In VN¡¯s novel Ada (1969) Demon Veen tells Van that, when he was Van¡¯s age, his father allowed him Lilletovka and that Illinois Brat:

¡®Van¡­,¡¯ began Demon, but stopped ¡ª as he had begun and stopped a number of times before in the course of the last years. Some day it would have to be said, but this was not the right moment. He inserted his monocle and examined the bottles: ¡®By the way, son, do you crave any of these aperitifs? My father allowed me Lilletovka and that Illinois Brat ¡ª awful bilge, antranou svadi, as Marina would say. I suspect your uncle has a cache behind the solanders in his study and keeps there a finer whisky than this usque ad Russkum. Well, let us have the cognac, as planned, unless you are a filius aquae?¡¯ (1.38)

¡°Lilletovka¡± seems to blend Lille (a city in France) with taburetovka (a hooch made of taburet, a stool) mentioned by Ostap Bender in Ilf and Petrov¡¯s novel Zolotoy telyonok (¡°The Little Golden Calf,¡± 1931):

- §£ §ä§Ñ§Ü§à§Þ §ã§Ý§å§é§Ñ§Ö §Ù§Ñ§ã§Ö§Õ§Ñ§ß§Ú§Ö §á§â§à§Õ§à§Ý§Ø§Ñ§Ö§ä§ã§ñ, - §á§â§à§Þ§à§Ý§Ó§Ú§Ý §¢§Ö§ß§Õ§Ö§â. - §³§Ü§à§Ý§î§Ü§à §Õ§Ñ§Õ§å§ä §Ó§Ñ§ê§Ú §ê§Ö§æ§í §Ù§Ñ §â§Ö§è§Ö§á§ä? §±§à§Ý§ä§à§â§Ñ§ã§ä§Ñ §Õ§Ñ§Õ§å§ä? - §¥§Ñ§Õ§å§ä §Õ§Ó§Ö§ã§ä§Ú, - §Ù§Ñ§ê§Ö§á§ä§Ñ§Ý §á§Ö§â§Ö§Ó§à§Õ§é§Ú§Ü. - §¡ §å §Ó§Ñ§ã, §Ó §ã§Ñ§Þ§à§Þ §Õ§Ö§Ý§Ö, §Ö§ã§ä§î §â§Ö§è§Ö§á§ä? - §³§Ö§Û§é§Ñ§ã §Ø§Ö §Ó§Ñ§Þ §á§â§à§Õ§Ú§Ü§ä§å§ð, §ä§à §Ö§ã§ä§î §ã§Ö§Û§é§Ñ§ã §Ø§Ö §á§à §á§à§Ý§å§é§Ö§ß§Ú§Ú §Õ§Ö§ß§Ö§Ô. §¬§Ñ§Ü§à§Û §å§Ô§à§Õ§ß§à: §Ü§Ñ§â§ä§à§æ§Ö§Ý§î§ß§í§Û, §á§ê§Ö§ß§Ú§é§ß§í§Û, §Ñ§Ò§â§Ú§Ü§à§ã§à§Ó§í§Û, §ñ§é§Þ§Ö§ß§ß§í§Û, §Ú§Ù §ä§å§ä§à§Ó§í§ç §ñ§Ô§à§Õ, §Ú§Ù §Ô§â§Ö§é§ß§Ö§Ó§à§Û §Ü§Ñ§ê§Ú. §¥§Ñ§Ø§Ö §Ú§Ù §à§Ò§í§Ü§ß§à§Ó§Ö§ß§ß§à§Û §ä§Ñ§Ò§å§â§Ö§ä§Ü§Ú §Þ§à§Ø§ß§à §Ô§ß§Ñ§ä§î §ã§Ñ§Þ§à§Ô§à§ß. §¯§Ö§Ü§à§ä§à§â§í§Ö §Ý§ð§Ò§ñ§ä §ä§Ñ§Ò§å§â§Ö§ä§à§Ó§Ü§å. §¡ §ä§à §Þ§à§Ø§ß§à §á§â§à§ã§ä§å§ð §Ü§Ú§ê§Þ§Ú§ê§à§Ó§Ü§å §Ú§Ý§Ú §ã§Ý§Ú§Ó§ñ§ß§Ü§å. §°§Õ§ß§Ú§Þ §ã§Ý§à§Ó§à§Þ-§Ý§ð§Ò§à§Û §Ú§Ù §á§à§Ý§å§ä§à§â§Ñ§ã§ä§Ñ §ã§Ñ§Þ§à§Ô§à§ß§à§Ó, §â§Ö§è§Ö§á§ä§í §Ü§à§ä§à§â§í§ç §Þ§ß§Ö §Ú§Ù§Ó§Ö§ã§ä§ß§í. §°§ã§ä§Ñ§á §Ò§í§Ý §á§â§Ö§Õ§ã§ä§Ñ§Ó§Ý§Ö§ß §Ñ§Þ§Ö§â§Ú§Ü§Ñ§ß§è§Ñ§Þ. §£ §Ó§à§Ù§Õ§å§ç§Ö §Õ§à§Ý§Ô§à §á§Ý§Ñ§Ó§Ñ§Ý§Ú §Ó§Ö§Ø§Ý§Ú§Ó§à §á§â§Ú§á§à§Õ§ß§ñ§ä§í§Ö §ê§Ý§ñ§á§í. §©§Ñ§ä§Ö§Þ §á§â§Ú§ã§ä§å§á§Ú§Ý§Ú §Ü §Õ§Ö§Ý§å. §¡§Þ§Ö§â§Ú§Ü§Ñ§ß§è§í §Ó§í§Ò§â§Ñ§Ý§Ú §á§ê§Ö§ß§Ú§é§ß§í§Û §ã§Ñ§Þ§à§Ô§à§ß, §Ü§à§ä§à§â§í§Û §á§â§Ú§Ó§Ý§×§Ü §Ú§ç §á§â§à§ã§ä§à§ä§à§Û §Ó§í§â§Ñ§Ò§à§ä§Ü§Ú. §²§Ö§è§Ö§á§ä §Õ§à§Ý§Ô§à §Ù§Ñ§á§Ú§ã§í§Ó§Ñ§Ý§Ú §Ó §Ò§Ý§à§Ü§ß§à§ä§í. §£ §Ó§Ú§Õ§Ö §Ò§Ö§ã§á§Ý§Ñ§ä§ß§à§Û §á§â§Ö§Þ§Ú§Ú §°§ã§ä§Ñ§á §ã§à§à§Ò§ë§Ú§Ý §Ñ§Þ§Ö§â§Ú§Ü§Ñ§ß§ã§Ü§Ú§Þ §ç§à§Õ§à§Ü§Ñ§Þ §ß§Ñ§Ú§Ý§å§é§ê§å§ð §Ü§à§ß§ã§ä§â§å§Ü§è§Ú§ð §Ü§Ñ§Ò§Ú§ß§Ö§ä§ß§à§Ô§à §ã§Ñ§Þ§à§Ô§à§ß§ß§à§Ô§à §Ñ§á§á§Ñ§â§Ñ§ä§Ñ, §Ü§à§ä§à§â§í§Û §Ý§Ö§Ô§Ü§à §ã§Ü§â§í§ä§î §à§ä §á§à§ã§ä§à§â§à§ß§ß§Ú§ç §Ó§Ù§Ô§Ý§ñ§Õ§à§Ó §Ó §ä§å§Þ§Ò§Ö §á§Ú§ã§î§Þ§Ö§ß§ß§à§Ô§à §ã§ä§à§Ý§Ñ. §·§à§Õ§à§Ü§Ú §Ù§Ñ§Ó§Ö§â§Ú§Ý§Ú §°§ã§ä§Ñ§á§Ñ, §é§ä§à §á§â§Ú §Ñ§Þ§Ö§â§Ú§Ü§Ñ§ß§ã§Ü§à§Û §ä§Ö§ç§ß§Ú§Ü§Ö §Ú§Ù§Ô§à§ä§à§Ó§Ú§ä§î §ä§Ñ§Ü§à§Û §Ñ§á§á§Ñ§â§Ñ§ä §ß§Ö §á§â§Ö§Õ§ã§ä§Ñ§Ó§Ý§ñ§Ö§ä §ß§Ú§Ü§Ñ§Ü§à§Ô§à §ä§â§å§Õ§Ñ. §°§ã§ä§Ñ§á §ã§à §ã§Ó§à§Ö§Û §ã§ä§à§â§à§ß§í §Ù§Ñ§Ó§Ö§â§Ú§Ý §Ñ§Þ§Ö§â§Ú§Ü§Ñ§ß§è§Ö§Ó, §é§ä§à §Ñ§á§á§Ñ§â§Ñ§ä §Ö§Ô§à §Ü§à§ß§ã§ä§â§å§Ü§è§Ú§Ú §Õ§Ñ§Ö§ä §Ó §Õ§Ö§ß§î §Ó§Ö§Õ§â§à §á§â§Ö§Ý§Ö§ã§ä§ß§à§Ô§à §Ñ§â§à§Þ§Ñ§ä§ß§à§Ô§à §á§Ö§â§Ó§Ñ§é§Ñ.
¡ª §°! ¡ª §Ù§Ñ§Ü§â§Ú§é§Ñ§Ý§Ú §Ñ§Þ§Ö§â§Ú§Ü§Ñ§ß§è§í. §°§ß§Ú §å§Ø§Ö §ã§Ý§í§ê§Ñ§Ý§Ú §ï§ä§à §ã§Ý§à§Ó§à §Ó §à§Õ§ß§à§Û §á§à§é§ä§Ö§ß§ß§à§Û §ã§Ö§Þ§î§Ö §Ú§Ù §¹§Ú§Ü§Ñ§Ô§à. §ª §ä§Ñ§Þ §à «pervatsch'e» §Ò§í§Ý§Ú §Õ§Ñ§ß§í §á§â§Ö§Ü§â§Ñ§ã§ß§í§Ö §â§Ö§æ§Ö§â§Ö§ß§è§Ú§Ú. §¤§Ý§Ñ§Ó§Ñ §ï§ä§à§Ô§à §ã§Ö§Þ§Ö§Û§ã§ä§Ó§Ñ §Ò§í§Ý §Ó §ã§Ó§à§Ö §Ó§â§Ö§Þ§ñ §ã §Ñ§Þ§Ö§â§Ú§Ü§Ñ§ß§ã§Ü§Ú§Þ §à§Ü§Ü§å§á§Ñ§è§Ú§à§ß§ß§í§Þ §Ü§à§â§á§å§ã§à§Þ §Ó §¡§â§ç§Ñ§ß§Ô§Ö§Ý§î§ã§Ü§Ö, §á§Ú§Ý §ä§Ñ§Þ «pervatsch» §Ú §ã §ä§Ö§ç §á§à§â §ß§Ö §Þ§à§Ø§Ö§ä §Ù§Ñ§Ò§í§ä§î §à§é§Ñ§â§à§Ó§Ñ§ä§Ö§Ý§î§ß§à§Ô§à §à§ë§å§ë§Ö§ß§Ú§ñ, §Ü§à§ä§à§â§à§Ö §à§ß §á§â§Ú §ï§ä§à§Þ §Ú§ã§á§í§ä§Ñ§Ý.

