LOS ANGELES -- Alexander Godunov, the lithe dancer with the long flaxen hair and a brooding manner who created an international stir when he defected from the Soviet Union in 1979, was found dead Thursday.
Godunov was 45.
Paramedics called to his home in West Hollywood found him about noon, said Los Angeles County sheriff's Sgt. Bob Minutello.
Minutello said Godunov's physician, Dr. Maurice Levy, would list the death as natural causes. Levy declined to comment on his patient's death.
Godunov had been living in Los Angeles for several years pursuing an uneventful film career. He had also been teaching at the Lichine Ballet Academy in Beverly Hills.
Godunov had been a premier danseur with the Bolshoi Ballet since he was 19. He started his training there at age 9, and at 19 he was selected to dance the Prince in "Swan Lake.''
Soon he was dancing with the company's greatest ballerinas, and Russian dancers and critics immediately saw him as a rising star.
"We attached the greatest hope to him," said ballet critic Vadim Kiselev in Moscow. "He was very handsome -- blond, manly, and beautiful, like a viking -- and he could play both heroic and tragic parts."
Among his best roles were Tybalt in "Romeo and Juliet," Ivan in "Ivan the Terrible," the title role in "Spartacus" as well as the standard classical princely repertoire. He also partnered the legendary Maya Plisetskaya in "Carmen."
But despite his talent, Godunov never realized his colleagues' expectations after he left for the United States.
"He was unique," Kiselev said, "But he was like a wonderful melody without a cadence and we're all sad now because he was our greatest hope, which was never fulfilled."
Godunov was touring the United States with the Bolshoi in August 1979 when he made worldwide news by requesting political asylum, saying he felt artistically restrained in his homeland.
His wife, Bolshoi soloist Lyudmila Vlasova, refused to stay with him in America and returned to Russia. They divorced in 1982.
He proved a prime crowd-pleaser with the American Ballet Theater, but he and director Mikhail Baryshnikov, another Soviet defector, clashed and he was fired in 1982. He said his old friend had "thrown me away like a potato peel.''
He became a guest artist with several companies and starred in his own television show, "Godunov: The World to Dance In'' in 1983. It was after his dance career ended that his film career began, but it was never as successful.
His first picture was "Witness'' in 1985, in which he portrayed an Amish farmer.
His other movie roles included a supercilious conductor in "The Money Pit'' with Tom Hanks, a psychotic killer opposite Bruce Willis in "Die Hard'' and a madman in "Waxwork II.''
Godunov became an American citizen in 1987, saying he planned to celebrate with "a hamburger stuffed with caviar.'' ()
… we have a small favor to ask. As you may have heard, The Moscow Times, an independent news source for over 30 years, has been unjustly branded as a "foreign agent" by the Russian government. This blatant attempt to silence our voice is a direct assault on the integrity of journalism and the values we hold dear.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. Our commitment to providing accurate and unbiased reporting on Russia remains unshaken. But we need your help to continue our critical mission.
Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and you can be confident that you're making a significant impact every month by supporting open, independent journalism. Thank you.
Remind me later.