Greek Actors
List activity
149 views
• 0 this weekCreate a new list
List your movie, TV & celebrity picks.
50 people
- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Alexis Georgoulis was born in the Greek town Larissa. In 1993, he started studying at the National Technical University of Athens to become a Civil Engineer. In 1997, after graduating from the prestigious Jasmine Drama School, Alexis would go on to star in several stage productions. During this time, he teamed up with the dance group "Heresis" in the performance "Carmen 33" (1997) and "The Return" (1998).
Looking toward a career in front of the camera, Alexis took part in the TV series "Alice in Wonderland" (1997 ET channel), and "Death Agony" (1998 ET channel), and also in the short cut film "No One's Rose". In 2001, he co-starred in the sitcom "You Are My Mate", which became a huge success and made him one of Greece's most sought after leading men. Alexis would go on to appear in the Greek TV series "Oneiro Itan" (2003), "Erastis Ditikon Proastion" (2004) and "Oi Istories Tou Astynomou Beka" (2007).
In 2002, Alexis would star in back to back feature films, the comedy "The Bubble" and the crime drama "Too Late Tomorrow". Following the success of these films, Alexis starred in "Oxygono" (2003), which won the Fipresci Prize at the Thessaloniki Film Festival. Taking advantage of his big screen success, Alexis went on to direct the play "Good Luck" written by the rewarded Greek writer Bill Katsikonouris for the Progressive Stage of the National Theatre. The following year at the Kivotos Theatre (2004), he directed the black comedy "The Shape of Things", written by Neil Labute.
In 2005, Alexis returned to feature films playing the lead role of Dimitris Georgiou in "Liubi". In 2009, Alexis was given the opportunity to bring his talents overseas, playing the lead role in Fox Searchlight's "My Life in Ruins" also starring Nia Vardalos and Richard Dreyfuss. The film, produced by Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman, extended Alexis appeal and has since made him an international star extending far beyond Europe. Alexis can next be seen in "A Green Story" starring opposite Shannon Elizabeth.
Georgoulis is managed by Sages Entertainment Group.- Actor
- Script and Continuity Department
- Producer
Yorgos Karamihos is an acclaimed actor, director, and acting teacher. Born and raised in Northern Greece, he graduated from Ionian University, with a degree in Philosophy and History, as well as from The Greek National Theatre Academy. In 2012, he received a Fulbright Scholarship as an exceptional artist to study at the Stella Adler Academy of Acting & Theatre in Los Angeles, where he was immediately offered a position to teach his own acting technique. His credits as an actor include over forty theatrical productions from ancient Greek dramas and Shakespeare to Anton Chekhov, Tennessee Williams and other classical and modern plays. He has appeared in more than thirty feature films and in numerous TV series, including The Durrells in Corfu, Bulletproof, and Genius (Picasso). Karamihos has also directed multiple theatrical productions in major venues in Greece and the United States. In 2008, he received the Best Stage Actor award of Greece. He has translated plays and books from English, French and Spanish into Greek and has published several theatre plays.- Actor
- Producer
Alexandros Logothetis was born in Athens, Greece, in December 1970.
Graduated with Honours from the National Theater of Greece Drama School in 1991 and obtained a BA in Acting from the Arts Educational Schools London in 1999.
On the big screen, he has worked in more than 30 films, twice awarded at the Thessaloniki International Film Festival for the movies "Business in Balkans" (Best Actor) and "Totally Married" (Best Supporting Actor Award).
His work on television gave him popularity early on in his career and shows like "Women", "Anatomy of a Crime", "Stand by me", "The Sacrifice", and "Ten" allowed him to show his acting abilities on the small screen. In 2010 he starred in Victoria Hislop's international best seller "The Island", portraying Dr Kyritsis, a role that till today is linked with Alexandros in the mind of the audiences. In 2019 he co-starred in Adults in the Room as Manos, directed by Costa Gavras. In 2022 he co-starred in ''Magpie Murders'' as Andreas Patakis next to Lesley Manville, an Eleventh Hour, PBS Masterpiece, Britbox and Salt Films production directed by Peter Cattaneo.
In the theatre, Alexandros has worked with some of the most influential directors in Greece, like Stathis Livathinos, George Michailidis, Nikos Mastorakis, Stamatis Fasoulis, Io Voulgaraki, Cezaris Grauzinis.
Alexandros has been working in the performance industry for 33 years.- Stathis Stamoulakatos is known for Behind the Haystacks (2022), Amercement (2020) and Knifer (2010).
- Constantin Symsiris is an actor, originally from Greece. He trained as an actor at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London. He has been known for portraying Lazaros Vangelatos in ITV series The Durrells. He is also known from Trouble will find us (2020), Man of God (2021) and Mediterraneo: The Law of the Sea (2021).
- Actor
- Writer
- Director
Christopher Papakaliatis was born and raised in Athens, Greece. His father, Manuel Papakaliatis was born and raised in Crete. Villy Malamis, his mother, is South African. His parents met in London, England, where they first begun dating. Four years later they got divorced, but they already have had two children, Christopher and Philippe. He also has two more siblings (Stefanos and Nara) from his father second marriage. Christopher was first cast in the age of 16 for a role in the TV drama series "Guards of Ahaia". A drama series, based on a novel by Tassos Athanasiadis, which was aired in 1992 by Mega Channel (one of the biggest private TV channels in Greece). After numerous roles in successful TV series as a teen actor in Greece, he decided to write his first TV script at the age of 23. "Our life is a path" was aired on Mega channel in the season 1999-2000 and was well recognized by critics and public. The following season he wrote and starred in the TV series "Take care of me" 2000-2001, and the following season he made the TV movie "Three wishes" 2001-2002. In 2003 he wrote and starred in the TV series "Close your eyes" which was one of the highest rating series in Greece. It was at that point that he decided to direct most of second and third season episodes with great success. In the TV drama "Close your eyes" a kiss between two men caused a great debate in Greece (as it was the first time for two male characters to kiss on air) and was followed by a fine by the Greek National Council for Radio and Television but was later withdrawn by The Council of State. In 2005-2006 he wrote, directed and starred in a new dram-thriller series "Two days only", which had controversial reviews. "Two days only" was not a big success in the rating board, but was acclaimed artistically as one of the best filmed TV series. In 2008 he wrote, directed and starred in the TV series "4". A story about four male brothers and their different lives. "4" was a big success in Mega channel but due to the economical crisis in Greece was not able to continue to its second season and was cut off the air in the summer of 2010. It was the same year that he got accepted as a member of the International Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (EMMY International). In 2012, he starred next to Catherine Deneuve and Sebastian Koch in the feature film "God loves Caviar" directed by Iannis Smaragdis. "What If" is his first feature film. The film was written and directed by him, while on the same time he played the leading role of Demetris. "What If" is a love story in Athens during the European economical crisis and is now one of the biggest Greek box office hits. The movie was a commercial success in Greece for the 2012-2013 season and remained in theaters for more than 4 months, while it received very positive reviews. In 2015, his second feature film "Worlds Apart" was released. The movie made a 5m euro grossing in the Greek box-office, was released in 25 countries and received very positive reviews from the LA Times and other publications.
He has always been the music editor in all his TV series and in charge of the music scoring and songs played in the episodes. He also was in charge of the music editing in the film "What if".
Theatre: In 1993 he made his debut in the comedy " At last alone" written by Lakis Lazopoulos which opened in City Center theatre NYC and later toured throughout Greece. In 1996-1998 he played his first leading role in 'Les Parents terribles' written by Jean Cocteau. In 1999-2000 he played the leading role in The thief written by Maria Pacome. In 2001 he played in the theatrical version of the movie Shallow grave by John Golf. In 2007 he played "human voices" a puzzle of monologues written by Jean Cocteau. In 2011-2012 he played Volfgang Amadeus Mozart in the well-known theatrical play "Amadeus" by Peter Shaffer.
