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Charles Bronson is Britain's most famous criminal and just a very funny and controversial bro. Photo selection: Charles Bronson - the most brutal prisoner in Great Britain Charles Bronson paintings

On November 3, 1921, in the United States, in the mining village of Ehrenfeld (Pennsylvania), a boy was born into a family of emigrants from Lithuania, the Buchinskis, who was named Karolis. It would seem that the boy who was the eleventh of fifteen children this year poor family, there was no chance of breaking out among the people. But despite fate and circumstances, thanks to natural talent and perseverance, he became an actor known to millions of viewers as Charles Bronson.

Hungry childhood

Bronson's paternal ancestors were Lipkas - Polish-Lithuanian Tatars. This ethnic group was formed from the Tatars who came to the Grand Duchy of Lithuania from the Golden Horde and entered the service of the Lithuanian princes. From his ancestors, Bronson inherited a narrow Mongoloid eye shape and black hair. Because of such a characteristic appearance, at the beginning of his acting career he was often invited to play the roles of Indians in Westerns.

The actor’s father, Walter Buchinskis (later he “corrected” his surname in the American style - Buchinsky), moved to the United States from the Lithuanian city of Druskininkai. Bronson's mother, Mary (née Valinskis), was born in America, but her parents were also from Lithuania.

Little Carlos learned to speak English when he was already a teenager, and before that he spoke Lithuanian and Russian at home. At the same time, his name also transformed into the more familiar “Charles” to the American ear. His father worked in a mine and died when Bronson was 10 years old. The family lived extremely poorly. But it was Charles who was luckier than other children - he was the only one in the family who graduated from school. Although, according to the actor himself, there were times when he had to wear his sister’s dress due to the lack of other clothes.

But even after finishing school, Charles had no prospects, and he too was forced to earn a living by working in the mine. As the actor later admitted, he was then paid one dollar per ton of coal. Spending a lot of time underground, Charles began to suffer from a fear of enclosed spaces. He was never able to get rid of claustrophobia until the end of his days.

Participation in World War II

It's hard to say how it would have turned out future life Bronson, if the war had not started. In 1943 he was called up to military service V armed forces USA. Charles served in the Air Force as a gunner on the B-29 bomber. In 1945, he took part in combat operations against Japan as part of the 61st Bomber Squadron. In total, Bronson flew 25 combat missions, was wounded and awarded a Purple Heart.

At the end of the war, the United States adopted the GI Bill of Rights. This law provided returning military personnel free education in college, as well as low-cost home loans and business loans. Charles decided to take advantage of this opportunity and began to study fine arts in order to then get a job as an artist in the theater. And then he decided to become an actor himself and began studying at the Pasadena Playhouse acting studio.

Actor career

Bronsnon (then Buchinsky) began his acting career in a theater studio in Philadelphia. Later the actor moved to New York. The young actor did not have enough money to live on, and he shared an apartment with his young colleague Jack Klugman (whose parents, by the way, also came from the Russian Empire). Since 1950, the actor began to be invited to films. At first, due to his characteristic appearance, Charles was offered roles of Indians, which were considered unpromising. But gradually, the actor began to be trusted to play more and more interesting and significant characters.

In the first 12 films he starred under his own real name. But in 1954, during the active work of the House Un-American Activities Committee, the actor’s agent suggested that “out of harm’s way” he change his Slavic surname to an American one. It is said that the actor came up with his nickname while walking through the majestic gates of the Paramount Pictures studio, which is located at the intersection of the streets located at the corner of Melrose Avenue and Bronson Street.

Bronson's further career began to develop quite successfully. He acted a lot in films and television, and real fame came to him after his role in the western “The Magnificent Seven,” for which he received $50,000. This film was a great success all over the world, including in the USSR.

In addition to America, Bronson also filmed a lot in Europe. In 1968, he starred in the western Once Upon a Time in the West, directed by Sergio Leone, who called Bronson "the greatest actor I have ever worked with." Leone had previously wanted to invite Bronson to main role in the film “A Fistful of Dollars,” but the actor then refused and Clint Eastwood starred in the western.

At the age of 52, he starred in the action film Death Wish. This role became the actor's calling card. The film had several sequels starring Bronson.

Bronson has received many film awards. The guy who had only a few cents in his pocket in the 40s became one of the highest paid actors in Hollywood. In 1975, he took 4th place in terms of royalties, behind only Robert Redford, Barbra Streisand and Al Pacino.

