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The 100-Year Old “Molot” and Sholokhov’s Lines

On these days the Rostov Region newspaper “Molot” celebrates its 100th anniversary. For a regional edition it is a great date. On its first steps in 1917, the press organ of the Rostov Nakhichevan Committee of the Russian Social Democratic Workers’ Party bore the title “Nashe Znamya” (Our Banner). Later the newspaper was entitled “Rabochaya Pravda” (Workers’ Truth), “Donskaya Pravda” (The Don Truth), “Trudovoy Don” (The Working Don), and since 1924, it has been issued presently entitled “Molot”.

The researchers of the newspaper everyday working life note the depth and thematic variety of the publications reflecting the Don history during the whole century. One of the most notable events in the life of the edition-hero of the day was cooperation with M.A.Sholokhov and coverage of his creative and public work.

Thus in October of 1934, the newspaper “Molot” read about the writer’s speech for the best workers of the Rostov V.Lenin plant and railway junction. Later his speech was known as entitled “Literature is a Part of the All-Proletarian Cause” and was included in the collected works by M.A.Sholokhov.

In June, 1934, the Rostov newspaper published the writer’s speech devoted to the life and work of M.Gorky. Mikhail Alexandrovich made it not in Rostov, but in Vyoshenskaya, at the meeting of teachers at the pedagogical school. But the journalists of the regional centre paid their attention to the event.

In the prewar years the “Molot” published Sholokhov’s article “About the Soviet Writer”, and at the very beginning of the Great Patriotic War – an essay “At Cossack Collective Farms”. The most famous Sholokhov’s story “The Fate of a Man” was also published in the “Molot” almost at the same time as it was published in the newspaper “Pravda”.

The most well-known authors published in the regional newspaper frequently wrote about the episodes of the life and work of the Don classics. A.V.Kalinin published his essays about Sholokhov, A.M.Suichmezov, the “Molot” editor-in-chief then, devoted many of his articles to Sholokhov.

In our days, the regional newspaper regularly covers the events held by the National M.A.Sholokhov Museum-Reserve: “Sholokhov Spring”, “Kruzhilin Toloki”, “Sholokhov Readings” and others. The Museum workers keep long and effective contacts with the Rostov journalists.

The Museum people are happy to join the warmest congratulations saying: “Happy 100th anniversary, dear “Molot”!”

Alexey Kochetov