Very muscular real or. Movie characters, the prototypes of which were real people from life: they adopted all their main features. The beginning of the biography of the artist Charles Strickland

Forbes magazine presented the 8th ranking of the 15 richest fictional characters. All its participants are a figment of the author's imagination (this excludes mythological and folklore heroes from the sample). To be included in the rankings, they must be popular in the real world and be associated with wealth by the audience. When assessing the fortunes of the characters, the editors try to link the value of their fictional assets to real stock exchange quotes and prices for raw materials.
Read more about how and why the status of the rating participants has changed in our gallery.

Scrooge McDuck
Net worth: $65.4 billion
Source of wealth: industry, treasure hunting
Geography: Duckburg, Calisota
Fame: "DuckTales", "Uncle Scrooge"
One of the main charismatics in the Disney universe of characters, Scrooge was created by artist Carl Barks back in the 1940s. He inherited the name of the merchant from Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol and, according to rumors, based it on the famous industrialist Andrew Carnegie. Like Carnegie, Scrooge went through a thorny path from a poor migrant to a rich man. Compared to 2011, the hero’s fortune has grown by more than $20 billion - it’s not for nothing that the character does not trust banks and prefers to store capital in gold.
Smog

Net worth: $54.1 billion
Source of wealth: looting
Geography: The Lonely Mountain, Erebor, Middle-earth
Glory: "The Hobbit, or There and Back Again"

The dragon, the leader of last year's rating, dropped one line, having become poorer by almost $8 billion in 12 months. It is difficult to predict how Smaug's debut in Hollywood will affect him, but on the screen the hero will have to part with his untold wealth (and then die altogether). However, for now, with the help of gold, he manages to maintain high positions in the rankings.

Walden Schmidt

Net worth: $1.3 billion
Source: technology

Fame: "Two and a Half Men"

The broken-hearted internet billionaire from the extremely popular US sitcom recently changed performers: instead of the Hollywood “enfant terrible” Charlie Sheen, the role of Schmidt is now played by Ashton Kutcher, and he himself is not the last person in Silicon Valley.

Lara Croft

Net worth: $1.3 billion
Source: Inheritance, Jewel Hunt
Geography: Wimbledon, England
Fame: Tomb Raider
The heroine of the legendary video game, embodied in Hollywood by Angelina Jolie, returned to the Forbes ranking for the first time since 2008.

Mr Monopoly

Net worth: $5.8 billion
Source: real estate
Geography: Atlantic City, New Jersey
Fame: Monopoly

A symbol of the cult board game, this character lost more than 50% of his fortune in a year.

Mary Crowley

Net worth: $1.1 billion
Source: inheritance, dowry
Geography: Yorkshire, England
Fame: "Downton Abbey"

The daughter of the Earl of Grantham, Crowley is the main character of the British series, which was included in the Guinness Book of Records as the most discussed in history.

Jay Gatsby

Net worth: $1 billion
Source: extortion, investments
Geography: West Egg, New York
Fame: "The Great Gatsby"

Last year, the hero of Fitzgerald's famous novel acquired a new film image performed by Leonardo DiCaprio. The actor helped the film adaptation of The Great Gatsby gather an impressive box office, and the character himself turned into a role model for a new generation. Previously, Gatsby was included in the rating only once - in 2009. The size of his fortune has not changed since then.

Carlisle Cullen

Net worth: $46 billion
Source of Wealth: Investments
Geography: Forks, Washington
Fame: "Twilight"

The 373-year-old native of London burst into the rankings in 2010, immediately taking first place. Over the past three years, despite an increase in his fortune of $12 billion, the head of the vampire clan has lost leadership to more conservative fictional characters. The popularity of Twilight itself is also at risk of declining.

Tony Stark

Net worth: $12.4 billion
Source of Wealth: Defense Technology
Geography: Malibu, California
Fame: "Iron Man"

The brilliant, vain inventor Stark has moved from the comic book universe to the Hollywood universe in recent years. The hero of Robert Downey Jr. collected an impressive box office (the third part of “Iron Man” received more than $1 billion at the box office) and became one of the most popular film characters of our time. In the Forbes ranking, the head and owner of Stark Industries also rose by one place. Stark's fortune grew by more than $3 billion in a year.