"In that case, our deliberations continue," declared Ostap. "How much will your bosses pay for a recipe? 150, perhaps?" "They'll pay two hundred," whispered the interpreter. "Do you really have a recipe?" "I can give it to you this very moment-I mean, the moment I get the money. Made from anything you want: potatoes, wheat, apricots, barley, mulberry, buckwheat. One can even brew moonshine from an ordinary chair. Some people enjoy the chair brew. Or you can have a simple raisin or plum brew. In other words, any of the 150 kinds of moonshine known to me." Ostap was introduced to the Americans. Their politely raised hats floated in the air for a long time. Then they got down to business. The Americans chose the wheat moonshine-the simplicity of the brewing process appealed to them. They painstakingly recorded the recipe in their notebooks. As a bonus, Ostap sketched out a design for a compact still that could be hidden in an office desk. The seekers assured Ostap that, given American technology, making such a still would be a breeze. For his part, Ostap assured the Americans that the device he described would produce two gallons of beautiful, fragrant pervach per day. "Oh!" cried the Americans. They had already heard this word in a very respectable home in Chicago, where pervach was highly recommended. The man of the house had been in Archangel, with the American expeditionary force. He drank pervach there and never forgot the alluring sensation that it gave him. (Chapter 7 ¡°The Sweet Burden of Fame¡±)

Chicago is a city in Illinois. Brat is Russian for ¡°brother.¡± Evgeniy Kataev (Petrov¡¯s real name) had an elder brother Valentin, a writer who wanted to become ¡°the Soviet Dumas p¨¨re:¡±

