Nikos Kourkoulos

Nikos Kourkoulos (Greek: Νίκος Κούρκουλος; December 5, 1934, Athens, Greece – January 30, 2007) was a highly respected Greek theatrical and film performer, one of the most talented and recognizable actors in Greece of modern times. Kourkoulos is best known to Greek audiences for playing "Angelos Kreouzis" in Oratotis miden, but he also appeared in other movies such as To Homa vaftike kokkino, Exodos kindynou, O Astrapogiannos, O Katiforos among others.

Nikos Kourkoulos grew up in the Athens district of Zografou. As young sports and football were his loves. He belonged to Panathinaikos F.C. roster during his school years. Acting came before him rather accidentally. As he himself had claimed, he took the plunge to become an actor after reading books on theatre.

He studied acting at the National Theatre of Greece's School of Drama, and made his stage debut in a 1958 Athens production of Alexandre Dumas, fils' La dame aux camélias, opposite Ellie Lambeti and Dimitris Horn.

He was one of the founders of the prestigious musical group, Proskinio and appeared in the 1967 Broadway musical, Illya Darling, with Melina Mercouri, in a role for which he was nominated for a Tony award as a best supporting actor.

For most of the 1960s/70s, Kourkoulos' success was unparalleled by any other Greek actor, except Dimitris Papamichael, but Kourkoulos' choice of material was more challenging than the latter's. He created his personal group in the early 1970s, with a repertory which included, among others, Franz Kafka's The Trial, Arthur Miller's View from the Bridge and Brecht's The Threepenny Opera. His last stage appearance was in the title role of Sophocles' Philoktitis (1991) at the restored ancient theater of Epidaurus in southern Greece. In 1995, he was named as Artistic Director of the National Theatre of Greece, an institution he managed to turn into a profitable organization without compromising on artistic integrity.

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