Somersett Maugham's novel "The Moon and a Penny". Essentially, the novel is a biography of a character. However, he had a real prototype - the famous French post-impressionist artist Paul Gauguin.

The beginning of the biography of the artist Charles Strickland

This is a man who was suddenly struck by a deep love for art. Plucking up courage, he abandoned everything that made him wealthy and devoted himself to creativity.

Charles Strickland was a stockbroker. Of course, his income could not be called fabulous, but his earnings were enough for a comfortable existence. At first he came across as a very boring character, but one action turned everything around.

He abandoned his family, quit his job and rented a cheap room in a run-down hotel in Paris. He began to draw pictures and often drink absinthe. Unexpectedly for everyone, he turned out to be a crazy creator who was not interested in anything except his own painting.

Charles Strickland seemed like a complete madman - he did not care how and what his wife and children would live on, what others would say about him, whether his friends would remain with him. He didn't even seek recognition in society. The only thing he understood was an uncontrollable passion for art and the impossibility of his own existence without it.

After the divorce, he became an almost impoverished artist, living to improve his skills, supported by rare earnings. Very often he did not have enough money even for food.

Strickland's character

The artist Charles Strickland was not recognized by other artists. Only one mediocre painter, Dirk Stroeve, recognized his talent. One day Charles fell ill, and Dirk allowed him into his house, despite the contempt with which the sick man treated him.

Strickland was quite cynical and, noticing that Dirk’s wife admired him, he seduced her only to paint a portrait.

By the time the nude portrait of Blanche was completed, Charles had recovered and left her. For her, the separation became an unbearable test - Blanche committed suicide by drinking acid. However, Strickland was not at all worried about this - he did not care about everything that happened outside of his paintings.

The end of the novel

After all the incidents, Charles Strickland continued to wander, but after some time he went to the island of Haiti, where he married a native woman and again completely immersed himself in drawing. There he contracted leprosy and died.

But shortly before his death, he created, perhaps, his main masterpiece. From floor to ceiling, he painted the walls of the hut (which was willed to be burned after his death).

The walls were covered with bizarre drawings, when you looked at them your heart skipped a beat and took your breath away. The painting reflected something mysterious, some secret that lurks in the depths of nature itself.

The paintings of artist Charles Strickland might have remained unknown and unrecognized works of art. But one critic wrote an article about him, after which Strickland received recognition, but after his death.

Paul Gauguin - prototype of the hero of the novel

It is not surprising that Maugham wrote a novel about a character so similar to Paul Gauguin. After all, the writer, like the artist, adored art. He bought many paintings for his collection. Among them were works by Gauguin.

The life of Charles Strickland largely repeats the events that happened to the French artist.

Gauguin's passion for exotic countries began in early childhood, because until the age of 7 he lived with his mother in Peru. This may have been the reason for his move to Tahiti towards the end of his life.

Paul Gauguin, like the character in the novel, left his wife and five children for the sake of painting. After that, he traveled a lot, met artists, was engaged in self-improvement and searching for his own “I”.

But unlike Strickland, Gauguin still interested some artists of his time. Some of them had a special influence on his work. Thus, notes of symbolism appeared in his painting. And from communicating with Laval, Japanese motifs became noticeable in his works. For some time he lived with Van Gogh, but it all ended in a quarrel.

On his last trip to the island of Hiva Oa, Gauguin marries a young islander and plunges into work: painting, writing stories and articles. There he catches many diseases, among which is leprosy. This is why he dies. But, despite all the difficulties, Gauguin painted his best paintings there.

During his life he managed to see a lot. But he received recognition and fame only 3 years after his death. His work had a significant influence on art. And to this day his paintings are recognized as one of the most expensive masterpieces of world art.