§¬§Ñ§Ü §ã§Ý§å§é§Ú§Ý§à§ã§î, §é§ä§à §Þ§í §ã §ª§Ý§î§æ§à§Þ §ã§ä§Ñ§Ý§Ú §á§Ú§ã§Ñ§ä§î §Ó§Õ§Ó§à§×§Þ? §¯§Ñ§Ù§Ó§Ñ§ä§î §ï§ä§à §ã§Ý§å§é§Ñ§Û§ß§à§ã§ä§î§ð §Ò§í§Ý§à §Ò§í §ã§Ý§Ú§ê§Ü§à§Þ §á§â§à§ã§ä§à. §ª§Ý§î§æ§Ñ §ß§Ö§ä, §Ú §ñ §ß§Ú§Ü§à§Ô§Õ§Ñ §ß§Ö §å§Ù§ß§Ñ§ð, §é§ä§à §Õ§å§Þ§Ñ§Ý §à§ß, §Ü§à§Ô§Õ§Ñ §Þ§í §ß§Ñ§é§Ú§ß§Ñ§Ý§Ú §â§Ñ§Ò§à§ä§Ñ§ä§î §Ó§Þ§Ö§ã§ä§Ö. §Á §Ø§Ö §Ú§ã§á§í§ä§í§Ó§Ñ§Ý §á§à §à§ä§ß§à§ê§Ö§ß§Ú§ð §Ü §ß§Ö§Þ§å §é§å§Ó§ã§ä§Ó§à §à§Ô§â§à§Þ§ß§à§Ô§à §å§Ó§Ñ§Ø§Ö§ß§Ú§ñ, §Ñ §Ú§ß§à§Ô§Õ§Ñ §Õ§Ñ§Ø§Ö §Ó§à§ã§ç§Ú§ë§Ö§ß§Ú§ñ. §Á §Ò§í§Ý §Þ§à§Ý§à§Ø§Ö §Ö§Ô§à §ß§Ñ §á§ñ§ä§î §Ý§Ö§ä, §Ú §ç§à§ä§ñ §à§ß §Ò§í§Ý §à§é§Ö§ß§î §Ù§Ñ§ã§ä§Ö§ß§é§Ú§Ó, §á§Ú§ã§Ñ§Ý §Þ§Ñ§Ý§à §Ú §ß§Ú§Ü§à§Ô§Õ§Ñ §ß§Ö §á§à§Ü§Ñ§Ù§í§Ó§Ñ§Ý §ß§Ñ§á§Ú§ã§Ñ§ß§ß§à§Ô§à, §ñ §Ô§à§ä§à§Ó §Ò§í§Ý §á§â§Ú§Ù§ß§Ñ§ä§î §Ö§Ô§à §ã§Ó§à§Ú§Þ §Þ§Ö§ä§â§à§Þ. §¦§Ô§à §Ý§Ú§ä§Ö§â§Ñ§ä§å§â§ß§í§Û §Ó§Ü§å§ã §Ü§Ñ§Ù§Ñ§Ý§ã§ñ §Þ§ß§Ö §Ó §ä§à §Ó§â§Ö§Þ§ñ §Ò§Ö§Ù§å§Ü§à§â§Ú§Ù§ß§Ö§ß§ß§í§Þ, §Ñ §ã§Þ§Ö§Ý§à§ã§ä§î §Ö§Ô§à §Þ§ß§Ö§ß§Ú§Û §á§â§Ú§Ó§à§Õ§Ú§Ý§Ñ §Þ§Ö§ß§ñ §Ó §Ó§à§ã§ä§à§â§Ô. §¯§à §å §ß§Ñ§ã §Ò§í§Ý §Ö§ë§× §à§Õ§Ú§ß §Þ§Ö§ä§â, §ä§Ñ§Ü §ã§Ü§Ñ§Ù§Ñ§ä§î, §á§â§à§æ§Ö§ã§ã§Ú§à§ß§Ñ§Ý§î§ß§í§Û §Þ§Ö§ä§â. §¿§ä§à §Ò§í§Ý §Þ§à§Û §Ò§â§Ñ§ä, §£§Ñ§Ý§Ö§ß§ä§Ú§ß §¬§Ñ§ä§Ñ§Ö§Ó. §°§ß §Ó §ä§à §Ó§â§Ö§Þ§ñ §ä§à§Ø§Ö §â§Ñ§Ò§à§ä§Ñ§Ý §Ó "§¤§å§Õ§Ü§Ö" §Ó §Ü§Ñ§é§Ö§ã§ä§Ó§Ö §æ§Ö§Ý§î§Ö§ä§à§ß§Ú§ã§ä§Ñ §Ú §á§à§Õ§á§Ú§ã§í§Ó§Ñ§Ý§ã§ñ §á§ã§Ö§Ó§Õ§à§ß§Ú§Þ§à§Þ §³§ä§Ñ§â§Ú§Ü §³§à§Ò§Ñ§Ü§Ú§ß. §ª §Ó §ï§ä§à§Þ §Ü§Ñ§é§Ö§ã§ä§Ó§Ö §à§ß §é§Ñ§ã§ä§à §á§à§ñ§Ó§Ý§ñ§Ý§ã§ñ §Ó §Ü§à§Þ§ß§Ñ§ä§Ö §é§Ö§ä§Ó§×§â§ä§à§Û §á§à§Ý§à§ã§í. §°§Õ§ß§Ñ§Ø§Õ§í §à§ß §Ó§à§ê§×§Ý §ä§å§Õ§Ñ §ã§à §ã§Ý§à§Ó§Ñ§Þ§Ú:

- §Á §ç§à§é§å §ã§ä§Ñ§ä§î §ã§à§Ó§Ö§ä§ã§Ü§Ú§Þ §¥§ð§Þ§Ñ-§à§ä§è§à§Þ.

§¿§ä§à §Ó§í§ã§à§Ü§à§Þ§Ö§â§ß§à§Ö §Ù§Ñ§ñ§Ó§Ý§Ö§ß§Ú§Ö §ß§Ö §Ó§í§Ù§Ó§Ñ§Ý§à §Ó §à§ä§Õ§Ö§Ý§Ö §à§ã§à§Ò§Ö§ß§ß§à§Ô§à §ï§ß§ä§å§Ù§Ú§Ñ§Ù§Þ§Ñ. §ª §ß§Ö §ã §ä§Ñ§Ü§Ú§Þ§Ú §Ù§Ñ§ñ§Ó§Ý§Ö§ß§Ú§ñ§Þ§Ú §Ó§ç§à§Õ§Ú§Ý§Ú §Ý§ð§Õ§Ú §Ó §Ü§à§Þ§ß§Ñ§ä§å §é§Ö§ä§Ó§Ö§â§ä§à§Û §á§à§Ý§à§ã§í.