This period, he shares his time between Greece and Los Angeles preparing his upcoming TV and film projects.- Aris Servetalis was born on 21 December 1976 in Athens, Greece. He is an actor, known for The Waiter (2018), Alps (2011) and Apples (2020).
- Drosos Skotis is known for Agios Paisios: Apo ta Farasa ston ourano (2022), Straight Story (2006) and Nobody (2010).
- Christos Loulis was born on 10 April 1976 in Athens, Greece. He is an actor, known for Oi sklavoi sta desma tous (2008), O orkos II (The Oath II) (2023) and Miss Violence (2013). He has been married to Emily Koliandri since 29 September 2008. They have one child.
- Actor
- Producer
- Director
- Actor
- Soundtrack
Andreas Konstantinou was born on 15 November 1982 in Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. He is an actor, known for Cloudy Sunday (2015), The Last Note (2017) and O thanatos pou onireftika (2010).- Yannis Stankoglou was born in 1974, in Greece. The region of Evros, near the borders with Turkey is the place in which he grew up. He studied in Giorgos Kimoulis Modern Theatre of Athens Drama School, when he was 23. For a few years he moved to New York, until he returned to his country. He has a remarkable career in theater, TV and movies.
- Costas Mandylor was born on 3 September 1965 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. He is an actor, known for Saw V (2008), Saw VI (2009) and Saw IV (2007). He has been married to Victoria Ramos since 10 October 2013. He was previously married to Talisa Soto.
- Alex Dimitriades was born on 28 December 1973 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. He is an actor, known for Head On (1998), Ghost Ship (2002) and Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo (2005).
- Actor
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Christos Stergioglou was born in 1952 in Didymoteicho, Thrace, Greece. He is an actor and producer, known for Dogtooth (2009), The Eternal Return of Antonis Paraskevas (2013) and Unfair World (2011).- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
- Actor
- Producer
- Music Department
John Phillip Stamos was born in Cypress, California, to Loretta (Phillips), a model, and William Stamos, a restaurateur. His father was of Greek descent, with the family surname originally being "Stamotopoulos". John has two younger sisters, Janeen and Alaina, both school teachers. His first professional role was as Blackie Parrish on the daytime soap General Hospital (1963) from 1982-1984, for which he won two Soap Opera Digest Awards (1982 and 1983). In 1987 he began the role of Jesse on Full House (1987), which is his best-known role to date, spanning eight years. At his request, the writers of Full House (1987) gave his character the last name of Katsopolis, instead of the original character's name, Cochran, in order to highlight John's Greek heritage. He has played drums occasionally with The Beach Boys since 1985, and directed their "Hot Fun in the Summertime" video. He expanded his career to include the role of J. Pierrepont Finch in Broadway's production of "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying!" in 1995, showcasing not only his musical talents, but his dancing ability, as well. On September 19, 1998, he married model Rebecca Romijn, of MTV's House of Style (1989), which was the first marriage for both. They were officially divorced on March 1, 2005.- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Zach Galifianakis was born in Wilkesboro, North Carolina, to Mary Frances (Cashion), who owned a community arts center, and Harry Galifianakis, a heating oil vendor. His father is of Greek descent and his mother is of mostly English and Scottish ancestry. Zach moved to New York City after failing his last college class by one point. Zach got his start performing his brand of humor in the back of a hamburger joint in Times Square. He toured the country, performing in coffee shops and universities.
After more than a decade performing stand-up and making both television and film appearances, Zach broke through to wider recognition with his co-starring role as "Alan Garner", in the comedy mega-hit, The Hangover (2009). Later that year, he played a large role in the CGI-heavy kids movie, G-Force (2009), and then appeared in memorable supporting parts in the films, Up in the Air (2009) (as a laid-off employee), Youth in Revolt (2009) (as a loutish stepfather), and Dinner for Schmucks (2010), as one of the title characters. More recently, he co-starred with Keir Gilchrist in the teen dramedy, It's Kind of a Funny Story (2010), with Robert Downey Jr. in the road trip comedy, Due Date (2010), and alongside Will Ferrell in the political spoof, The Campaign (2012). He also voiced "Humpty Dumpty" in the animated film, Puss in Boots (2011), and reprised his character in both The Hangover Part II (2011) and The Hangover Part III (2013). In 2014, he appeared in the winner of the Academy Award for Best Picture, Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) (2014), and in 2016, he starred in the comedies Masterminds (2015) and Keeping Up with the Joneses (2016), released three weeks apart.
When not performing and acting, Zach spends time at his home in the mountains of his native North Carolina, where he hopes to open a writer's retreat on a completely self-sustained farm.- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Georges Corraface has risen to star status in Europe throughout a career in film, theatre and television.
This ruggedly charismatic leading man is notably a box-office draw in Greece, Spain and France, where he lives and is a popular celebrity.
A classically trained and versatile actor, his gift for languages and his multi-cultural background has enabled him to work in eight languages and an even wider variety of accents.
At the height of an auspicious and daring theater career, as a member of the famed Peter Brook Company in Paris, Corraface was discovered by David Lean in 1987. The legendary director cast him in the title role of "Nostromo". Although the film was never made, due to Lean's illness, the resultant attention launched Corraface into American productions with films like Not Without My Daughter (1991), Impromptu (1991) Christopher Columbus: The Discovery (1992) and Escape from L.A. (1996).
In recent years, however, he has found his most challenging and successful roles in European film and television where his original characterizations have won him a loyal and ever-growing following, critical acclaim and Best Actor awards.
The smolderingly lusty Yaman in La pasión turca (1994) wooed audiences in Spain. Meanwhile, in France, Corraface was getting rave reviews for a wide variety of starring movie roles, ranging from the candid and ebullient macho, Cheto, in the romantic comedy Vive la mariée... et la libération du Kurdistan (1998) to the swarthy and noble ex-con, Max, in the dark psychological thriller Préférence (1998).
In Greece, he made his mark with his performances first as a tormented and emotionally disconnected everyman in Slaughter of the Cock (1996), then as the comically naive and soulful peasant on a pilgrimage in Word of Honor (2001). Both parts earned him the highest film awards in Greece. He went on to portray Fannis, the introspective and traumatized exile in the nostalgic comedy A Touch of Spice (2003), which broke all Greek box-office records before conquering audiences abroad.
French television has made Corraface a broadcast star with mini-series roles like the suavely sophisticated François in The Blue Bicycle (2000), the hurt and sensitive rebel Thomas in L'été rouge (2002), or the earnestly bumbling professor in Le château des oliviers (1993)". Other TV productions focusing on contemporary issues have reinforced his popularity, through characters such as the haunted, hard-drinking journalist Rachid in the made for Arte film, Algiers-Beirut: A Souvenir (1998), or as Alex, a solitary, fast-talking swat team crisis negociator in Alex Santana, négociateur (2002), a series of made-for-TV movies (TF1).
Overall, Corraface appears to enthusiastically alternate his more commercial work with dedicated involvement in less mainstream "films d'auteurs" with a new generation of independent filmmakers.- Actor
- Composer
- Music Department
Peter Andre was born on 27 February 1973 in Harrow, London, England, UK. He is an actor and composer, known for Mr. Peabody & Sherman (2014), David Brent: Life on the Road (2016) and Keith Lemon: The Film (2012). He has been married to Emily MacDonagh since 11 July 2015. They have two children. He was previously married to Katie Price.- John Aniston was born on 24 July 1933 in Crete, Greece. He was an actor, known for Days of Our Lives (1965), Search for Tomorrow (1951) and Journeyman (2007). He was married to Sherry Rooney and Nancy Dow. He died on 11 November 2022 in the USA.
