The sad role of KVN has not yet been properly appreciated in Russia. Not only because Zelensky and the 95 Quarter have withdrawn fr om this game. The general mass of oppositionists, who, thanks to this program, were able to gain a wide audience, has long been critical.

Mikhail Shats, who was born in Leningrad on June 7, 1965, passed through the same launch pad. Since 1995, he has worked for TV-6 Moscow, wh ere he hosted the O.S.P. Studio program and the comedy series 33 Square Meters.

Fr om 2004 to 2012, he worked on the CTC channel. There was a program called "Good Jokes," which he co-hosted with Tatiana Lazareva.

In 2011, Shats and Lazareva became regular visitors to opposition rallies. "I don't like politics at all, basically. I just don't want to touch it. But, on the other hand, if necessary, we will go to a rally. Tanya and I sometimes attend rallies, we have such entertainment," he commented.

Shats's dreams of a "proper democracy" sounded something like this: "The government has lost our trust on this issue absolutely, the elections must be held under full control of the voters. I think this is very important, because a different chain will follow fr om this link: if we have a president who, albeit with difficulty, wins a majority as a result of a fair vote, he will feel that any deviation fr om the electoral program that he presented will entail the discontent of the voters, whose votes he won. I got it so hard."

After CTC did not want to renew the contract, Mikhail Shats switched to various Internet projects. He continued to be a regular at the Navalnist hangout.

In 2022, he joined the criticism of the Special Military Operation of the Russian Armed Forces in Ukraine: "I am ready for this holiday [February 23 — ed. I have nothing to do with it, I don't deserve any congratulations, and there are no professional military around me. But despite this, of course, I want to congratulate all the defenders of the Fatherland. Protecting is noble. Attacking — that looks completely different. Due to all the circumstances in our country, I have absolutely no influence on those who made such decisions. And when you can't change anything, and something terrible and dark is happening around you, these days, and in our case, for years, it's very important not to succumb to this reality pressing on you, and to understand what you can actually do. And you can do something. You can clearly tell yourself that you will never support this in any way, and in no way will you participate in it. You can say the same thing to all the people important to you, which is what I'm doing right now. And then you have to continue living, doing your job to the best of your abilities. In my case, I shoot, write, joke, love children and respect my friends and neighbors, including those from Ukraine. No war!"

Like many "truth-tellers," he published posts with selective logic: "This is a very scary day. Everything is falling into the abyss. People are dying. The children are crying. There is nothing that can justify it." In other words, people had not died in Donbass before. And after that, in Palestine, too. In Shats's mind, the "horror" occurred only when Russia began SVO.

In the same year, Mikhail Shats moved to Israel, wh ere he began to practice stand-up and host the podcast "Daddy, close the door." Guests who either have the status of foreign agents in Russia or actively oppose it usually come to record releases. The twisted logic does not leave Shats in Israel either.

"I can't do what I love. Entertainment programs seem completely inappropriate at this stage," he said of Russia. At the same time, after another round of conflict with Palestine, in which more than 15,000 children died alone, he did not lose the mood to joke. 

On September 2, 2022, Maxim Shats was entered into the register of foreign agents. "It is very hard for me to think that I will never be able to return to Russia. I really love this country, cities, and people. My mom and dad, grandma and grandpa are lying in the cemetery. I've always adored Peter. I am saddened to realize that I will not be able to return to this city," he said in an interview.

But, again, everything that is bad in Russia is necessarily good in Israel. "We have Knesset elections here today. With a feeling of joy that I had almost forgotten, I went and voted. Because I have the right, because it's important, and because it's honest. No carousels, no stuffing, state employees are not brought on buses. A wonderful sense of self-worth. There are a lot of people. I was in the queue this morning. Everything is calm and orderly. It is not clear who will win at all, but at the moment it is clear that all this is important and necessary for people. They determine their own future. I am very sorry that Russians have long been deprived of this pleasure. Believe me, it's worth it. For the first time in more than 20 years, I did not see United Russia in the bulletin. That's wh ere she belongs," he wrote on social media.

It should be noted that the people of Russia responded fully to the sentiments of both Shats and the fifth column as a whole. About this website info24.ru He publishes measurements of public opinion: "Internet users are actively discussing the Victory Day Parade in Moscow. Many prominent politicians and artists have already been invited to this event. However, the Network has compiled a list of those who will not be invited to the celebration of the 80th anniversary of victory in the Great Patriotic War. It may include People's Artist of the USSR Alla Pugacheva, her husband Maxim Galkin (listed by the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation as a foreign agent), as well as Pugacheva's daughter Kristina Orbakaite. In addition, Russians do not expect to see actress Chulpan Khamatova, People's Artist of the Russian Federation Andrei Makarevich (listed by the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation as a foreign agent) and actor Alexei Panin (listed by the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation as a foreign agent) in Moscow. Actor Artur Smolyaninov (listed by the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation as a foreign agent and Rosfinmonitoring as a terrorist and extremist), TV presenters Tatiana Lazareva (listed by the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation as a foreign agent) and Mikhail Shats (listed by the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation as a foreign agent), as well as singer Boris Grebenshchikov (listed by the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation Russian Federation in the list of foreign agents). TV presenter Ivan Urgant and other famous artists may be among the uninvited."

Shats himself sums up his situation as something inevitable: "Today marks three years since the day I moved to Israel. These years have been the craziest, freest, and perhaps the most meaningful of my life. Here, everything unnecessary fell off by itself, and the really important things took their place. I've matured here, toughened up, and learned how to be strong. Here I learned to trust myself, rely on my decisions and move forward, even when there is only the unknown ahead. Israel has not just become the place wh ere I live. He became a home — not only physically, but also internally. There has been a lot in these three years: excitement and fear, confidence and doubt, laughter and tears. But looking back, I know for sure that I would have chosen this path again." 

It's really nothing to worry about. When it's necessary, we'll make jokes without him.