- §±§à§é§Ö§Þ§å §Ø§Ö §ï§ä§à, §£§Ñ§Ý§ð§ß, §Ó§í §Ó§Õ§â§å§Ô §Ù§Ñ§ç§à§ä§Ö§Ý§Ú §ã§ä§Ñ§ä§î §¥§ð§Þ§Ñ-§á§Ö§â§à§Þ? - §ã§á§â§à§ã§Ú§Ý §ª§Ý§î§æ.

- §±§à§ä§à§Þ§å, §ª§Ý§ð§ê§Ñ, §é§ä§à §å§Ø§Ö §Õ§Ñ§Ó§ß§à §á§à§â§Ñ §à§ä§Ü§â§í§ä§î §Þ§Ñ§ã§ä§Ö§â§ã§Ü§å§ð §ã§à§Ó§Ö§ä§ã§Ü§à§Ô§à §â§à§Þ§Ñ§ß§Ñ,- §à§ä§Ó§Ö§ä§Ú§Ý §³§ä§Ñ§â§Ú§Ü §³§à§Ò§Ñ§Ü§Ú§ß,- §ñ §Ò§å§Õ§å §¥§ð§Þ§Ñ-§à§ä§è§à§Þ, §Ñ §Ó§í §Ò§å§Õ§Ö§ä§Ö §Þ§à§Ú§Þ§Ú §ß§Ö§Ô§â§Ñ§Þ§Ú. §Á §Ó§Ñ§Þ §Ò§å§Õ§å §Õ§Ñ§Ó§Ñ§ä§î §ä§Ö§Þ§í, §Ó§í §Ò§å§Õ§Ö§ä§Ö §á§Ú§ã§Ñ§ä§î §â§à§Þ§Ñ§ß§í, §Ñ §ñ §Ú§ç §á§à§ä§à§Þ §Ò§å§Õ§å §á§â§Ñ§Ó§Ú§ä§î. §±§â§à§Û§Õ§å§ã§î §â§Ñ§Ù§Ñ §Õ§Ó§Ñ §á§à §Ó§Ñ§ê§Ú§Þ §â§å§Ü§à§á§Ú§ã§ñ§Þ §â§å§Ü§à§Û §Þ§Ñ§ã§ä§Ö§â§Ñ - §Ú §Ô§à§ä§à§Ó§à. §¬§Ñ§Ü §¥§ð§Þ§Ñ-§á§Ö§â. §¯§å? §¬§ä§à §Ø§Ö§Ý§Ñ§Ö§ä? §´§à§Ý§î§Ü§à §á§à§Þ§ß§Ú§ä§Ö, §ñ §ã§à§Ò§Ú§â§Ñ§ð§ã§î §Õ§Ö§â§Ø§Ñ§ä§î §Ó§Ñ§ã §Ó §é§×§â§ß§à§Þ §ä§Ö§Ý§Ö. (E. Petrov, ¡°From the Reminiscences about Ilf,¡± 1939, chapter 3).

The characters of Alexandre Dumas p¨¨re¡¯s novel ¡°The Three Musketeers¡± (1844) include the executioner of Lille who branded Milady de Winter and who beheads her. Athos¡¯ former wife, Milady poisoned de Winter¡¯s brother and d¡¯Artagnan¡¯s lover. It seems that Demon¡¯s wife Aqua went mad because she was poisoned by her twin sister Marina. Describing Demon¡¯s duel with Baron d¡¯Onsky, Van mentions an amusing Douglas d¡¯Artagnan arrangement:

The challenge was accepted; two native seconds were chosen; the Baron plumped for swords; and after a certain amount of good blood (Polish and Irish ¡ª a kind of American ¡®Gory Mary¡¯ in barroom parlance) had bespattered two hairy torsoes, the whitewashed terrace, the flight of steps leading backward to the walled garden in an amusing Douglas d¡¯Artagnan arrangement, the apron of a quite accidental milkmaid, and the shirtsleeves of both seconds, charming Monsieur de Pastrouil and Colonel St Alin, a scoundrel, the latter gentlemen separated the panting combatants, and Skonky died, not ¡®of his wounds¡¯ (as it was viciously rumored) but of a gangrenous afterthought on the part of the least of them, possibly self-inflicted, a sting in the groin, which caused circulatory trouble, notwithstanding quite a few surgical interventions during two or three years of protracted stays at the Aardvark Hospital in Boston ¡ª a city where, incidentally, he married in 1869 our friend the Bohemian lady, now keeper of Glass Biota at the local museum. (1.2)

In ¡°The Golden Calf¡± Ilf and Petrov mention the fat samovar face of Douglas Fairbanks (a Hollywood actor who played d¡¯Artagnan in a film version):