- Actor
- Additional Crew
- Music Department
Mark Ballas was born on 24 May 1986 in Houston, Texas, USA. He is an actor, known for Samantha Who? (2007), Dancing with the Stars (2005) and Steppin' Out with Katherine Jenkins (2012). He has been married to B.C. Jean since 25 November 2016.- Dennis Boutsikaris is an American character actor who has won the Obie Award twice. He is also a narrator of audio-books, for which he has won 13 Golden Earphone Awards and 8 Audie Awards. He won Best Audiobook of the Year from Amazon for his reading of American Gods.
Boutsikaris was born in Newark, New Jersey, to a Greek American father and Jewish mother, and grew up in Berkeley Heights, New Jersey. He took up acting while a student at Governor Livingston High School, because he felt he was too small to succeed in athletics. A graduate of Hampshire College in Amherst, Massachusetts, Boutsikaris toured the country with John Houseman's The Acting Company doing classical theatre.
Boutsikaris' film credits include leading roles in *batteries not included, The Dream Team, Crocodile Dundee II, Boys on the Side and In Dreams, among many others. His most recent indie films include Cherry Crush, The Education of Charlie Banks, Calling It Quits," The Bourne Legacy" and "Money Monster". He is Paul Wolfowitz in Oliver Stone's "W." In 2012, he co-starred in The Bourne Legacy, the fourth installment of the successful Bourne franchise.
On television, he had the lead in the series Stat, The Jackie Thomas Show, and Misery Loves Company. He has also had recurring roles on Sidney Lumet's 100 Centre Street, Nurse, Trinity, ER, Law & Order and Showtime's Shameless. Boutsikaris had a leading part in episode twenty of the second season of the hit CBS show Person of Interest which aired in the USA on Thursday, April 26, 2013. He was part of NBC's State of Affairs, the TV series that marks the return to series television of Katherine Heigl. In 2012, he also made an appearance as Jack Quayle in the season 2 episode "Collateral Damage" of the CBS show Blue Bloods. From 2015 to 2022, he played the role of lawyer Rich Schweikart in the first, second, then fourth through sixth seasons of the American series Better Call Saul. In 2017, Boutsikaris was cast in the recurring role of Henry Roarke on the ABC thriller series Quantico.
He has starred in over 20 TV movies, including Chasing the Dragon, And Then There Was One, Three Faces of Karen, Survival on the Mountain, Beyond Betrayal, and as Woody Allen in the miniseries Love and Betrayal: The Mia Farrow Story (with Patsy Kensit).
On Broadway Boutsikaris became the first American to play Mozart in Amadeus and was directed by Sir Laurence Olivier in Filumena. He starred in the Off-Broadway production of Sight Unseen to great critical acclaim.
He has been seen on Broadway in Bent, Filumena (directed by Sir Laurence Olivier), and Amadeus (as the first American to play Mozart) with Frank Langella. He was seen in the Delacorte Theatre's production of Julius Caesar as Cassius. He was in the original New York productions of The Boys Next Door, A Picasso, and the revival of That Championship Season.
Off-Broadway he is probably best known for playing Jonathan Waxman in the original production of Sight Unseen at the Manhattan Theatre Club and later at the Orpheum Theatre. He received the Obie Award and a nomination for a Drama Desk Award for this performance. At the Geffen Theatre in Los Angeles, he appeared in the premiere of David Mamet's The Old Neighborhood and in 2007 Jane Anderson's The Quality of Life with Laurie Metcalf and Jo Beth Williams. For that performance he received the Backstage West Garland Award for Best Actor and was nominated for Best Actor by the L.A. Critics Drama Circle and by the LA Alliance Ovation Awards.
In 2009 he was in the Broadway revivals of Brighton Beach Memoirs and Broadway Bound again with Laurie Metcalf. The former opened to wide critical acclaim and then closed one week later. The latter never opened.
He continued his association with Laurie Metcalf appearing with her in The Other Place Off-Broadway.
He can be heard in over 160 audio-books and has received eight Audie Awards and two Best Voices of the Year Awards from AudioFile Magazine. He was voted Best Narrator of the Year by Amazon for "THE GENE".
Boutsikaris has received two Obie Awards: one in 1985 for Outstanding Performance in Nest of the Woodgrouse at the New York Shakespeare Festival, directed by Joseph Papp; and one in 1992 for Outstanding Performance in Sight Unseen at the Manhattan Theatre Club. He also received a Drama Desk Award nomination for Best Actor for Sight Unseen, as well as a Cable ACE nomination for Best Supporting Actor for Chasing the Dragon in 1995. He was nominated for a People's Choice Award as best Newcomer. He received the Best Actor Award at the Staten Island Film Festival and the Long Island Film Festival for his role in Calling It Quits. - Actor
- Soundtrack
Born Charles Callias in Brooklyn, NY on December 20, 1927, he served in the US Army in Germany during World War 2.
Originally a drummer, he played with Tommy Dorsey, Claude Thornhill and Buddy Rich. He was always clowning around and would drive the band members crazy on the bus as they traveled. So much so, they suggested he should be a comedian. "He was just messing around with the guys and it worked, I guess" his son Mark said. Charlie was a natural comic, and it wasn't long before he gave up drumming for stand-up routines. He dropped a vowel from his legal name, Callias, when he took to the stage in his first television appearance in 1963 on the "Hollywood Palace" variety show.
In 1967, he appeared on The Merv Griffin Show and had Jerry Lewis (another one of Merv's guests) in hysterics so much so he told Merv that he had to use Charlie in his upcoming film "The Big Mouth".
He was a regular on the Andy Williams Show and a semi-regular on the Flip Wilson and the Des O'Connor Variety Show; acted as co-host on the Joey Bishop Show.
In 1975, Callas co-starred, for three years, with Robert Wagner and Eddie Albert on the series "Switch." His character used different disguises in most shows proving his versatility.
He made over 50 appearances on The Tonight Show, a popular favorite of Johnny's until Sept 1982 when as part of his act he shoved Johnny off his chair. Carson told him in front of the audience that he would never appear on his show again, and he never did.
Callas had a rapid-fire humor that has tantalized audiences in nightclubs from coast to coast. Among his nightly appearances was a one-year tour of major engagements with Frank Sinatra, including the Universal Amphitheater in Los Angeles. Charlie has also appeared at the Hilton Hotels, Caesar's Palace, The Sands Hotel, Flamingo Hilton, Frontier Hotel in Las Vegas; Harrah's Clubs in Reno and Lake Tahoe; Cal-Neva Lodge; Lake Geneva Playboy Club, Resorts International, Claridge Hotel and Park Place.
Some of his more recent television appearances were on both the "Larry The Cable Guy's Christmas Spectacular" (2007) and the "Larry The Cable Guy's Star-Studded Christmas Extravaganza" (2008) where he delighted audiences with his trademark antics and exceptional comedic talents.
He was married to Eve Velac (who died in July, 2010), had two sons, Mark and Larry, and two grandsons.- Alex Carter was born on 12 November 1963 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He is an actor, known for The Island (2005), Veritas: The Quest (2003) and Out of Time (2003).
- Actor
- Director
- Writer
John Cassavetes was a Greek-American actor, film director, and screenwriter. He is considered a pioneer of American independent film, as he often financed his own films.
Cassavetes was born in New York City in 1929 to Nicholas John Cassavetes (1893-1979) and his wife, Katherine Demetre (1906-1983). Nicholas was an immigrant from Greece, while Katherine was Greek-American who had been born in New York City. The Cassavetes family moved back to Greece in the early 1930s, and John learned Greek as his primary language. The family moved back to the United States around 1936, possibly to evade Greece's new dictatorship, the 4th of August Regime (1936-1941). Young John had to learn to speak English. He spent his late childhood and most of his teenage years in Long Island, New York. From 1945-47, he attended the Port Washington High School. He wrote for the school newspaper and the school yearbook. The 18-year-old Cassavetes was then transferred to the Blair Academy, a boarding school located in Blairstown, New Jersey. When the time came for him to start college, Cassavetes enrolled at Champlain College (in Burlington, Vermont) but was expelled owing to poor grades.