Personal life

The actor's first wife was the young actress Harriet Tendler, whom he met in 1947 in Philadelphia at the dawn of his acting career. Harriet later admitted in her memoirs that she was an 18-year-old virgin when she met 26-year-old Charlie Buchinsky. And on the first date, Charles only had 4 cents in his pocket. Two years later, the couple married, although the bride's father, a successful Jewish dairy farmer, opposed the marriage. He did not consider a boy from a poor Catholic family as a groom. But he resigned himself and supported the young people financially. The couple had two children, but they divorced in 1965.

The reason for the divorce was actress Jill Ireland, whom Bronson met on the set of the film “The Great Escape.” It was love at first sight. Jill at this time was married to actor David McCallum, Bronson's partner in this film. But that didn't stop Charles. He told McCallum bluntly: “I will marry your wife.”

Six years later he fulfilled this promise. The couple got married on October 5, 1968 and did not separate until their deaths. It was one of the strongest and most exemplary marriages in Hollywood. Jill became the meaning of life for Bronson. They lived in a mansion in Los Angeles with seven children: two from his first marriage, three from Jill's first marriage (one of whom was adopted) and two of their own (one of whom was also adopted).

Bronson tried to spend as much time as possible with his wife. To do this, he even negotiated conditions with the producers so that in the films in which he was invited, there would be a role for Jill. In total, they starred in 14 joint films.

Bronson purchased a 260-acre (1.1 km2) farm in West Windsor, Vermont, where Jill bred horses and for the equestrian training of their daughter Zuleika, their only child.

Happy life this big family was devastated by the terrible news - Jill was diagnosed with breast cancer. May 18, 1990, aged 54, after long struggle with illness, Jill Ireland died at their home in Malibu.

In December 1998, Bronson married for the third time to Kim Weeks, a former Dove Audio studio employee. This marriage lasted only five years. IN last years Bronson's health deteriorated markedly in recent years, and he died of pneumonia on August 30, 2003, at the age of 81.

His real name is Michael Gordon Peterson, he was born in 1952, and from the age of 26 to the present, with short breaks, he has been in prison. His unpredictable antics made him perhaps the most famous prisoner in Britain.

Childhood and youth

As they say, nothing foreshadowed a criminal “career” for young Michael. Typically, lawyers for criminals refer to a lack of parental love and unfavorable life circumstances. However, Michael's family was quite prosperous and wealthy; there were no tragic incidents in his life. He studied willingly, had many friends, and was invariably polite to others.

According to his aunt, it all started when the family moved and Michael got involved with bad company. It was then that he changed his name to Charles Bronson - his idol, the tough macho man of Hollywood, and began to participate in fist fights. He once even fought a Rottweiler for £1,000. Sports allowed him to pump up luxurious muscles, and he began performing in the circus arena.

Bronson married quite early, at the age of 19, and soon became a father. However, this did not stop him from taking part in an armed robbery, and at the age of 26 he ended up in his first prison (note that by now he has been in 120 English prisons!).

Criminal career

Bronson committed his most famous crime in 1974, when he robbed a post office of £26.18. He received 7 years and had every chance of being released early if he had not regularly violated the prison regime.

In 1988, he was again arrested for robbery, 4 years later he was released, but after 3 weeks he was again arrested for preparing a new robbery. Since then, Bronson has been sitting without a break.

It would seem that compared to serial killers and other serious criminals, his criminal career looks rather pathetic, but it was not this that made Bronson famous, but his unpredictable behavior in prison. It is not surprising that after several such episodes, not a single British prison wanted to accept this prisoner.

It was in prison that Bronson fully demonstrated his penchant for violence, although, oddly enough, none of the episodes ended in the death of the victims. Judge for yourself, here are just some of Bronson’s “antics”:
Having stripped naked and heavily oiled himself, he attacked the guards and inflicted several serious injuries on them. It took a whole special forces squad to neutralize it.
In 1994, he took a prison guard hostage and demanded that he be given a helicopter and an inflatable doll(!).
In 1996, he unexpectedly took his lawyer hostage, but released him after half an hour.
In 1998, he took several imprisoned Iraqis hostage simply because one of them, having stumbled upon him, did not apologize. This time the demands were more serious: as usual, a helicopter to Cuba, and with it a machine gun with cartridges and an axe. If he refused, he threatened to eat one of the hostages.
He attempted suicide using a running washing machine.
In 2014, at the age of 62 (!), Bronson, during a televised match, became so enraged by the loss of his favorite team that he used his old trick: he stripped, oiled himself and, naked, attacked ten prison guards in full protective gear. . In doing so, he broke several of his ribs.
Captured a prison teacher, tied him up and held him for 44 hours just because he criticized one of his paintings.