We sometimes perceive heroes of famous books and films as good acquaintances, but we still remember that these are fictional characters. And it’s even more interesting to know that writers were inspired to create them by real people. The authors borrowed their appearance, habits, and even favorite words from them.

"Abstract" Marshak -
Academician Ivan Kablukov

It turns out that the “absent-minded man from Basseynaya Street” from Samuil Marshak’s poem actually existed! He was the famous eccentric, academician Ivan Kablukov, who was famous for his impracticality and absent-mindedness. For example, instead of the words “chemistry and physics,” the professor often told students “chemistry and physics.” And instead of the phrase “the flask burst, and a piece of glass fell into the eye,” he could have gotten: “the flask burst, and a piece of the eye fell into the glass.” The expression “Mendelshutkin” meant “Mendeleev and Menshutkin,” and Ivan Alekseevich’s usual words were “not at all” and “I, that is, not me.”

The professor read a poem, and one day he reminded Marshak’s brother, the writer Ilyin, wagging his finger: “Your brother, of course, was aiming at me!” In Marshak’s drafts there is this version of the beginning of the poem, in which the hero was directly named by the first and last name of the prototype:

Lives in Leningrad
Ivan Kablukov.
He calls himself
Heel Ivanov.

Dr. House - Dr. Thomas Bolte

Dr. Thomas Bolti, nicknamed “the real House,” is also eccentric. Here he is rushing to the patient, avoiding traffic jams on roller skates.

The creators of the series about Dr. House became interested in the story of the doctor Thomas Bolti from New York, who cured a gallery owner who had suffered from migraines for 40 years. The man visited several dozen doctors who fed him a bunch of medications for headaches. And Thomas Bolti got hooked on the fact that the patient could not tolerate egg yolk. He carefully studied the tests again and realized that the patient had been suffering from heavy metal poisoning for 40 years. After treatment, the man forgot what a migraine was. And this is not an isolated case - Bolti’s talent and erudition allow him to take on the most difficult cases. He is even called a “medical detective.”

The creators of House were inspired by cases from Bolti's practice and his somewhat eccentric behavior. He himself is not delighted with the series: “Yes, there are some similarities between us, but I don’t like the film. I am categorically against going over heads like House to make a diagnosis.” But by the way, after this, Dr. Bolti’s career took off, and now he is the official doctor of the MTV office.

Dorian Gray - poet John Gray

The English poet John Gray, whom Oscar Wilde met in the late 80s of the 19th century, became the prototype of Dorian Gray. A sophisticated, decadent poet, smart, handsome and ambitious, he inspired the writer with the image of the eternally young and beautiful Dorian Gray. After the release of the famous novel, many began to call John Gray after the hero, and the poet himself signed at least one of his letters to Wilde “Dorian.” It is surprising that after 30 years John Gray abandoned bohemian life, became a Catholic priest and even received a parish.

Sherlock Holmes - Professor Joseph Bell

Sherlock Holmes has much in common with Edinburgh University professor Joseph Bell, for whom Conan Doyle worked as an assistant at the hospital. The writer often recalled his teacher, talking about his eagle profile, inquisitive mind and amazing intuition. Bell was tall, lean, abrupt in his movements and smoked a pipe.

He knew how to accurately determine the profession and character of his patients and always encouraged students to use deduction. He invited strangers to lectures and asked students to say who they were and where they were from. One day he brought a man in a hat into the audience, and when no one could answer Bell’s questions, he explained that since he had forgotten to take off his hat, he most likely had recently served in the army. There it is customary to wear a headdress in order to salute. And since he showed signs of a fever characteristic of the West Indies, this man apparently arrived from Barbados.

James Bond - "King of Spies" Sydney Reilly

There are debates about the prototype of James Bond, and this image is largely collective (former intelligence officer Ian Fleming gave the hero his own features). But many agree that the character is very similar to the “king of spies,” British intelligence officer and adventurer of Russian origin, Sidney Reilly.

