Stanislav Chekan

Stanislav Chekan was a Russian character actor best known as Captain Mikhail Ivanovich in the popular Soviet comedy The Diamond Arm (1969). He was born Stanislav Yulianovich Chekan on June 2, 1922, in Rostov-na-Donu, Rostov province, Russia. In 1937 his father, Julian Chekan, was arrested on accusations of anti-Soviet activity under dictatorship of Joseph Stalin. At age 15, young Stanislav Chekan was locked up in a Soviet labor camp for juveniles. There he revealed his acting talent and participated in amateur drama productions for prisoners. After liberation, from 1938 to 1941, he studied acting under Yuri Zavadsky at Rostov Theatrical School. There his classmate was Sergey Bondarchuk; the two actors became lifelong friends and eventually worked together in several films. In 1941, Chekan was recruited in the Red Army, and served in the infantry during the Second World War. He was wounded in battle, and was decorated for his courage on the battlefield. After an honorable discharge, h