After a brief vacation to Florida, Cassavetes enrolled at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts (AADA), in New York City. Several of his old friends were already students there and had recommended it to Cassavetes, who would be mentored by Don Richardson (1918-1996). After graduating, he began to regularly perform on stage while also appearing in small roles in films and television shows.
Cassavetes's first notable film role was that of Robert Batsford, one of the three villains (along with Vince Edwards and David Cross) in The Night Holds Terror (1955). His next major role was juvenile delinquent Frankie Dane in the crime film "Crime in the Streets" (1956). He won a lead role in Edge of the City (1957) as drifter Axel Nordmann. His co-star for the film was Sidney Poitier, who played stevedore Tommy Tyler. The film helped break new ground, portraying a working-class interracial friendship. Cassavetes gained critical acclaim for his role, and film critics compared him to Marlon Brando. Cassavetes's success as an actor led to his becoming a contract player for MGM. In 1959, he directed his first film, Shadows (1958). It depicted the lives of three African-American siblings in New York City. It won the Critics Award at the Venice Film Festival.
His next directing effort, Too Late Blues (1961), was about the professional and romantic problems of a struggling jazz musician. The film was poorly received at the time, though its autobiographical elements are considered remarkable. Cassavetes then directed A Child Is Waiting (1963), which depicted life in a state institution for mentally handicapped and emotionally disturbed children. The film was a documentary-style portrayal of problems in the social services. It was praised by critics but failed at the box office.
In 1968, Cassavetes had a comeback as a director with Faces (1968), which depicts a single night in the life of a middle-aged married couple. After 14 years of marriage, the two feel rather miserable and seek happiness in the company of friends and the beds of younger lovers, but neither manages to cure their sense of misery. The film gained critical acclaim, and, in 2011, was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry.
Cassavetes returned to the theme of a midlife crisis in his next film, Husbands (1970). The film depicts three middle-aged men, professionally successful and seemingly happily married. The death of a close childhood friend reminds them of their own mortality, and of their fading memories of youth. They flee their ordinary lives with a shared vacation to London, but their attempts to rejuvenate themselves fail. This film attracted mixed reviews, with some critics praising its "moments of piercing honesty" and others finding fault with its rambling dialogue.
Cassavetes's next film was Minnie and Moskowitz (1971), about the romantic relationship between a seemingly incompatible couple, jaded museum curator Minnie Moore and the temperamental drifter Seymour Moskowitz. It was well received and garnered Cassavetes a Writers Guild of America Award for Best Comedy Written Directly for the Screen. His next film was A Woman Under the Influence (1974), concerning the effects of mental illness on a working-class family. In the film, ordinary housewife Mabel Longhetti starts displaying signs of a mental disorder. She undergoes psychiatric treatment for six months while her husband, Nick Longhetti, attempts to play the role of a single father. But Nick seems to be a social misfit in his own right, and neither parent seems to be "normal". Cassavetes was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Director for this film, but the award was won by Francis Ford Coppola.
Cassavetes next directed the gritty crime film, The Killing of a Chinese Bookie (1976). In the film, Korean War veteran and cabaret owner Cosmo Vittelli owes a large debt to a criminal organization and is coerced to serve as their hit-man in an assassination scheme. He has been told that the target is an insignificant bookie, but after the assassination Vittelli learns that he just killed a high-ranking crime boss of the Chinese mafia and that he himself is now a target for assassination. The film gained good reviews and a cult following.
His next film, Opening Night (1977), was more enigmatic, mixing drama with horror elements. Protagonist Myrtle Gordon (played by Cassavetes's wife, Gena Rowlands) is a famous actress, but aging and dissatisfied with the only theatrical role available to her. After seeing teenager Nancy Stein, one of her obsessive fans , get killed in a car accident, Myrtle starts having visions of Nancy's ghost. As she keeps fighting the ghost, drinking heavily and chain-smoking, the film ends without explaining what seems to be going wrong with Myrtle's perception of reality. The film was a hit in Europe but flopped in the United States.
Cassavetes had another directing comeback with "Gloria" (1980). In the film, Gloria Swenson (formerly a gangster's girlfriend) is asked to protect Phil Dawn, the young son of an FBI informant within a New York crime family. After the apparent assassination of Phil's parents, Gloria finds herself targeted by gangsters and wanted by the police as a kidnapping suspect. The film won the Golden Lion award at the Venice Film Festival, and protagonist Gena Rowlands was nominated for several acting awards.
Cassavetes's 11th directing effort was the rather unconventional drama Love Streams (1984), about the relationship between two middle-aged siblings. In the film, Sarah Lawson suffers from depression following a messy divorce and moves in with her brother, Robert Harmon, an alcoholic writer with self-destructive tendencies. Though estranged from his ex-wife and his only son and unable to protect himself from violent foes, in the end Robert finally has someone for whom to care. The film won the Golden Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival.
Cassavetes' swan song as a director was the comedy Big Trouble (1986), replacing the much younger Andrew Bergman. The film concerns an insurance agent who needs $40,000 for college tuition for his three daughters. He agrees to cooperate in an insurance scam with the wife of one of his clients, though the plan may require them to murder her husband. Several elements of the film were recycled from the plot of the iconic film noir Double Indemnity (1944), and "Big Trouble" served as its unofficial remake. The film was unsuccessful, and Cassavetes himself reportedly disliked the script.
In the late 1980s, Cassavetes suffered from health problems and his career was in decline. He died in 1989 from cirrhosis of the liver caused by many years of heavy drinking. He was only 59 years old. He is buried at the Westwood Village Memorial Park in Los Angeles, having left more than 40 unproduced screenplays and an unpublished novel. His son, Nick Cassavetes, eventually used one of the unproduced screenplays to direct a new film, the romantic drama, She's So Lovely (1997). It was released eight years after the death of John Cassavetes, and was well received by critics.- Actor
- Director
- Writer
Nick Cassavetes was born in New York City, the son of actress Gena Rowlands and Greek-American actor and film director John Cassavetes. As a child, he appeared in two of his father's films: Husbands (1970) and A Woman Under the Influence (1974). After spending so much of his youth surrounded by the film industry, Cassavetes initially decided he did not want to go into the field. He instead attended Syracuse University on a basketball scholarship. His athletic career was effectively ended by an injury, and he decided to rethink his aspirations, ultimately deciding to attend his parents' alma mater, the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York. He has appeared in the films, Face/Off (1997), The Wraith (1986), Life (1999), Class of 1999 II: The Substitute (1994), Backstreet Dreams (1990) and The Astronaut's Wife (1999), among others. He has directed several films, including John Q (2002), Alpha Dog (2006), She's So Lovely (1997), Unhook the Stars (1996), The Notebook (2004), and My Sister's Keeper (2009). He also adapted the screenplay for Blow (2001) and wrote the dialogue for the Justin Timberlake music video, "What Goes Around... Comes Around". In 1985, Cassavetes married Isabelle Rafalovich. They had two daughters together, Virginia Cassavetes (Virginia Sara Cassavetes) (born in 1986) and Sasha Cassavetes (born in 1988), before divorcing. He then married Heather Wahlquist (Heather "Queenie" Wahlquist), who has appeared in several of his films, including a small role in The Notebook (2004) as Sara, a secondary character and best friend to the female lead Allie Hamilton, portrayed by Rachel McAdams. The movie is effectively a family project, as Cassavetes's own mother, Gena Rowlands, appears as the older, married Allie Calhoun.- Actor
- Writer
John Considine was born on 2 January 1935 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He is an actor and writer, known for MacGyver (1985), A Wedding (1978) and Combat! (1962). He has been married to Astrid Lee Peterson since 24 December 1984. He was previously married to Jette Seear and Toby Considine.- Award-winning Greek-American actor Michael Constantine (born 22 May 1927) is best known for his portrayal of the Windex bottle-toting family patriarch "Gus Portokalos" in the sleeper hit My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002). Before his appearance in that movie and the subsequent TV series based on it, he was primarily known for his portrayal of principal Seymour Kaufman in the series Room 222 (1969), for which he won a 1970 Emmy Award as Best Supporting Actor (in 1971, he also received a second Emmy nomination and a Golden Globe nomination as Best Supporting Actor for the role).
