Costas Kazakos passed away at the age of 87, after health problems.
The great actor, with a long and valuable career in theatre, cinema and television, was hospitalized at the hospital «Evangelismos» as he was suffering from respiratory problems.
Kostas Kazakos was born in Pyrgos, in 1935. At a young age he moved to Athens to study. He was a graduate of the Lycurgos Stavrakos School of Cinema and the Karolos Koun School of Dramatic Art Theatre.
He was vice-president of the Hellenic Centre of the International Theatre Institute. He was also a founding member of the Hellenic-Arab Association and a member of the Actors« Licensing Committee, co-founder of the Free Theatre (together with Leo Trivizas) and founder of the »Jenny Karezi" Foundation.
He was awarded the «Golden Apollo», an actor's prize by the Athens Film Critics« Association in 1967, and the first Gold Prize of the 1973 Thessaloniki Film Festival for the best theatrical production (»Lysistrata"). He was also awarded the Prize of the Association of Theatre Writers and Critics for his entire contribution.
Politicized and enlisted in the ranks of the KKE, Kostas Kazakos was elected as a member of the KKE in the September 2007 and October 2009 elections, as head of the State election ticket.
From 1968 to 1992 he was married to the actress Jenny Karezi, with whom he had their son, the actor Konstantinos Kazakos. From 1997 until today he was married to the actress Jenny Kollias, with whom he had four children.
His long contribution to the theatre left an indelible mark with the legendary performance «Our Great Circus» with Jenny Karezi and their company in 1973, followed by their other joint success «Theodora the Great» in 1968, and later «Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?» (1982) by Edward Albie, directed by Gilles Dassin, «Diamonds and Blues» (1990) by Loula Anagnostaki, which was their last performance together.
He starred in many other theatrical successes such as Arthur Miller's «Death of a Salesman» (1993) and Bertolt Brecht's «The Opera of the Five» (1993) directed by Gilles Dassin, «Sophocles» Antigone (1995) directed by Minos Volanakis, Shakespeare's King Lear (1996), Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot (1997), etc.ά. On television he has often participated as an actor or director in TV series such as Marina Avgeri, Grand Adventure, The Great Uprising, Black Chrysalis, Closed Windows, Department of Morals, The Ridicule of the Thing, Off Course, Vera on the Right, Life Again, etc.
GNA “Evangelismos” for the death of K. Kazakos
The Management of the Hospital “Evangelismos”, where he was hospitalized since 26 July with respiratory problems, expresses its sincere condolences to the relatives of Konstantinos Kazakos. Today he passed away due to multi-organ failure.
The announcement of the Administration of Evangelism states:
“Konstantinos Kazakos was admitted to the General Hospital «EVANGELISMOS-POLYKLINIKI» on 26-7-2022 with respiratory problems.
His health deteriorated rapidly, and today, Tuesday 13-9-2022, he passed away due to multi-organ failure.
Our sincere condolences to his family and friends”.