However, one such incident earned Bronson £200 compensation after security guards broke Bronson's glasses in an effort to prevent another hostage-taking.

It is not surprising that Bronson spends a significant part of his sentence in solitary confinement. But even here he did not waste time.

Prison fitness

Judging by Charles Bronson's appearance, his time in prison only benefited him. And it’s not just his famous mustache, which he always wears, changing his hairstyle from a regular haircut to a completely shaved head, as in recent years (there was a period when he also grew a long beard).

No, it's all about his shine physical fitness. Even in his old age, Bronson does not stop training and looks like a real mountain of muscles. He described his system in the book “Single Fitness,” published in 2007. In it, he shares his experience of how, without special equipment and a healthy diet, you can build up truly superhuman strength.

Bronson confirmed the effectiveness of his method in practice: he managed to set a world record for push-ups, which he performs up to 2000 times daily; bend the steel bars of the chamber with bare hands, etc.

"Artistic creativity"

In fact, this title could easily be left out of quotation marks, because Bronson, a prisoner, managed to gain fame as an artist and poet during his years in prison.

He has been awarded seven Koestler Prizes for fiction and poetry; his work was published in newspapers and magazines and was even hung on the London Underground (albeit illegally). It is characteristic that he donated part of the money received for these works to an orphanage.

Film adaptation of biography

In 2009, a film about the life story of Charles Bronson was released. His role was played by Tom Hardy, who for this purpose personally met his hero several times in prison. Bronson made a big impression on Hardy; in his words, he is “a very clear, kind, funny and smart person.”

At the same time, Hardy did not try to justify Bronson’s actions, but sought to understand the character of his character. I wonder how he managed to reconcile these qualities with Bronson’s actions?

Bronson himself was so inspired by the idea of filming his life story that he cut off his famous mustache and gave it to Tom to use on the set.

"Free Charles Bronson!"

Under this slogan, more than 10 thousand signatures were collected during the campaign for the release of the prisoner. His supporters claim he served more time than many brutal killers, and now ready to start a new life.
However, numerous violations and hostage-takings in prison indicate that Charles Branson is not just an eccentric person, but absolutely unpredictable and dangerous to others, and he himself does not deny this. In his own words, violence makes him “crazier and stronger.” So it looks like he will end his days in prison, where he has already spent two-thirds of his life.

Peterson, Michael Gordon

Michael Gordon Peterson(nicknames: “Charles Bronson”, “Charles Ali Ahmed”) (b. December 6, 1952, Luton, UK) - is the most famous criminal in Great Britain due to the cruel treatment of guards in the prisons in which he served his sentences.

Biography

His most famous crime is the post office robbery (1974). He was sentenced to 7 years, but due to regular violations of the regime he is still in prison (36 years, of which 32 years in solitary confinement). In prison he became famous for fights with guards. One day he thickly smeared his body with oil, and then attacked the prison guards naked. He inflicted several serious injuries on the guards before the special forces unit, alerted, was able to neutralize him.

He took his nickname after his fistfight promoter suggested changing his name to Charles Bronson.

During the time he was in prison, Peterson managed to become famous as an artist and poet. And he even received awards for his works (and part of the money from the sale of works is donated to charity.

There is a Bronson freedom movement in the UK. And they consider him, in general, a good person.

In 2009, a feature film was made about the life of Charles Bronson.

Links

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A cult American actor of the mid-twentieth century, he became famous for his roles in the films “The Great Escape”, “The Magnificent Seven” and “Once Upon a Time in the West”. His real name is Charles Dennis Buchinski. But viewers and a million-strong army of fans know him under his stage name Charles Bronson.

Childhood and youth

He was born in Pennsylvania in 1921. The childhood of Charles Dennis, the eleventh child of 15 children of Polish-Lithuanian emigrants, was not carefree. Charles was the first Buczynski to complete his high school education. English language he learned it on his own by interacting with local yard boys.