Michael Constantine was born Constantine Joanides in Reading, Pennsylvania, to Greek parents, Andromache (Fotiadou) and Theoharis Ioannides, a steel worker. He made his Broadway debut as part of the ensemble of the hit play "Inherit the Wind," which made its bow at the National Theatre on April 21, 1955, and closed on June 22, 1957, after 806 performances. During the run of the play, Constantine managed to work his way up into the part of "Conklin". His next appearance on the Great White Way was in "Compulsion," a dramatization of the Leopold & Loeb trial, in which he played three parts: speakeasy owner "Al," defense attorney "Jonathan Wilk" and "Dr. Ball." The show had a modest run of 140 performances in the 1957-58 season at the Ambassador Theatre.
On October 19, 1959, Constantine was part of the opening-night cast of the hit play "The Miracle Worker," appearing in the role of "Anagnos." It ran for 719 performances at the Playhouse through July 1, 1961, but his next play, "The Egg", was a flop, lasting but one week (eight performances) at the Cort in January 1962. His last turn on Broadway was in Tony Richardson's staging of Bertolt Brecht's mediation on the rise of Adolf Hitler, "Arturo Ui" (a.k.a. "The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui"). Constantine played the character "Dogsborough" in support of the great Broadway star Christopher Plummer's "Arturo Ui." It, too, was a one-week flop, lasting but eight performances at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre in November 1963. Constantine's Broadway career was at an end.
He made his motion picture debut in The Last Mile (1959) in support of Mickey Rooney, but had already begun appearing in the medium in which he made his reputation, television, the year before. He appeared in teleplays on the omnibus television anthologies Armstrong Circle Theatre (1950) and Play of the Week (1959) and made numerous guest appearances on TV series, where his ethnic look made him valuable as heavies on such programs as The Untouchables (1959). In film, he appeared in such productions as Robert Rossen's classic The Hustler (1961), If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium (1969) and the film version of Woody Allen's play, Don't Drink the Water (1969), the latter two films revealing his flair for comedy.
Constantine was a regular on the series Hey, Landlord (1966). His stint on Room 222 (1969) was followed by his star-turn in the short-lived series Sirota's Court (1976), for which he received his second Golden Globe nomination, this time as Best Leading Actor in a Musical or Comedy TV Series, in 1976. After that, he remained steadily employed but his career remained rather quiet until cast he was cast in My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002).
Michael Constantine died in August 2021. He was 94. - Actor
- Additional Crew
- Director
TV sportscaster Bob Costas is known as a smart interviewer with encyclopedic knowledge and a devilish sense of humor.
He was born in the borough of Queens, New York. He is the son of Jayne (Quinlan) and John George Costas, an electrical engineer. His father's roots are Greek, from the island of Kalymnos in the Aegean Sea, and his mother is of Irish and German descent. He grew up primarily in Commack, New York, graduating from Commack High School South. Following high school, Costas majored in communications at Syracuse University. He left school prior to graduating to accept a job at radio giant KMOX in St. Louis. Later he received an honorary degree from Syracuse's S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications.- Actor
- Writer
- Soundtrack
Chris grew up splitting his time between Greece and Canada. At age 9, he started doing TV commercials and professional theater. He left home at 18 to perform in a series of US national tours after which, he landed on Broadway. Chris now splits his time between New York and Los Angeles acting in TV and Film. Also an established voice-over artist, he can be heard on numerous national campaigns and networks.- Alex Dimitriades was born on 28 December 1973 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. He is an actor, known for Head On (1998), Ghost Ship (2002) and Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo (2005).
- Actor
- Additional Crew
Michael Dukakis, three-term governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts who served longer in that post than any other person in history, is best remembered in history as the 1988 Democratic candidate for President in an election in which Ronald Reagan's vice president, George Bush, effectively used "Swift Boat" tactics to undermine Dukakis' candidacy.
Born Michael Stanley Dukakis on November 3, 1933 to Greek-immigrant parents in Brookline, Massachusetts (the birthplace of both John F. Kennedy and his 1988 Presidential opponent Bush). Dukakis' father was a Harvard-educated physician and his mother was a Massachusetts schoolteacher. She worked to eliminate first her native Greek accent and then her New England accent to remove imperfections from her speech pattern that might hinder her teaching ability. In a time and place where non-Anglo-Saxon ethnicity was looked down upon (even that of the Irish Americans who emigrated to the U.S. with the ability to speak English and a knowledge of Anglo-Saxon politics) and even proved a hindrance to social mobility, the Dukakis family was committed to assimilation. Part of the bad rap against Dukakis that would cost him his first reelection campaign as governor and his bid for the White House was that he was too stiff and formal; yet, being brought up in an era and place in which overt displays of emotion were looked down upon upon by the ruling class of Boston Brahmins as too "ethnic" (as well as betraying lower-caste origins), one can understand Dukakis' coolness and reserve as being an attempt not to be stereotyped by his social "betters". (His contemporary, three-term New York governor Mario Cuomo, said that when he entered law practice in the early 1950s, he was told to ditch his Italian name and rename himself something along the lines of "Mike COnnors". He, of course, refused, though that type of ethnic cleansing was considered normal among upwardly mobile and socially ambitious "urban ethnics" of the time.)
The class system in Boston was so strict before being shattered by John F. Kennedy's presidency that JFJ's father, Joseph P. Kennedy, felt the need to relocate his family to New York City in the 1930s so that they would no grow up amidst anti-Irish prejudice. Despite the fact that he was one of the richest men in the country and his wife was the daughter of a Boston mayor, an Irish Catholic was beyond the pale, socially, to the Boston Brahmins, the brethren of the Cabot and Lodge families that dominated the self-proclaimed "Hub" of the universe. (A local ditty went about Boston hailed the Hub as "...the land of the bean and the cod,/Where the Lodges speak only to the Cabots,/And the Cabots speak only to God.)
After graduating from Swarthmore College in 1955, Dukakis served as an enlisted intelligence analyst in the U.S. Army. After completing his military service, he graduated from Harvard Law School in 1960. After serving in the General Court (Massachusetts legislature), Dukakis was elected governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in 1974, defeating the incumbent Republican Francis W. Sargent. The commonwealth was undergoing a fiscal crisis and the Republican Party was very unpopular in the commonwealth, the only state that had been won in the electoral college by 1972 Presidential candidate George McGovern two years before. Dukakis' victory was the result, partially, of his taking a pledge not to increase the state's sales tax to balance the state budget, but he reneged on the promise soon after taking office. During the great Blizzard of 1978, which shut down Boston and a good deal of the Commonwealth, "The Duke" went into local TV studios in a sweater to announce emergency bulletins. The coldness of his public persona in the midst of the crisis was likened to that of the weather itself, and hurt his popularity. Combined with a nation-wide and local backlash against the high property tax rates, and his reneging on his promise to not raise the sales tax, he lost to Edward J. King in the Democratic primary, as King capitalized on the issue of taxes. Following California's lead, the voters of the Commonwealth voted for Proposition 2 and 1/2 that limited property tax rates to 2 1/2% of the property valuation.