Incredibly erudite, he spoke seven languages, loved to play politics and manipulate people, adored women and had numerous affairs. Reilly never failed a single operation entrusted to him and was known for being able to find a way out of almost any situation. He knew how to instantly transform into a completely different personality. By the way, he has a great legacy in Russia: his track record even includes preparations for the assassination attempt on Lenin.

Peter Pan - Michael Davis

Writer James Barrie's wonderful book about Peter Pan was inspired by the son of the writer's friends, Sylvia and Arthur Davis. He had known the Davises for a long time, was friends with all their five sons, but it was four-year-old Michael (a brilliant boy, as they said about him) who became the prototype of Peter Pan. From him he copied character traits and even nightmares that tormented the playful and brave, but sensitive child. By the way, the Peter Pan sculpture in Kensington Gardens has Michael's face.

Christopher Robin - Christopher Robin Milne

Christopher Robin from the books about Winnie the Pooh by Alan Milne is the son of the writer, whose name was exactly that - Christopher Robin. As a child, the relationship with my parents did not work out - the mother was busy only with herself, the father with his creativity, he spent a lot of time with the nanny. He would later write: “There were two things that darkened my life and from which I had to escape: the fame of my father and “Christopher Robin.” The child grew up very kind, nervous and shy. “The prototype of both Christopher Robin and Piglet,” as psychologists would later say about him. The boy's favorite toy was Teddy Bear, which his father gave him for his first birthday. And the bear, as you may have guessed, is Robin's best friend Winnie the Pooh.

"The Wolf of Wall Street" - broker Jordan Belfort

On the left is Jordan Belfort, and it is about his biography that we learn from the successful Hollywood film. Life raised the stockbroker to the top and dropped him into the dirt. At first he plunged headlong into a beautiful life, and later he was sent to prison for almost 2 years for fraud in the securities market. After his release, Belfort easily found use for his talents: he wrote 2 books about his life and began conducting seminars as a motivational speaker. According to him, the main rules of success are: “Act with boundless faith in yourself, and then people will believe you. Act as if you have already achieved amazing success, and then you will truly succeed!

Anna Karenina - Maria, Pushkin's daughter

Leo Tolstoy never hid the amazing origins of his heroine, whose prototype was Maria Aleksandrovna Hartung, née Pushkin. The beloved daughter of the “sun of Russian poetry” was very similar to her great father, and her life was destined for a very difficult life.

Looking at the portrait of Maria, you can understand what Anna Karenina looked like as imagined by Leo Tolstoy. And the Arabic curls of her hair, and the unexpected lightness of her plump but graceful figure, her intelligent face - all this was characteristic of Hartung. Her fate was difficult, and perhaps Tolstoy caught a premonition of a future tragedy in her beautiful face.

Ostap Bender - Osip Shor

The fate of Ostap Bender’s prototype is no less surprising than the story of the “great schemer”. Osip Shor was a man of many talents: he played football well, was well versed in law, worked for several years in the criminal investigation department and was in many troubles, from which he got out with the help of artistry and inexhaustible imagination mixed with arrogance.

His big dream was to go to Brazil or Argentina, so Osip began to dress in a special way: he wore light clothes, a white captain’s cap and, of course, a scarf. Writers also borrowed signature phrases from him, for example, “My dad is Turkish.” This was Shor's first scam - in order to avoid being drafted into the army, he decided to impersonate a Turk and forged documents.

The tricks of the adventurer Osip were innumerable: in 1918–1919 in Odessa, in order to earn a living, he posed as an artist, a chess grandmaster, a representative of an underground anti-Soviet organization, or sold places in paradise to bandits. And one day he asked Ilf and Petrov for money “for the image” (he later admitted that it was a joke). Valentin Kataev talks about these events in his book “My Diamond Crown”.

When we watch movies, we don’t even think about the fact that the movie characters who look at us from the screen are often based on real people in life. In fact, it’s much easier for directors to work this way, because they don’t have to come up with an image themselves, especially since it turns out more alive and real if you take a real prototype of the hero.

Directors also borrow their mannerisms and even slang words from real prototypes.

