Despite her wide popularity, Elena Safonova is considered one of the most mysterious Russian actresses. During her creative career, she starred in more than 100 films. Its trademark is the film Winter Cherry. For her role in it, Safonova was recognized as the best actress of the year. The plot of the film is connected with the difficult love relationship of the main characters. The fate of Elena Safonova herself cannot be called simple.
First marriage
Elena was born into the family of the People's Artist of the RSFSR Vsevolod Safonov and director Victoria Rubleva. It happened in 1956 in Leningrad. The girl's first serious hobby was a young man with dissident views. Together with them, she entered VGIK. After failing his entrance exams, he emigrated to America. Elena entered the institute after his departure, returned from Moscow to St. Petersburg, where she graduated from LGITMIK.
Talking about her first marriage, Safonova described it as an accident. The girl was 20 years old and, according to her, she agreed to marriage only because she could not refuse the groom's parents. The first husband of Safonova was the BDT actor Vitaly Yushkov. He was only 2 years older than his chosen one. The spouses-to-be were considered to be dwindling hopes of young actors. But the career of each of them has developed ambiguously.
Elena met Yushkov on the set of the film "The Zatsepin Family", immediately capturing his heart. Passionately in love with Safonova, Vitaly, even for all the years of their life together, could not win Elena's heart. Their marriage took place in 1977. From the first days of their life together, Vitaly felt the severity of his young wife's character. Safonova herself has repeatedly criticized her temper, calling it vile.
Remembering his life with the actress, Yushkov talked about how he looked after her, cooked borscht. Elena did not need all this. She was content with little (a cup of coffee and a cigarette). The characters and interests of the spouses did not converge on almost anything. Their acting fate also evolved in different ways. Yushkov was inferior to his wife in the number and quality of job offers received. This broke Vitaly. Since the 80s. he was no longer invited to act in films.
After 6 years of marital relations, the marriage between Safonova and Yushkov fell apart. One of the reasons for their separation was Yushkov's addiction to alcohol. In 1992 he emigrated from Russia to Israel.
Vache Martirosyan
Between the divorce and the second marriage, Safonova had a stormy romance with a married man. It turned out to be a respectable American businessman Vache Martirosyan. He won the heart of the young artist by communicating to take her to the States. This did not happen, just as his promises to become a producer and to make a film in America with the participation of the actress did not come true.
The result of their relationship was the separation and the birth of a common son, Ivan, to whom Elena gave her last name. Leaving the man, Safonova did not tell him about her pregnancy. Martirosyan learned about his son recently, but he still does not know him.
Elena, who fell in love with Martirosyan, was ready to endure a lot in their relationship. For a long time she was satisfied with the role of a mistress, but for a long time all this could not continue. The real fate of the actress in some moments was similar to the life of the heroine she played in "Winter Cherry". Any story, no matter how romantic it is, has its end.
Infrequent meetings and dubious prospects of a happy life together turned out to be not what Safonova dreamed of. She broke off relations with Martirosyan and started life from scratch.
Second marriage
Elena's second marriage took place in 1992. This time, a French actor of Swiss origin Samuel Labarta became her chosen one. Their acquaintance happened on the set of the film "The Accompanist", which brought Elena wide popularity in France. After the wedding, she remained to live in this country with her son Ivan and husband Samuel.
The marriage did not interfere with the creative career of the actress. Excellent command of the French language opened the doors of national cinema for her. Safonova's career in France was going well, which caused Samuel jealousy and discontent. The actor was less successful than his wife. Even in France, Labarte was perceived as Safonova's husband.
Bounded pride and frequent separations pushed Samuel to divorce. According to the laws of the country, the common child of Safonova and Labarte, born in France, Alexander could not be taken abroad until he reached the age of majority. Elena left France and returned to Russia with her son Ivan, leaving Sasha with his father. For more than 3 years, the actress sued Labarthe, trying to take his son away from him, but did not win the case. He remained to live in France.
Recalling her marriage to Labarthe, Safonova in one of her numerous interviews said that Samuel was not in love with her, but with the image of the heroine of the film "Black Eyes" created by the actress. The heart of the Russian beauty was conquered by the pressure and enthusiasm of the Frenchman. Living together turned out to be much more prosaic than it seemed before marriage. The strained personal relationships in the family were aggravated by a mentality alien to Elena, to which she could not get used to.