Dukakis defeated King in in the Democratic primary in 1982, and easily defeated his Republican opponent to be reelected governor. (Fellow future Democratic Presidential nominee John Kerry was elected Lieutenant Governor on the same ballot with Dukakis, serving in the Dukakis administration from 1983 to 1985, when he was took Paul Tsongas's Senate seat.) The second term and the first years of Dukakis' third term as governor were very successful (he won re-election in 1986 with over 60% of the vote), during which time he presided over a booming economy fueled by the high-technology industry, second at the time only to that of California. A reform-minded technocrat, Dukakis was given credit for the "Massachusetts Miracle" (part of the credit of which should be attributed to Masssachusetts Congressman Tip O'Neil, who had taken over JFK's old congressional district, who as the powerful Democratic Speaker of the House helped direct billions in defense spending to the Commonwealth).
The National Governors Association voted Dukakis the most effective governor in 1986, positioning Dukakis for a bid for the presidency. Basing his candidacy as the architect of the "Massachusetts Miracle", Dukakis overcame the other contenders for the Democratic Party presidential nomination (a group dubbed the "Seven Dwarfs" by the media for their collective lack of stature or prominence on the national stage; Dukakis' own personal lack of stature). The success of the Dukakis' campaign was largely attributed to campaign manager John Sasso, who had originally worked for rival candidate Joseph Biden. (Having also managed the campaigns of Al Gore and John Kerry, Sasso is now 0-3 in presidential election contests.)
Dukakis came out of the Democratic convention with an overwhelming lead over Ronald Reagan's heir-apparent, Vice President George Bush, the Republican nominee, but would not or could not handle the dirty campaign tactics that were the stock-in-trade of all the Vice President's men, including Lee Atwater. While the Dukakis camp expected an attack on their candidate as a traditional liberal, they did not seem to be able to cope with the McCarthyite vitriol from the Bush camp, which sought to make the "L" word the equivalent of what communism had been in the early 1950s. Harking back to McCarthy, Bush had accused Dukakis during one of their televised debates as being a "card-carrying member of the American Civil Liberties Union," replacing "communist" with the ACLU (a variation of the "L"-word) and recycling an old charge from the '50s against liberals and "fellow travelers".
Unlike future Democratic Presidential candidate Bill Clinton (who had delivered the key-note address at the 19988 Democratic convention), who- when confronted with Bush's dirty tactics, such as pillorying his
As it had during the Big Blizzard, The Duke's stoical personality as projected to the voting public was interpreted as a lack of passion (which ran against the traditional stereotype of the Greek-American being fiery if not hot headed, an image that Dukakis, like his mother earlier, chose to expunge from his being). His opponents, touching on his reputation as a technocrat and superb administrator, referred to him as "Zorba the Clerk." Nevertheless, Dukakis widely was perceived to have performed well in the first presidential debate with Bush, and his candidacy was buoyed by his running mate, Texas Senator Lloyd Bentsen, who was not afraid to take off the gloves. However, in the second debate, the runner stumbled; Dukakis had been suffering from the flu. Still, his performance was poor and played to his reputation as being cold, particularly his response to moderator Bernard Shaw's question, "Governor, if Kitty Dukakis [his wife] were raped and murdered, would you favor an irrevocable death penalty for the killer?"
Projecting himself as a man of reason, Dukakis replied with no visible emotion, "No, I don't, and I think you know that I've opposed the death penalty during all of my life," and then explained his stance. Many observers felt Dukakis' answer lacked the normal emotions one would expect of a person discussing a loved one's rape and death. Many - including the candidate himself - believe that this, in part, cost Dukakis the election, as his poll numbers dropped from 49% to 42% nationally overnight. Other commentators thought the question itself was unfair, in that it injected an irrelevant emotional element into the discussion of a policy issue.
Arguably the greatest issue of the campaign was that of race and crime, as articulated by the Bush camp in the prison furlough program issue. Framed by Lee Atwater, the Bush camp ran ads that criticized Dukakis for a prison furlough program that resulted in the release of convicted murderer Willie Horton, an African American, who committed a rape and assault in Maryland after fleeing Massachusetts. While it was Al Gore during the Democratic primaries that was the first candidate to publicly raise the furlough issue and highlight the fact that a furloughed prisoner had broken into a house, raped a woman and beaten her husband, Gore never mentioned Horton by name or highlighted the fact that he black, as the TV ads did merely by running his picture.
Despite the fact that the furlough program was started before Dukakis' gubernatorial administration and that the federal government under Ronald Reagan had a similar program that had resulted in similar outcomes, candidate Bush decided to play the race and crime card to boost his candidacy. Bush mentioned Horton by name in a speech in June 1988 and an "independent" political action committee (PAC) legally not affiliated with the Bush campaign, the National Security Political Action Committee, aired an ad entitled "Weekend Passes" which used a mug shot image of the African American Horton. The Bush campaign refused to repudiate it, and indeed, followed it up with its own, official campaign ad, "Revolving Door," criticizing Dukakis over the furlough program without mentioning Horton.
The first Bush to be president also hammered on the patriotism theme (and unlike his son, an errant National Guard pilot during the Vietnam War, George H.W. Bush was an authentic war hero, serving honorably during the Second World War) to undermine Dukakis by portraying him as soft on defense, in regards to the controversial "Star Wars" Space Defense Initiative program, which Dukakis promised to scale down. The response to this provocation lead to a public relations disaster when the Dukakis campaign engineered a photo-op at the General Dynamics plant in Michigan in September 1988, in which The Duke was photographed driving an M1 Abrams tank. Filmed wearing a safety helmet that seemed too large for his head, Dukakis looked awkward, out of place, and decidedly uncomfortable in such a military setting. Footage of Dukakis was used by the Bush campaign as evidence he would not make a good commander-in-chief, and "Dukakis in the tank" is still shorthand among political operatives for disastrous public relations outings.
The campaign arguably was the dirtiest since the 19th century until Bush's son ran for reelection against John Kerry in 2004. Dukakis lost the 1988 election and retired from active politics after his gubernatorial term expired in 1991. The "Massachusetts Miracle" expired during the lead up to the recession that gripped America in the Bush administration, and The Duke's popularity withered as he was forced to significantly raise taxes. He did not run for a fourth term in 1990; controversial Boston University President John Silber, a social reactionary who was dubbed by Ronald Reagan his "Favorite Demcorat" won the Democratic gubernatorial nomination, and narrowly lost the general election to William Weld, ushering in nearly two decades of Republican governors in the heavily Democratic Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
After the end of his term, he served on the board of directors for Amtrak. Splitting his time between Boston and Los Angeles, California, he became a professor of political science at Boston's Northeastern University and a visiting professor of public policy at the University of California, Los Angeles. Dukakis has recently developed a strong passion for grassroots campaigning and the appointment of precinct captains to coordinate local campaigning activities, two strategies he feels are essential for the Democratic Party to compete effectively in both local and national elections. His policies have become gospel to Howard Dean, the head of the Democratic Central Committee. He also has taken a strong role in advocating for effective public transportation and high speed rail as a solution to automobile congestion and the lack of space at airports.- Actor
- Producer
- Soundtrack
A charismatic performer who spent years on television looking for his big break, actor George Eads finally became a television star portraying forensic investigator Nick Stokes on the hit procedural "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" (CBS, 2000- ). Prior to that role, Eads eked out a living with roles on less-than-popular shows like "Strange Luck" (Fox, 1995-96) and Aaron Spelling's short-lived "Savannah" (The WB, 1996-97), before carving out a niche in TV movies like "The Ultimate Lie" (USA, 1996) and "Crowned and Dangerous" (ABC, 1997). He went on to score a few episodes of "ER" (NBC, 1994-2009) and had a regular role on the sitcom "Grapevine" (CBS, 2000), only to find himself out of work once more when that series was canceled after five episodes. But Eads segued right away into "CSI," where he was fortunate enough to have landed on a series that ran well into the next decade, turning him into a known commodity while allowing the actor the comfort of tackling outside roles as he chose. During his time on the show, Eads landed a number of guest spots and TV movies, but none as high-profile as his starring turn as the iconic 1970s daredevil, "Evel Knievel" (TNT, 2004). With his portrayal of Stokes, Eads was elevated from unknown to fan favorite after years of struggle.- Actor
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Jason David Frank is well-known for his role of Tommy Oliver in the long-running family television show Power Rangers. He is the voice of Emissary in Transformers: Titans Returns and brings Bloodshot to life in the highly-anticipated project Ninjak vs.the Valiant Universe. Always one looking for adventure, Jason shares his exciting life in the extremely popular series My Morphin Life, which is now in its fourth season.