§©§Ñ§ä§à §Ó §Ù§Õ§Ñ§ß§Ú§Ú §ä§Ú§á§à§Ô§â§Ñ§æ§Ú§Ú §Ü§à§Þ§Ú§ã§ã§Ú§ñ §Ù§Ñ§ã§ä§Ñ§Ý§Ñ §â§Ñ§Ò§à§ä§å §Ó §á§à§Ý§ß§à§Þ §â§Ñ§Ù§Ô§Ñ§â§Ö. §³§Ú§ñ§Ý§Ú §Ý§Ú§Ý§à§Ó§í§Ö §Ý§Ñ§Þ§á§í, §Ú §á§Ý§à§ã§Ü§Ú§Ö §á§Ö§é§Ñ§ä§ß§í§Ö §Þ§Ñ§ê§Ú§ß§í §à§Ù§Ñ§Ò§à§é§Ö§ß§ß§à §ç§Ý§à§á§Ñ§Ý§Ú §Ü§â§í§Ý§î§ñ§Þ§Ú. §´§â§Ú §Ú§Ù §ß§Ú§ç §Ó§í§á§Ö§Ü§Ñ§Ý§Ú §å§ë§Ö§Ý§î§Ö §Ó §à§Õ§ß§å §Ü§â§Ñ§ã§Ü§å, §Ñ §Ú§Ù §é§Ö§ä§Ó§Ö§â§ä§à§Û, §Þ§ß§à§Ô§à§Ü§â§Ñ§ã§à§é§ß§à§Û, §ã§Ý§à§Ó§ß§à §Ü§Ñ§â§ä§í §Ú§Ù §â§å§Ü§Ñ§Ó§Ñ §ê§å§Ý§Ö§â§Ñ, §Ó§í§Ý§Ö§ä§Ñ§Ý§Ú §à§ä§Ü§â§í§ä§Ü§Ú §ã §á§à§â§ä§â§Ö§ä§Ñ§Þ§Ú §¥§å§Ô§Ý§Ñ§ã§Ñ §¶§Ö§â§Ò§Ö§ß§Ü§ã§Ñ §Ó §é§Ö§â§ß§à§Û §á§à§Ý§å§Þ§Ñ§ã§Ü§Ö §ß§Ñ §ä§à§Ý§ã§ä§à§Û §ã§Ñ§Þ§à§Ó§Ñ§â§ß§à§Û §Þ§à§â§Õ§Ö, §à§é§Ñ§â§à§Ó§Ñ§ä§Ö§Ý§î§ß§à§Û §­§Ú§Ñ §Õ§Ö §±§å§ä§ä§Ú §Ú §ã§Ý§Ñ§Ó§ß§à§Ô§à §Þ§Ñ§Ý§à§Ô§à §ã §Ó§í§ä§Ñ§â§Ñ§ë§Ö§ß§ß§í§Þ§Ú §Ô§Ý§Ñ§Ù§Ñ§Þ§Ú, §Ú§Ù§Ó§Ö§ã§ä§ß§à§Ô§à §á§à§Õ §Ú§Þ§Ö§ß§Ö§Þ §®§à§ß§ä§Ú §¢§Ö§ß§Ü§ã§Ñ.

In the print shop, however, the commission saw the work going full-speed ahead. Purple lights shone; flat printing presses busily flapped their wings. Three of them produced the gorge in black-and-white, while the fourth, a multi-color machine, spewed out postcards: portraits of Douglas Fairbanks with a black half-mask on his fat teapot face, the charming Lya de Putti, and a nice bulgy-eyed guy named Monty Banks. Portraits flew out of the machine like cards from a sharper's sleeve. (Chapter 5 ¡°The Underground Kingdom¡±)

Demon Veen perishes in a mysterious airplane disaster above the Pacific. In ¡°The Three Musketeers¡± Milady de Winter manages to persuade John Felton, a Puritan, to kill Duke of Buckingham. It seems that Ada managed to persuade a pilot to destroy his machine in midair. Van learns about the catastrophe in which his father died from a newspaper (3.7). Ilf and Petrov were journalists who worked in a newspaper. In his ¡°Reminiscences about Ilf¡± Evgeniy Petrov (who died in an airplane crash in 1942) quotes the words of Ilf (who died of tuberculosis in 1937) who said that it would be good if he and Petrov perished together in some car or plane catastrophe, then neither of them would be present at their own funeral:

§Á §ß§Ö §á§à§Þ§ß§ð, §Ü§ä§à §Ú§Ù §ß§Ñ§ã §á§â§à§Ú§Ù§ß§×§ã §ï§ä§å §æ§â§Ñ§Ù§å:

- §·§à§â§à§ê§à, §Ö§ã§Ý§Ú §Ò§í §Þ§í §Ü§à§Ô§Õ§Ñ-§ß§Ú§Ò§å§Õ§î §á§à§Ô§Ú§Ò§Ý§Ú §Ó§Þ§Ö§ã§ä§Ö, §Ó§à §Ó§â§Ö§Þ§ñ §Ü§Ñ§Ü§à§Û-§ß§Ú§Ò§å§Õ§î §Ñ§Ó§Ú§Ñ§è§Ú§à§ß§ß§à§Û §Ú§Ý§Ú §Ñ§Ó§ä§à§Þ§à§Ò§Ú§Ý§î§ß§à§Û §Ü§Ñ§ä§Ñ§ã§ä§â§à§æ§í. §´§à§Ô§Õ§Ñ §ß§Ú §à§Õ§ß§à§Þ§å §Ú§Ù §ß§Ñ§ã §ß§Ö §á§â§Ú§ê§Ý§à§ã§î §Ò§í §á§â§Ú§ã§å§ä§ã§ä§Ó§à§Ó§Ñ§ä§î §ß§Ñ §ã§à§Ò§ã§ä§Ó§Ö§ß§ß§í§ç §á§à§ç§à§â§à§ß§Ñ§ç.