Young Charlie Buchinski's childhood ended at age 10. Father died large family, so the boy had to go to work. At first he worked in the office of a coal mine, and soon in the mine itself. Later famous actor recalled that the poverty in their home was such that one day they even had to wear their sister’s dress to go to school.

Second World War did not pass by the young man. Buczynski went to the war zone. He joined the Pacific Fleet and served as an air gunner. He was awarded the Purple Star for his valor and intrepidity.

After the end of the war, a young man long years looked for myself in different areas life until he joined a theater troupe in Philadelphia. Only after going on stage did he realize that acting was his true calling.

Buchinsky understood that without acting education he would not be able to get to the cinema Olympus. Therefore, he entered and successfully graduated from the Pasadena Playhouse, a theater school in the Californian city of Pasadena.

Movies

A cinematic biography of Charles Bronson, the future legend of world cinema, began in 1950, when he was preparing to celebrate his 30th birthday. For the first 12 films in which he starred, the actor was listed in the credits under his real name. But during the McCarthyite “witch hunt” he decided to change his too “Slavic” surname to an Anglo-Saxon one.

Bronson's debut film was the war film “Now You're in the Navy,” where he got the role of a sailor. The film was released on big screens in 1951. 2 years later the films “Museum” followed wax figures", "Miss Sadie Thompson" and "The Stagecoach Security Guard". Everywhere, the artist received supporting roles, which did not bring much popularity, but played an invaluable role in acquiring acting skills.

In the late 1950s, Bronson was entrusted with a number of leading roles in films that turned out to be very successful at the box office. The most striking of them are the crime drama “Gun Gun Kelly” and the series “Man with a Camera.”

The breakthrough in his career came after the release of the brilliant western “The Magnificent Seven” in 1960. The role of the shooter in this film brought the artist his first - at that time fabulous - fee: 50 thousand dollars. It is noteworthy that this film gained the greatest popularity in the Soviet Union. Bronson became my favorite actor.

After 2 years, Charles pleased his fans with a new film - “The Great Escape.” Interestingly, the role of a Polish prisoner suffering from claustrophobia turned out to be quite close to Bronson: he himself suffered from this disease.

The peak of this actor's fame was in the 1960s and 70s of the twentieth century. The most striking and beloved films with his participation include the films “The Dirty Dozen” and “Once Upon a Time in the West.”

The drama “The Dirty Dozen” won several Oscar awards, and the cult western “Once Upon a Time in the West” by the famous Italian director Sergio Leone brought the actor to a new level of popularity. The director himself called Bronson " greatest actor, with whom he had the opportunity to work."

Among the artist’s works of the 1970s, the paintings “Passenger of the Rain”, “Red Sun” and “Enemy at the Door” should be noted. This is the time when Charles Bronson already has the status of a world cinema star. His fees were called crazy: for each of his roles he received around a million dollars.

Most often, the artist is filmed in westerns and action films. Viewers and critics are crazy about the films “Cold Blooded Killer”, “Valdez Half-Blood” and “Death Wish”. The action film “Death Wish” turned out to be so successful that the directors decided to make a sequel. It came out in 1994.

In the 1980s, the star acted less and less. One of the most remarkable films of this period is the film “Ten Minutes to Midnight.” Old age takes its toll.

The actor has own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Personal life

The Hollywood star, for whom millions of fans sighed, was a monogamous man. When the beautiful Jill Ireland he adored agreed to marry him, it seemed Bronson was flying in the clouds. Their marriage turned out to be long and strong. This love and mutual understanding beautiful couple Many colleagues were jealous. It was an atypical marriage for Hollywood.

Charles Bronson's personal life with Jill was surprisingly happy: his beloved wife gave birth to beautiful children. But the light dimmed for the star when he learned that his wife had cancer.

Bronson fought for her life for 6 long years. He was ready to give up everything he had and throw all his money at saving his beloved, just to bring her back to life. During this difficult period, he refused to film and did not leave his sick wife. Dying, the woman whispered that she would remain with him, like a guardian angel, forever. But Jill asked her husband to definitely find a life partner and try to be happy.

For several years after the death of his wife, Bronson led a reclusive life. When he finally began to go out into the world, Kim Weeks, Jill's former personal secretary, was seen next to him. It seemed that a smile began to flicker on the face of the gloomy Charles, and in December 1998, Charles and Kim got married.