Arguably the most popular and famous Power Ranger, Jason's character was only intended to be in ten episodes. Due to his popularity, he was morphed into the most amount of different rangers in the show's twenty-four year history. He began as the Mighty Morphin Green Ranger, a bad boy turned good, and subsequently morphed into the Mighty Morphin White Ranger, Red Zeo, Red Turbo, and then returned in 2004 as the Black Dino Thunder Ranger.
Throughout Power Ranger history, Jason David Frank's character has appeared in 225 total episodes and counting, more episodes than any other ranger. He also starred in the series both full-length movies, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers the Movie (1995) and Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie (1997). In 2013, Jason David Frank reprised his role of the Green Ranger in the Power Ranger's 20th Anniversary season, which featured a mega-war with many rangers from the show's long history, and was most recently had a cameo in the Power Rangers movie. With his dynamic screen presence and outstanding martial arts, he has catapulted Tommy to legendary fame in the Power Ranger fandom and to this day, maintains an enormous fan base that stretches around the world.
His martial arts is not just for television and films, Jason, an inductee of the World Karate Union Hall of Fame, is a highly accomplished and respected martial artist with 39 years of experience. In 1994, he created his own martial arts system, "Toso Kune Do," which means "Way of the Fighting Fist" and incorporates many different aspects of martial arts. He holds an eighth degree black belt in American Karate, a purple belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, and in February 2013, he received the title of Master of Muay Thai by the world renowned Muay Thai trainer Grand Master Toddy (Arjan). He is the owner and operator of Rising Sun Karate and MMA, with three schools in Texas and one in California.
In January 2013, Jason David Frank became the Guinness World Record Holder for most 1 inch pine board broken during freefall. Jason, who was introduced to skydiving during Power Rangers, shattered the previous record with seven broken pine boards.
On November 19, 2022, Jason David Frank took his own life by hanging himself in the bathroom at the Texas hotel and died at the age 49.- Actor
- Producer
- Executive
Theo James was born on December 16, 1984 in Oxford, Oxfordshire, England, United Kingdom as Theodore Peter James Kinnaird Taptiklis. He is an actor, known for his role as Tobias "Four" Eaton in the films Divergent (2014), The Divergent Series: Insurgent (2015) and Allegiant (2016). He is also known for his roles as David in Underworld: Awakening (2012) and Underworld: Blood Wars (2016) and Will Younger in the Netflix film, How It Ends (2018).- Actor
- Costume and Wardrobe Department
George Kotsiopoulos was born on 18 November 1968 in Skokie, Illinois, USA. He is an actor, known for Iron Man 3 (2013), The Young and the Restless (1973) and Close Up with the Hollywood Reporter (2015).- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Jason Mantzoukas is an American actor, comedian, writer and podcaster. He is best known for his recurring role as Rafi in the FX comedy series The League, and as one of the three co-hosts of the podcast How Did This Get Made? alongside Paul Scheer and June Diane Raphael. After beginning his career as an improv comedian, he has played several comedic roles in film and television. He appeared in the films The Dictator, The Long Dumb Road, Sleeping with Other People, They Came Together, Conception, and John Wick: Chapter 3. He has had recurring roles on three TV series created by Michael Schur: Parks and Recreation (as Dennis Feinstein), Brooklyn Nine-Nine (as Adrian Pimento), and The Good Place (as Derek Hofstetler). He voices the characters Jay Bilzerian in the Netflix animated series Big Mouth, Alex Dorpenberger in the HBO Max animated series Close Enough, Rex Splode in the Amazon Prime animated action series Invincible, and Jankom Pog in the Paramount+ animated series Star Trek: Prodigy.- David (pronounced "Dah-Veed") Albert Mazouz is an actor, writer, and producer who graduated from Stanford University in 2023, where he studied Economics and Psychology. He is best known for his role as Bruce Wayne on FOX's Gotham and since the show's end, he has continued to act in theater and film, as well as produce.
David was born to a Tunisian father and a Greek mother. He has American and Spanish citizenship. His maternal grandparents were Holocaust survivors.
David began his acting career in commercials at the age of 7 after attending acting classes with his older sister. Spotted there by an agent, he began auditioning and fell in love with entertaining. He was born and raised in Los Angeles.
He landed his first film shortly after in a film directed by Edoardo Ponti. He began booking guest star roles for television, working with James Burrows and Randall Einhorn at the age of 9. He landed the role of Jake Bohm on FOX's Touch alongside Kiefer Sutherland, the only other cast member to appear in all 26 episodes. Kiefer was a kind and generous mentor for him, teaching him not only about the craft of acting but about the industry, as well. At the age of 13, he booked FOX's Gotham, where he played a young Bruce Wayne from the time of his parent's murder to becoming Batman. Alongside Bruce, David grew up on screen as he was 18 when the show ended. Living in New York as a teenager to shoot Gotham was trying at times as he was away from his school friends and the other half of his family, but since David is most passionate about work, he was ready to do school remotely. He managed juggling two completely different worlds effortlessly, and traveled back and forth to each coast regularly.
At Stanford, David performed in five plays and musicals, including an adaptation of Henry IV. He produced and acted in a production of Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot. He also acted in and produced short films in his time at Stanford. - Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Demetri Martin was born on 25 May 1973 in New York City, New York, USA. He is an actor and writer, known for Dean (2016), Take Me Home Tonight (2011) and In a World... (2013). He has been married to Rachael Beame since 1 June 2012.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Tall, dark and handsome, not to mention a charismatic rebel of 1960s Hollywood, actor George Maharis (surname originally Maharias) was born in 1928 in Astoria, New York, one of seven siblings. His immigrant father was a restaurateur. Maharis expressed an early interest in singing and initially pursued it as a career, but extensive overuse of his voice and improper vocal lessons stripped his vocal cords, and he subsequently veered towards an acting career.
Trained at the Neighborhood Playhouse with Sanford Meisner and the Actor's Studio with Lee Strasberg, the "Method" actor found roles on television, including several episodes of Naked City (1958), and secured an early name for himself on the late 1950s off-Broadway scene, especially with his performances in Jean Genet's "Deathwatch" and Edward Albee's "Zoo Story". Producer/director Otto Preminger "discovered" Maharis for film, offering him a choice of five small roles in the upcoming film Exodus (1960), in which the actor eventually played an underground freedom fighter.
One of the episodes Maharis did of the police drama Naked City (1958), entitled "Four Sweet Corners", wound up being a roundabout pilot for the buddy adventure series that would earn him household fame. With the arrival of the series Route 66 (1960), the actor earned intense TV stardom and a major cult following as a Brando-esque, streetwise drifter named Buzz Murdock. Partnered with the fair-skinned, clean-scrubbed, college-educated Tod Stiles (Martin Milner, later star of Adam-12 (1968)), the duo traveled throughout the U.S. in a hotshot convertible Corvette and had a huge female audience getting their kicks off with the show. At the show's peak, Maharis parlayed his TV fame into a recording career with Epic Records, producing six albums in the process and peaking with the single "Teach Me Tonight".