§¬§Ñ§Ø§Ö§ä§ã§ñ, §ï§ä§à §ã§Ü§Ñ§Ù§Ñ§Ý §ª§Ý§î§æ. §Á §å§Ó§Ö§â§Ö§ß, §é§ä§à §Ó §ï§ä§å §Þ§Ú§ß§å§ä§å §Þ§í §á§à§Õ§å§Þ§Ñ§Ý§Ú §à§Ò §à§Õ§ß§à§Þ §Ú §ä§à§Þ §Ø§Ö. §¯§Ö§å§Ø§Ö§Ý§Ú §ß§Ñ§ã§ä§å§á§Ú§ä §ä§Ñ§Ü§à§Û §Þ§à§Þ§Ö§ß§ä, §Ü§à§Ô§Õ§Ñ §à§Õ§Ú§ß §Ú§Ù §ß§Ñ§ã §à§ã§ä§Ñ§ß§Ö§ä§ã§ñ §ã §Ô§Ý§Ñ§Ù§å §ß§Ñ §Ô§Ý§Ñ§Ù §ã §á§Ú§ê§å§ë§Ö§Û §Þ§Ñ§ê§Ú§ß§Ü§à§Û? §£ §Ü§à§Þ§ß§Ñ§ä§Ö §Ò§å§Õ§Ö§ä §ä§Ú§ç§à §Ú §á§å§ã§ä§à, §Ú §ß§Ñ§Õ§à §Ò§å§Õ§Ö§ä §á§Ú§ã§Ñ§ä§î. (1)

Ninety-seven-year-old Van and ninety-five-year-old Ada whom Dr Lagosse made the last merciful injection of morphine die simultaneously, so neither of them is present at their own funeral (5.6). Nor was Van present at Marina¡¯s funeral, when Demon and d¡¯Onsky¡¯s son, a man with only one arm, wept comme des fontaines (3.8). The name d¡¯Onsky seems to hint at Onegin¡¯s donskoy zherebets (Don stallion) mentioned by Pushkin in Chapter Two (V: 4) of Eugene Onegin. In Chapter Ten (IX: 3-4) of EO Pushkin mentions bezrukiy knyaz¡¯ (the one-armed Prince) who to the friends of Morea from Kishinev already winked. The author of Bakhchisarayskiy fontan (¡°The Fountain of Bakhchisaray,¡± 1823), Pushkin is paired with Dumas by Van¡¯s tutor Aksakov:

In 1880, Van, aged ten, had traveled in silver trains with showerbaths, accompanied by his father, his father¡¯s beautiful secretary, the secretary¡¯s eighteen-year-old white-gloved sister (with a bit part as Van¡¯s English governess and milkmaid), and his chaste, angelic Russian tutor, Andrey Andreevich Aksakov (¡®AAA¡¯), to gay resorts in Louisiana and Nevada. AAA explained, he remembered, to a Negro lad with whom Van had scrapped, that Pushkin and Dumas had African blood, upon which the lad showed AAA his tongue, a new interesting trick which Van emulated at the earliest occasion and was slapped by the younger of the Misses Fortune, put it back in your face, sir, she said. (1.24)

Van¡¯s tutor has the same name and patronymic as Ada¡¯s husband, Andrey Andreevich Vinelander. Like Ilf, Ada¡¯s husband dies of tuberculosis (3.8). Andrey Vinelander calls Demon Veen (son of Dedalus Veen) Dementiy Labirintovich. A character in Greek myths, Dedalus created the labyrinth on Crete in which the Minotaur was kept and made wings for his son Icarus. According to Van, the fabulous ancestor of Ada¡¯s husband ¡°discovered our country¡± (5.6). Ilf and Petrov are the authors of Kolumb prichalivaet k beregu (¡°Columbus¡¯ Ship is Mooring,¡± 1936), a satire on Hollywood in which Dumas is mentioned:

§°§ß§Ú §ß§Ö §ã§ä§Ñ§Ý§Ú §ä§Ö§â§ñ§ä§î §Ó§â§Ö§Þ§Ö§ß§Ú §ß§Ñ §Ý§ð§Ò§Ö§Ù§ß§à§ã§ä§Ú §Ú §ã§â§Ñ§Ù§å §á§â§Ú§ã§ä§å§á§Ú§Ý§Ú §Ü §Õ§Ö§Ý§å. §±§å§Ò§Ý§Ú§ã§Ú§ä§Ú §ß§Ñ§é§Ñ§Ý§à §à§Ü§Ñ§Ù§í§Ó§Ñ§ä§î §ã§Ó§à§Ö §Þ§Ñ§Ô§Ú§é§Ö§ã§Ü§à§Ö §Õ§Ö§Û§ã§ä§Ó§Ú§Ö: §¬§à§Ý§å§Þ§Ò§Ñ §á§â§Ú§Ô§Ý§Ñ§ã§Ú§Ý§Ú §Ó §¤§à§Ý§Ý§Ú§Ó§å§Õ.

