Donatas Banionis

About Donatas Banionis

Who is it?: Actor
Birth Day: April 28, 1924
Birth Place:  Kaunas, Lithuania, Lithuania
Died On: 4 September 2014(2014-09-04) (aged 90)\nVilnius, Lithuania
Birth Sign: Taurus
Occupation: Actor
Years active: 1941-2013

Donatas Banionis Net Worth

Donatas Banionis was born on April 28, 1924 in  Kaunas, Lithuania, Lithuania, is Actor. Donatas Banionis was a popular Lithuanian actor known for Niekas nenorejo mirti (1966), Myortvyy sezon (1968), and Solaris (1972).He was born Donatas Juozas Banionis on April 28, 1924, in Kaunas, Lithuania. His mother, Blazhaitite-Banionene Ona, was a homemaker. His father, Juozas Banionis, was a tailor who took part in the Russian Revolution of 1917, was wounded in the Russian Civil War, then became a political prisoner, and briefly emigrated to Brasil during the 1920s. Young Banionis was raised with his elder sister during the years of Lithuanian independence before WWII.In 1941 Donatas Banionis was hired by the famous Lithuanian theatrical director Juozas Miltinis and became an actor at the newly formed Panevezys Drama Theatre. He studied acting under Juozas Miltinis and graduated from the Panevezys Acting Studio in 1945. In 1947 Banionis made his film debut: he appeared in a cameo role in 'Marite' (1947). His first major film work was the role of adventurer Daus in 'Adomas nori buti zmogumi' (Adam Wants to Be a Man 1959) by director Vytautas Zalakevicius.Long before becoming an acclaimed actor Banionis tried to escape from the Soviet Union at the end of the Second World War; but he failed to join his Lithuanian compatriots when they fled the Soviets. Soon the Iron curtain became impenetrable from either side. However, in 1970, as a member of an official Soviet delegation, he made his first visit to the Lithuanian community in Chicago. Then Banionis, being already a famous actor, came to realize that his former compatriots earned their good living and nice homes by working very hard from very poor beginnings. At that time, Banionis enjoyed a highly privileged life as a top film-star in the Soviet Union. He was awarded the State Prize in 1975, and was received by such Soviet leaders as Leonid Brezhnev and Mikhail Gorbachev.Banionis earned critical acclaim for his role of Vaitkus in 'Niekas nenorejo mirti' (Nobody Wanted to Die, 1966) by director Vytautas Zalakevicius. A powerful film, it was even dubbed the "Lithuanian Seven Samurai." Banionis' tragical character Vaitkus is the undecided one among the Lithuanian "brothers in the woods", who are fighting against the Soviets after the end of the Second World War. Banionis demonstrated his range as a comedian in the comic role of a priest in 'Beregis avtomobilya' (Watch Out for the Automobile, 1966) by director Eldar Ryazanov. Banionis' sweet character blends well with the stellar ensemble of actors, such as Innokentiy Smoktunovskiy, Oleg Efremov, Andrey Mironov, Anatoliy Papanov, Evgeniy Evstigneev, Georgi Zhzhyonov, and other Russian film stars.Donatas Banionis is a refined intellectual actor with effortless style. His mastery of timing, his powerful silence, and his reserved energy shines in his major film-works; such as in 'King Lear' (1969) by Grigori Kozintsev, in 'Solaris' (1972) by Andrei Tarkovsky, in 'Goya - oder Der arge Weg der Erkenntnis' (1971) by director Konrad Wolf, in 'Begstvo mistera Mak-Kinli' by director Mikhail Shvejtser, in 'Beethoven - Days in a Life' (1976) by director Horst Seemann, and in other films.One of his memorable film-works is the character of a Russian spy 'Ladeinikov' in 'Myortvy Sezon' (The Dead Season, 1968) by director Savva Kulish. That film role provided Banionis with an auspicious connection. In 2004, the actor had a meeting with the Russian President Vladimir Putin. Mr. Putin confirmed that he made up his mind to become an intelligence officer after seeing Banionis in the role of a Russian spy.In his later works Donatas Banionis constitutes the link between cinema of the past and contemporary Lithuanian film. He showed reserved and convincing work in the role of 'The old man' in 'Kiemas' (Courtyard, 1999), a reflective film about a Lithuanian father and his family's depressing fate in the 1970's Soviet Union. He worked with director Aleksandr Buravskiy in 'Attack on Leningrad' (2006), a film about the historic siege during the Second World War; where his acting partners are Gabriel Byrne, Mira Sorvino, Aleksandr Abdulov, Kirill Lavrov, Mikhail Efremov and others.During his acting career spanning over sixty five years, Donatas Banionis played over 50 roles in film and on television. He also played over 100 stage roles, mainly at the Panevezys Juozas Miltinis' Drama Theatre. Banionis was designated People's Actor of the USSR (1974), and People's actor of the Lithuanian Republic (1973). He is Chevalier of the Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas.Donatas Banionis lived in the city of Panevezys, Lithuania. He was Honorable Citizen of Panevezys (1999). Actor died of heart related problems on 4th of September 2014 in Panevezys, Lithuania. He was ninety years old.
Donatas Banionis is a member of Actor

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Biography/Timeline

1924

His wife was Actress Ona Banionis (1924-2008). They had two sons - Egidijus (1948-1993), a Historian, posthumously awarded the State Prize in the field of science, and Raymundas (born in 1957), Director.

