If one grew up in the Soviet Union in the 80s (and we're not saying we did, but, hypothetically speaking, some people grew up in the Soviet Union in the 80s), there were two deaths that shook up the country like a storm. (Actually, there were three, but let's say, again hypothetically, that we were too young to remember the one from 1980.)

In 1982, Leonid Brezhnev kicked the bucket. One would think that the whole country would be in mourning for the passing of its benevolent and eyebrowed leader, friend to all children. Yet that wasn't the case. Sure, the official stance was of nationwide mourning, but did people really cry? Good riddance.

Such wasn't the case when Andrei Mironov passed away in 1987. Perhaps the country's favorite actor (and, yes, half Jewish. His father's surname was Menaker, but the family elected to go with the mother's goyishe moniker), he succumbed prematurely at the age of 46. And the Soviet Union wept. These were not the fake tears dedicated to Brezhnev. These were all too real.

Now, is this just an example how actors have a greater effect on our daily lives than politicians? Or something specific to the situation on the Soviet Union in the 80s? Of course, we would be able to talk about that last part hypothetically...