Soon he discovered mental disorder. Bronson told his doctor that he was in regular contact with deceased wife. According to him, once she even saved his life. The man dreamed that Jill asked him to take a taxi. The next morning he did just that, instructing the driver to check the car. It turned out that the car in which the actor went to filming every morning had a serious malfunction.

Death

In the last years of life famous artist suffered from . After the death of his wife in 1990, his health deteriorated significantly.

He lived another 13 years and died in August 2003 at Cedars-Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles. He came here with pneumonia, which he was treated for for several weeks without success.

Filmography

1958 - “Machine Gunner Kelly”
1960 - “The Magnificent Seven”
1963 - “The Great Escape”
1967 - “The Dirty Dozen”
1968 - “Once Upon a Time in the West”
1970 - “Rain Passenger”
1971 - “Red Sun”
1974 - “Death Wish”
1983 - “Ten Minutes to Midnight”
1987 - “Murder”
1993 - “Under Threat of Death”
1995-1999 - “Family of Policemen”

Charles Bronson– cult American actor of the mid-20th century; known for his roles in the films “Farewell Friend,” “The Great Escape,” “The Magnificent Seven” and “Once Upon a Time in the West.”

Biography of Charles Bronson / Charles Bronson

The actor's real name is Charles Dennis Buchinski. He was born in 1921 in Pennsylvania, one of fifteen children in a family of Polish-Lithuanian emigrants. Charles changed his last name during the activities of Senator McCarthy in the 50s - “Buchinsky” sounded “too Russian”, which did not contribute to his future career.

Charles Bronson became the first member of his family to complete high school. Although as a child he did not even know how to speak English and learned the language in the yard while communicating with local boys. When the boy was ten years old, his father died, so he had to start working - Charles went to work in a coal mine; first to the office, and therefore to the mine itself. His family was so poor that one day he even had to wear his sister’s dress to school - there was simply nothing else to wear.

During World War II Charles Bronson went to the combat zone - he served as an air gunner on the Pacific Front and even received a Purple Star for his services.

After the war, Bronson worked in many fields until he joined a theater company in Philadelphia. In the 50s, he moved to Los Angeles and began taking acting classes; Since then, he has been trusted with small roles in various films. His first film was " Now you're in the navy"(1951), where Charles played one of the sailors. Then there was the tape " The Wax Museum"(1953), " Miss Sadie Thompson" (1953) and " Stagecoach Security Guard" - all supporting roles that did not bring much fame to the artist. Moreover, at that time Charles Bronson He also periodically starred in TV series.

By the end of the 50s Charles Bronson I have already managed to star in several films in leading roles. For example, in the crime drama " Heavy Kelly"(1958) and in the series " Man with camera"on ABC.

The turning point in the actor’s career was the western “ The Magnificent Seven"(1960), where Bronson played the role of one of the shooters. For this image he received a large fee for those times: $50,000. The film gained particular popularity in the Soviet Union - both the film and Charles Bronson Vladimir Vysotsky.

Two years later, another successful film with Bronson was released - “ Great Escape"; there he played a Polish prisoner who suffered from claustrophobia (the actor himself suffered from this psychological illness).

In the 60s Charles Bronson He played a lot on television, and in 1967 the film “ Dirty Dozen", a successful war drama that won several Oscars. Well, a year later the premiere of the cult film “ Once Upon a Time in the Wild West» Sergio Leone; the famous Italian director later called Bronson “one of the greatest actors with whom he had the opportunity to work.”

Of Bronson’s significant works of that time, it is worth noting “ Passenger of the rain"(1969), " Red sun" (1971) and " The enemy is at the door"(1971). Since the 70s, the actor has already acquired the status of a world celebrity and began to receive crazy fees for his roles - about a million dollars. He continued to act out the characters in Westerns and crime action films - for example, in the films " Cold-blooded killer"(1973), " Valdez half-breed" (1973) and " Death Wish"(1974). The latter film received four sequels, the last of which was released in 1994.

One of the most famous work Charles Bronson in the 80s there was a film " Ten minutes before midnight"(1983). By this time, the actor’s age was already taking its toll, so the number of roles began to decrease over time. In the 90s, nothing particularly noteworthy came out with Bronson, and in 1998, at the age of 81, the outstanding actor died. In his last years he suffered from Alzheimer's disease.