1940

In 1940 in Kaunas, based on the amateur collective that existed at the House of Labor, a professional theater was created, which was headed by the young Director Juozas Miltinis, and soon the theater moved to Panevėžys. In 1941 Donatas Banionis was admitted to the troupe.

1944

In 1944, Banionis graduated from the studio at the Panevėžys Theater, becoming a professional actor.

1945

On the stage, Donatas Banionis played over 100 characters. He acted in the plays "The Inspector General" based on Nikolai Gogol's play (1945), "Liar" based on the play Carlo Goldoni (1952), "How the Steel Was Tempered" based on the novel by Nikolai Ostrovsky (1952), "Gedda Gabler" based on Henrik Ibsen (1957) , "There, Behind the Door" based on the work of Wolfgang Borchert (1966), "The Chair" after the play by Valery Vrublevskaya (1980), etc.

1947

In 1947, Banionis appeared in the film Marytė. However, his cinematic debut is considered to be the film Adam wants to be a Man (1959) by Director Vytautas Žalakevičius, then Banionis starred in his picture The Chronicle of One Day (1964). Banionis' fame came after the film by Žalakevičius Nobody Wanted to Die (1965). The actor's work in the film by Savva Kulish Dead Season (1968) earned him great popularity.

1960

Member of the CPSU since 1960. Member of the Communist Party of Lithuania. Member of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union of the 9th convocation (1974-1979).

1965

Donatas Banionis starred in the films Nobody Wanted to Die (1965), The Little Prince (1966), Operation Trust (1967), King Lear (1970), Goya or the Hard Way to Enlightenment (1971), The Life and Death of Ferdinand Luce (1976), Beethoven — Days of a Life (1976), Armed and Dangerous (1976), Commander of the Lucky "Pike" (1972), The FLIGHT of Mr. McKinley (1975), Centaurs (1978), Niccolo Paganini (1982), Zmielov (1985), Living Target (1990), Without Evidence (1992), Anna (1996) Yard (1999), Tadas Blinda, The Beginning (2011), etc.

1968

Vladimir Putin once stated that Banionis' part in the 1968 Soviet spy film Dead Season was the reason why he joined the KGB.

1971

Banionis began his career with some films in Lithuanian, but he would later play mainly in Russian language films (although his voice was dubbed by Russian actors). He has also worked outside the USSR like in the title role Francisco Goya of the USSR-GDR coproduction Goya or the Hard Way to Enlightenment (1971), directed by Konrad Wolf and in the title role as Ludwig van Beethoven in the 1976 DEFA-production Beethoven - Tage aus einem Leben. Aside from films, he was a popular stage actor in Panevėžys, where he acted since the age of 17, and which was frequented by Donatas' fans from all over the former Soviet Union. His first Teacher was Juozas Miltinis. He acted in Vilnius, in the Lithuanian National Drama Theatre.

1972

One of the best-known works of the actor was the role of Kris Kelvin in the film of Andrei Tarkovsky Solaris (1972).

1974

Donatas Banionis is a People's Artist of the USSR (1974), winner of the All-Union Film Festival in the category "Best Actor Award" (1966), laureate of the State Prizes of the USSR (1967, 1977, for participation in the films Nobody Wanted to Die and The FLIGHT of Mr. McKinley).

1980

In the early 1980s, after the retirement of Juozas Miltinis, Banionis was appointed the chief Director of the Panevėžys Theater, assuming, in addition to problems of a creative nature, the entire burden of purely economic problems: preparation for tours, replenishment of the troupe. Banionis led the theatre until the year 1988. The performances staged during this time included "Amadeus", "Three sacks of weeds" and "Evening".

1984

In 1984 he graduated from the State Conservatory of the Lithuanian SSR (now the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theater).

1990

In the 1990s, the actor performed in the plays "Mindaugas" by Justinas Marcinkevičius (1994), "On the Golden Lake" by Ernest Thompson (1996), "The Circle" by Somerset Maugham (1996), "Love Letters" by Albert Garni (1997)

1994

Among the awards of Donatas Banionis - the Order of Gediminas III degree (1994), the medal. Khanzhonkov in the nomination "For outstanding contribution to the cinema" (1999), the Russian Friendship Orders (1999) and Honor (2009), the Grand Commander's Cross of the Order of Merit for Lithuania (2004), the National Award of Lithuania in the field of culture and art (2013) ).

1999

In 1999 he became an Honorary Citizen of the city of Panevezys.

2006

He is the author of memoir prose "I've wanted to Act since My Childhood" (2006).

2014

Banionis died on 4 September 2014 from a stroke. He was 90 years old.