On June 20, 1987, the day of its division into two parts which was a very hard and dramatic time for the theatre, Kharitonov died the same day from his third stroke which occurred in the drama theatre.
20 июня 1987 года, в день разделения театра на две части, у Харитонова случился третий инсульт, и в тот же день актёр скоропостижно скончался.