Zoe Laskari (, ; 12 December 1942 – 18 August 2017 was a Greek actress and beauty pageant titleholder. After being crowned Star Hellas 1959 and representing Greece at Miss Universe 1959, where she was placed in the top-15, she switched to acting, where she had a brilliant career. She is considered one of the biggest stars of Greek cinema.
Life Zoe Laskari was born Zoe Kouroukli in Thessaloniki, Greece, on 12 December 1942 into a middle class family which had a long tradition of service to the Hellenic Army. Her father was murdered by the organization ELAS, during the German occupation in late 1943 and her mother was also murdered by ELAS in 1949, in the Greek Civil War.
She was raised by her maternal grandparents. In 1959, she won the title of Star Hellas (Miss Greece). In order to participate in the pageant she added two years to her age, so that she could convince people that she was 17 years old. She went on to represent Greece at the Miss Universe pageant in Long Beach, California where she reached the semi-finals. However, while being in the United States, it was revealed that she was still legally a minor, having obscured her true age. She refused to return to Greece and stayed in New York City for about 18 months.
Marriages In 1967, she married industrialist Petros Koutoumanos, by whom she had her first daughter, Martha Koutoumanou. Their marriage ended in 1971. In June 1976, she married the criminal lawyer, Alexandros Lykourezos; they had a daughter, Maria-Eleni Lykourezou.
Career Due to her success at the beauty pageant, director Giannis Dalianidis, offered her the starring role in O katiforos, a 1961 film, whose success gave her a rapid popularity and she shortly signed an exclusive contract with the biggest Greek film production company at the time, Finos Film. The films in which she appeared ranged from dramas to comedies and musicals. Some of her later movies were Stefania (1966) and Oi Thalassies oi Hadres (1967). Other Laskari film hits were Nomos 4000, Merikoi to protimoun kryo, Koritsia gia filima, Dakrya gia tin Ilektra, Mia kyria sta bouzoukia and Marihouana stop.
Her stage work included famous plays like Edward Albee's Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, the ancient Greek tragedy The Trojan Women by Euripides and Neil Simon's Barefoot in the Park. Her theatrical hits include the play Oi erastes tou Oneirou which was also her first play in Athens. Laskari's first television appearance was her leading role in the TV series Romaios kai Ioulieta in 1976.
Death Laskari died on 18 August 2017 at Porto Rafti, aged 74,Notice of death of Zoe Laskari , Thenationalherald.com; accessed 22 August 2017. from heart failure. She was survived by her two daughters.
Filmography Year Title Role Notes 1961 O katiforos Rea Nikolaou box office: 161,331 1962 Nomos 4000 Maria Oikonomou box office: 118,841 Horis taftotita Liana Mavroleontos O atsidas Anna Kourouzou box office: 69,414 1963 Merikoi to protimoun kryo Eva Aggelou box office: 212,247 Iliggos Elli Ena koritsi gia dyo Myrto box office: 386,817 1964 Egoismos Maria box office: 344,675 1965 Teddy boy agapi mou Zoe Eftyhidou Koritsia gia filima Tzeni box office: 619,236 Istoria mias zois Marigo / Maria / Mairi 1966 Stefania Stefania Karali Dakrya gia tin Ilektra Ilektra Petridi box office: 328,277 1967 Oi Thalassies oi Hadres Mary Kaniatoglou box office: 531,278 1968 Olga agapi mou Olga Panagiotidoi-Vassileiadou box office: 367,559 Mia kyria sta bouzoukia Anna Masourou box office: 615,483 Gymnoi sto dromo Xenia Koumarianou 1969 Agapi gia panta Eleni 1970 Aftoi pou milisan me ton thanato 1971 Marijuana Stop! Kaiti Lagopoulou box office: 312,260 1972 Aixmalotoi tou misous Viky Kouvariotou box office: 124,745 1973 Ston asterismo tis Parthenou Koula box office: 120,010 1974 Erastes tou oneirou Zoe box office: 70,456 1982 Anametrisi Anna
References
External links Official website