Ostap Bender

The famous adventurer Ostap Bender was based on a real person named Osip Shor, who lived in Odessa. Shor was quite erudite despite his dislike for science and work. He gained significant life experience when he worked in the criminal investigation department, where he also developed a knowledge of the law, which helped him get out of a wide variety of situations, using his imagination and acting skills.

Ostap Bender's outfit exactly replicates the clothes that Shor loved to wear. White cap of a sea captain, famous scarf. The authors even borrowed Shor’s signature phrase: “my dad is a Turkish citizen.” Osip said this in order to support his legend, with the help of which he was able to “dodge” the army (he forged documents and pretended to be a Turk).

The adventures of Osip Shor in Odessa went down in history, they even erected a monument to him. The adventurer seemed to be skilled in a variety of professions if it helped him earn money for a living.

Anna Karenina

Even Tolstoy tried to use real images whenever possible. Thus, the prototype of Anna Karenina was Pushkin’s daughter, Maria Aleksandrovna Hartung. Tolstoy himself never hid this, as well as his love for the work of the leader of Russian poetry.

When describing Anna Karenina, the writer was guided by portraits of Maria, including emphasizing the Arabic notes in her appearance.

"The Wolf of Wall Street" Jordan Belfort

Even the main character of the film "The Wolf of Wall Street" has his real prototype. He turned out to be Jordan Belfort, a man with a difficult life, whose biography turned out to be so rich that he was honored to be described in a film starring Leonardo DiCaprio.

Jordan also experienced the taste and craziness of a rich life, and the end of it all was a two-year prison sentence. When Belfort served his sentence, he returned to big business, but as a personal growth coach and wrote several books on this topic.

Christopher Robin

Perhaps the most famous character who has a real prototype in life is Christopher Robin, the boy from the cartoon about Winnie the Pooh. Alan Milne, the book's author, had a son whose name was indeed Christopher Robin.

The boy grew up alienated from his parents due to their busy lives, and the father decided to write his son’s name in a book, which would later gain popularity all over the world. Christopher would later complain that his father's fame, like his literary alternative, was a real test for a child who simply wanted his parents' attention. Christopher had a favorite toy - a teddy bear Teddy, who became the prototype of Winnie the Pooh.

Peter Pan

Another children's story called "Peter Pan" was written by James Barrie after talking to the young son of his friends Sylvia and Arthur Davies, whose name was Michael Davies. The writer tried to very accurately convey the boy’s character traits, and also described the child’s nightmares, which also tormented Peter Pan in the book.

James Bond

It would seem that James Bond is definitely a fictional character, because he is too easy to fool villains around his finger. In fact, the character of Ian Flemming has a real prototype, which was the “king of spies” Sidney Reilly, a British spy who became famous throughout the world.

A polyglot who spoke 7 languages, super-eruditeness, incredible skills in psychology and manipulating people, a famous womanizer and a person who could get out of any situation - this is all Sydney Reilly. This intelligence officer did not fail a single mission and carried out his activities in all parts of the world, even in Russia.

Sherlock Holmes

Many believe that Arthur Conan Doyle himself made himself the prototype of Sherlock Holmes, but he has much more in common with the teacher and professor at the University of Edinburgh Joseph Bell, who taught Doyle himself.

The writer himself often recalled his teacher, noting his incredibly inquisitive mind, eagle-like features and even his passion for pipe smoking.
Bell often gave his students tests: he invited strangers into the classroom and asked the students to tell something about the person, using only the method of deduction.

Dr. House

The prototype of the famous and beloved Dr. House was a real doctor named Thomas Bolti, who was also distinguished by particularly shocking behavior.

From Bolti, the authors of the series took not only strange actions and arrogance, but also the inquisitive mind of a talented doctor. He attracted the attention of producers because he was able to cure a patient who had suffered from terrible migraines almost all his life and no one could help him. Thomas took a more creative approach to the patient's medical history and studied his tests. It turned out that the man had been poisoned by heavy metals several decades ago, which remained in his body. After treatment, the patient was completely healthy.