During the middle of the series' third season peak, Maharis abruptly left the series with a number of reasons cited. Often quoted is that the virile, seductive image of a fast-rising star apparently got to him, and that he proved increasingly troublesome as he grew in stature. Tabloids reported that the actor purposefully instigated ongoing clashes with both producers and co-star Milner in order to leave the series and seek film stardom while the irons were hot. Maharis denied this, insisting that his working relationships on the set were solid and that any complaints were vastly overblown. He cited health reasons as the reason for his leaving, claiming that a long-term bout (and relapse) of infectious hepatitis, caught during a 1962 shoot of the series, forced him to abandon the show under doctor's orders. For whatever reason, Maharis left. His replacement, ruggedly handsome Glenn Corbett, failed to click with audiences and the series was canceled after the next season.
Back to working on films, the brash and confident actor, with his health scare over, aggressively pursued stardom with a number of leads, but the duds he found himself in -- Quick, Before It Melts (1964), Sylvia (1965), A Covenant with Death (1967), The Happening (1967), and The Desperados (1969) prime among his list of disasters -- hampered his chances. The best of the lot was the suspense drama The Satan Bug (1965), but it lacked box-office appeal and disappeared quickly. Moreover, a 1967 sex scandal (and subsequent one in 1974) could not have helped. In the 1970s Maharis returned to series TV in the short-lived The Most Deadly Game (1970), co-starring fellow criminologists Ralph Bellamy and Yvette Mimieux (who replaced the late Inger Stevens who committed suicide shortly before shooting was about to start). The decade also included a spate of TV movies, including the more notable The Monk (1969) and Rich Man, Poor Man (1976). In between these he appeared in Las Vegas nightclubs and summer stock, and was one of the first celebrities to pose for a nude centerfold in Playgirl (July 1973).
His last working years brought about the occasional film, most notably as the resurrected warlock in The Sword and the Sorcerer (1982) and an appearance in the horror thriller Doppelganger (1993). With his "bad boy" glory days behind him, Maharis' TV career ended rather routinely with guest parts on such popular but unchallenging shows such as "Fantasy Island" and "Murder, She Wrote". Later years were spent focusing on impressionistic painting. He has been fully retired since the early 1990s.- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Ralph George Macchio was born on November 4, 1961 in Huntington, Long Island, New York. He started out in various TV commercials in the late 1970s before appearing in the puerile comedy movie Up the Academy (1980), then a regular role in 1980 on the television series Eight Is Enough (1977) followed by a decent performance as teenager Johhny Cade in the The Outsiders (1983) based on the popular S.E. Hinton novel about troubled youth.
In 1984, Macchio scored the lead role in The Karate Kid (1984) directed by Rocky (1976) director John G. Avildsen. The film was a phenomenal success, being highly popular with adults and children alike. The movie spawned two equally popular sequels The Karate Kid Part II (1986) and The Karate Kid Part III (1989), both again starring Macchio and Pat Morita, and both directed by Avildsen.
Macchio also starred in the blues road movie Crossroads (1986), featured alongside Joe Pesci in My Cousin Vinny (1992) and, looking to toughen up his image, Macchio played a hit man in A Good Night to Die (2003). Arguably, movie audiences still identify Macchio very strongly with his Karate Kid role, but as his features have gained a more weathered, adult edge, he has found opportunities and positive reviews from appearances in stage productions showcasing his acting talent. It would be great to see this versatile actor score some broader and more challenging film roles.- Actor
- Composer
- Producer
Tommy Lee was born on 3 October 1962 in Athens, Greece. He is an actor and composer, known for Barb Wire (1996), The Dirt (2019) and Vanilla Sky (2001). He has been married to Brittany Furlan since 14 February 2019. He was previously married to Pamela Anderson, Heather Locklear and Elaine Margaret Starchuk.- Actor
- Producer
Elias Koteas was born on March 11, 1961, in Montreal, Canada. Both his parents are of Greek descent. Elias attended Vanier College in Montreal before leaving to attend the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City in 1981, of which he is a graduate. He also attended the Actors Studio in New York City, where he studied acting under Ellen Burstyn and Peter Masterson. His film debut was in One Magic Christmas (1985). He has also appeared on stage in "Kiss of the Spider Woman," "Death of a Salesman," "Bent" and "The Cherry Orchard." In 1989 he was nominated for a Genie (Canada's Academy Award) for best actor in Malarek (1988), a true story in which he plays a troubled street-kid-turned reporter for a Canadian newspaper. A somewhat of a breakthrough role for Elias happened in 1990, when he got the role of vigilante Casey Jones in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990) and its sequels. He is one of Canada's most popular actors and frequently appears in films by Canadian directors Atom Egoyan and David Cronenberg. It was Cronenberg's controversial movie Crash (1996) that had Cannes all abuzz in 1996. Elias played Vaughan, a self-appointed "mad scientist" with an unusual fetish--sexual delight in car crashes! The past two years have been busy ones for Koteas, adding six more roles to his resume. As Capt. James Staros, the commanding officer of Charlie Company in The Thin Red Line (1998), he brought sensitivity and compassion to his portrayal of a man who cared about the safety of his men--even at the risk of his own career. In 2000 he appeared in Lost Souls (2000), a thriller starring Winona Ryder, and starred on Broadway with Josh Brolin in the Sam Shepard play "True West."- Alex Karzis is known for Warehouse 13 (2009), Detention (2003) and Covert Affairs (2010). He was previously married to Lisa Schrage.
- Actor
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Alex Karras was born on 15 July 1935 in Gary, Indiana, USA. He was an actor and producer, known for Blazing Saddles (1974), Victor/Victoria (1982) and Porky's (1981). He was married to Susan Clark and Ivalyn Joan Jurgensen. He died on 10 October 2012 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
New York based actor Kelly Karavites was born in Astoria, Queens, New York City to a large Greek family involved in what else, the diner business. After serving 2 years in the U.S. Army as an enlisted man he was appointed by his congressman and the Secretary of the Army to cadet at the United States Military Academy. Despite this tremendous honor, he later opted for an honorable discharge and he pursued acting studies at New York's Herbert Berghoff Studio in Manhattan over the years. During this same time he studied for and received his Bachelor's degree from the City University of New York working in career fields as diverse as advertising, financial services and academia. Over the last several years, Kelly has performed in numerous Off Broadway stage performances, countless stand up comedy performances, and several independent films in roles very worthy of the term character actor. Kelly considers no other career suitable for his inquiry into the human condition better than acting. There is no cure.- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
John Kapelos was born on 8 March 1956 in London, Ontario, Canada. He is an actor and writer, known for Big Sky (2020), The Umbrella Academy (2019) and The Shape of Water (2017).- Actor
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Laird Hamilton was born on 2 March 1964 in San Francisco, California, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Die Another Day (2002), Waterworld (1995) and Point Break (2015). He has been married to Gabrielle Reece since 30 November 1997. They have two children. He was previously married to Maria Souza.- Solidly built, boyishly handsome American leading-man, Christopher George was the son of Greek immigrants. Weaned on stories of the legendary Greek heroes, George and his brother Nick (later a prominent fashion photographer) both quit high school to join the Marines. Completing his education after his tour of duty, George acted in numerous TV commercials, winning a New York Film Festival Award for his efforts. Appearing in Broadway plays like A Street Car Named Desire and films like Howard Hawks's El Dorado (1966). He became a great friend of John Wayne also in Chisum (1970). George also became a TV star in the wartime adventure series The Rat Patrol (1966). He later starred in the science fiction series The Immortal (1969) and then returned to filmmaking. He also starred in Project X (1968), The Train Robbers (1973), Midway (1976), Grizzly (1976), Day of the Animals (1977), The Exterminator (1980), Graduation Day (1981), and his last, Mortuary (1982). He also appeared in another 30 other films and TV guest appearances. Christopher George died of a heart attack. He was married to his wife, actress Lynda Day George (a frequent co-star) for 14 years.