¡ª §±§à§ß§Ú§Þ§Ñ§Ö§ä§Ö, §Þ§Ú§ã§ä§Ö§â §¬§à§Ý§å§Þ§Ò, ¡ª §Ó§ä§à§Ý§Ü§à§Ó§í§Ó§Ñ§Ý§Ú §ß§à§Ó§í§Ö §á§à§ã§Ö§ä§Ú§ä§Ö§Ý§Ú, ¡ª §Þ§í §ç§à§ä§Ú§Þ, §é§ä§à§Ò§í §Ó§í §Ú§Ô§â§Ñ§Ý§Ú §Ô§Ý§Ñ§Ó§ß§å§ð §â§à§Ý§î §Ó §Ú§ã§ä§à§â§Ú§é§Ö§ã§Ü§à§Þ §æ§Ú§Ý§î§Þ§Ö "§¡§Þ§Ö§â§Ú§Ô§à §£§Ö§ã§á§å§é§é§Ú." §±§à§ß§Ú§Þ§Ñ§Ö§ä§Ö, §ß§Ñ§ã§ä§à§ñ§ë§Ú§Û §·§â§Ú§ã§ä§à§æ§à§â §¬§à§Ý§å§Þ§Ò §Ó §â§à§Ý§Ú §¡§Þ§Ö§â§Ú§Ô§à §£§Ö§ã§á§å§é§é§Ú ¡ª §ï§ä§à §Þ§à§Ø§Ö§ä §Ò§í§ä§î §à§é§Ö§ß§î §Ú§ß§ä§Ö§â§Ö§ã§ß§à. §±§å§Ò§Ý§Ú§Ü§Ñ §ß§Ñ §ä§Ñ§Ü§à§Û §æ§Ú§Ý§î§Þ §á§à§Û§Õ§×§ä. §£§ã§ñ §ã§à§Ý§î §Ó §ä§à§Þ, §é§ä§à §Õ§Ú§Ñ§Ý§à§Ô §Ò§å§Õ§Ö§ä §Ó§Ö§ã§ä§Ú§ã§î §ß§Ñ §Ò§â§à§Õ§Ó§Ö§Û§ã§Ü§à§Þ §Ø§Ñ§â§Ô§à§ß§Ö. §±§à§ß§Ú§Þ§Ñ§Ö§ä§Ö? §¯§Ö §á§à§ß§Ú§Þ§Ñ§Ö§ä§Ö? §´§à§Ô§Õ§Ñ §Þ§í §Ó§Ñ§Þ §ã§Ö§Û§é§Ñ§ã §Ó§ã§× §à§Ò§ì§ñ§ã§ß§Ú§Þ §á§à§Õ§â§à§Ò§ß§à. §µ §ß§Ñ§ã §Ö§ã§ä§î §ã§è§Ö§ß§Ñ§â§Ú§Ú. §³§è§Ö§ß§Ñ§â§Ú§Û §ã§Õ§Ö§Ý§Ñ§ß §á§à §â§à§Þ§Ñ§ß§å §¡§Ý§Ö§Ü§ã§Ñ§ß§Õ§â§Ñ §¥§ð§Þ§Ñ "§¤§â§Ñ§æ §®§à§ß§ä§Ö-§¬§â§Ú§ã§ä§à", §ß§à §ï§ä§à §ß§Ö §Ó§Ñ§Ø§ß§à, §Þ§í §Ó§Ó§Ö§Ý§Ú §ä§å§Õ§Ñ §ï§Ý§Ö§Þ§Ö§ß§ä§í §à§ä§Ü§â§í§ä§Ú§ñ §¡§Þ§Ö§â§Ú§Ü§Ú.

Christopher Columbus is invited to Hollywood to play Amerigo Vespucci in a historical movie based on Alexandre Dumas¡¯ novel ¡°The Count of Monte Cristo.¡±

AAA is the American Automobile Association. In 1935-36 Ilf and Petrov crossed the USA from the Atlantic to the Pacific and back to the Atlantic in a Ford car and described their trip in a book entitled Odnoetazhnaya Amerika (¡°Single-Storied America,¡± 1937), also known as ¡°Little Golden America.¡± In VN¡¯s Lolita (1955) and Pale Fire (1962) there are many allusions to Ilf and Petrov¡¯s novels.

Alexey Sklyarenko