Melina Mercouri the fiery Greek who won the Best Actress Award at Cannes Film Festival and an Oscar Nomination for playing Ilya the hooker with the heart of gold in ‘Never On A Sunday’ was born 96 years ago today. The movie was written and directed by her co-star the American filmmaker and her future husband Jules Dassin.
After an extremely successful career in movies and on the stage as one of Greece’s most famous actors, Mercouri retired to become a Member of the Greek Parliament and was the country’s Minister of Culture for years. When she died of cancer in 1994 she received a state funeral with Prime Minister’s honors at the First Cemetery of Athens.
Labels: 2016, culture, movies, Turn Back Time
