Nikos Kourkoulos

Nikos Kourkoulos (December 5, 1934 – January 30, 2007) was a Greek theatrical and film actor who appeared on Broadway between 1967 and 1984. Born in the Athens district of Zografou, his father was a barber originally from Makrades, Corfu. In his youth, Kourkoulos was devoted to sports and football, playing on the Panathinaikos F.C. roster during his school years. His path to acting was largely unplanned; by his own account, reading books on theatre prompted his decision to pursue the profession. He went on to study at the National Theatre of Greece's School of Drama, making his stage debut in a 1958 Athens production of Alexandre Dumas, fils' La dame aux camélias, alongside Ellie Lambeti and Dimitris Horn.

Kourkoulos made his Broadway debut in the 1967 musical Illya Darling, directed by Jules Dassin and starring Melina Mercouri. His performance earned him a Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actor in a Musical in 1968. He was also a founder of the musical group Proskinio. His Broadway credits additionally include Oedipus Rex, with his work on Broadway spanning from 1967 to 1984.

In Greece, Kourkoulos built a reputation as one of the most prominent stage actors of the 1960s and 1970s. He led his own theatre companies in both Athens and Thessaloniki, directing his repertory toward demanding material. In the early 1970s he formed a personal company whose productions included Franz Kafka's The Trial, Arthur Miller's A View from the Bridge, and Brecht's The Threepenny Opera, in which he played Macheath opposite Melina Mercouri as Jenny, again under Jules Dassin's direction. His extensive stage work ranged from classical Greek drama — including Euripides' Medea and Orestes, and Sophocles' Oedipus the King — to works by Chekhov, Pinter, Pirandello, Wilder, and Neil Simon. His final stage appearance came in 1991, when he played the title role in Sophocles' Philoctetes at the ancient theater of Epidaurus. In 1995, he was appointed Artistic Director of the National Theatre of Greece, a position in which he guided the institution to financial stability.

His film career ran from the late 1950s through the early 1980s, encompassing a wide range of roles. He was twice honored with the Best Actor Prize at the Thessaloniki Film Festival, for Adistaktoi in 1965 and Astrapogiannos in 1970. Among his best-known films to Greek audiences was Oratotis miden (Visibility Zero, 1970), in which he played Angelos Kreouzis. Other screen credits include To Homa vaftike kokkino, Exodos kindynou, O Astrapogiannos, and O Katiforos. From 1975 to 1980, Kourkoulos served as President of the Society of Greek Theatre Actor-Managers.

Kourkoulos died on January 30, 2007, at Errikos Dynan Hospital in Athens following a prolonged illness with cancer, at the age of 72. He was survived by his companion of twenty years, Marianna Latsi, and four children: Errieta and Philip from his relationship with Latsi, and Melita and Alkis from his marriage.