after a long battle with cancer. The funeral will take place on Friday, May 15th. The location is still being specified.