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Melina Mercouri

Melina Mercouri

Actor · Born 1920-10-18 · Athens, Greece

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Biography

Maria Amalia "Melina" Mercouri (Greek: Μαρία Αμαλία "Μελίνα" Μερκούρη, 18 October 1920 – 6 March 1994) was a Greek actress, singer, activist, and politician. She came from a prominent political family for multiple generations. She received an Academy Award nomination and won a French Cannes Film Festival Best Actress Award for her performance in the film Never on Sunday (1960) and an Italian David di Donatello for Topkapi. Mercouri was also nominated for one Tony Award, three Golden Globes, and two BAFTA Awards in her acting career. In 1987 she was awarded a special prize in the first edition of the Europe Theatre Prize. Mercouri was a member of the Hellenic Parliament, elected as a representative of PASOK. In October 1981, she became the first female Minister of Culture and Sports. She has the longest tenure of any of Greece's Ministers of Culture, having served from 1981 to 1989, and then from 1993 until her death in 1994, during PASOK governments. Mercouri's political activism included her long campaign for the return of the Parthenon Marbles. One of her greatest achievements was the establishment of the European Capitals of Culture, with Athens chosen as the first capital in 1…

Movies & TV Shows

  1. Topkapi (1964) — Elizabeth Lipp
  2. The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (1962) — Self
  3. Never on Sunday (1960) — Ilya
  4. Phaedra (1962) — Phaedra Kyrilis
  5. The Last Judgment (1961) — Foreign lady
  6. Stella (1955) — Stella
  7. 10:30 P.M. Summer (1966) — Maria
  8. What's My Line? (1950) — Self - Mystery Guest
  9. The Law (1959) — Donna Lucrezia
  10. The Victors (1963) — Magda
  11. Once Is Not Enough (1975) — Karla
  12. He Who Must Die (1957) — Katerina
  13. Promise at Dawn (1970) — Nina Kacewa
  14. The Merv Griffin Show (1962) — Self
  15. Gaily, Gaily (1969) — Lil
  16. The Gypsy and the Gentleman (1958) — Belle
  17. The Uninhibited (1965) — Jenny
  18. Nasty Habits (1977) — Sister Gertrude
  19. A Man Could Get Killed (1966) — Aurora / Celeste da Costa
  20. A Dream of Passion (1978) — Maya / Medea
  21. The Rehearsal (1974) — Self
  22. Long Live Henry IV... Long Live Love! (1961) — Marie de Médicis
  23. Songs of Fire (1975) — Self
  24. Le Grand Échiquier (1972) — Self
  25. V.I.P. Schaukel (1971) — Self
  26. Cinépanorama (1956) — Self
  27. Die Drehscheibe (1964) — Self
  28. Dim Dam Dom (1965) — Self
  29. 38-24-36 (1963) — Self
  30. À bout portant (1968) — Self
  31. Les Rendez-vous du dimanche (1975) — Self
  32. Wünsch dir was (1969) — Self
  33. Discorama (1959) — Self
  34. Samedi soir (1971) — Self
  35. Melina's fight for the Parthenon sculptures (2017) — Self (archive footage)
  36. Melina Stop Frame - In Search of Modern Greekness (2020) — Self (archive footage)
  37. The Marbles (2025) — Self - Photo Only (archive footage)
  38. Kronen Könner Kavaliere (1984) — Self