Biography

Aliki Vougiouklaki
1934 -1996

 
Aliki’s birth, her dreams and her father’s murder
 
Aliki was born on July 20th, in Marousi, Attica . Three days later she got pneumonia and her parents called a priest to have her baptized. She was named Aliki – Stamatina. She started dreaming since she was a child. Aliki adored Mary Pickford and Greta Garbo. During the Occupation of ’41 her father was murdered. This traumatic experience was huge and never healed, until she “met him” in Heaven. However young Aliki’s dreams, despite the great hardships that the family suffered, were still there…
 
 First Parts in the School – Student in the Drama School

 

Her enormous acting talent is the talk of the school; she takes leading parts in the most of the theatrical, school performances.
She sits for the exams of the National Theater Drama School , without telling her fam ily anything about, since being an actor those days was nothing much than a shame for the family. Her secret is revealed at some point, but she knows exactly how to fight for her dreams. And in the end she always wins. She graduated in June 1955, and her grade was “Very Good”. She did believe that Very Good was not good enough for her.
 


Her first part and Shakespeare’s Juliet
 
In 1953-1954, and while she is in the second year of studies in the Drama School, she takes the small part of Luison in Moliere’s play Le Malad Imaginaire (Kata Fantasian Asthenis) and within the same year she also played the part of Olympia in  Dimitris Bogris’ Fouskothalassies. In the summer of 1954, before she even graduate, she takes the part of Juliet in Shakespeare Romeo and Juliet, after Anna Synodinou who played the part, opt out of the theatre company. She has to learn the part within three days and nights! And she does…
 
 
Cinema and her first leading part in theatre
In 1954 we have Aliki’s first film, under the title Pontikaki. Her cooperation with N. Hatziskos’ theatre company ends up due to differences (the theatre company had not the profits it expected, and she was accused as being jinx, crabby and hoodoo… they even called a priest to pronounce a blessing so they cast out the devil!). After all that she cooperates with Kotopouli’s theatre company, Katerina’s theatre company and at last with K. Mousouris’ thatre company who established her as protagonist.
 
Aliki as a theatre company owner – The huge cinema suc cesses
In 1962, Aliki forms her own theatre company for the first time, staging the play, Caesar and Cleopatra of George Bernard Shaw. Meanwhile she meets Filopimin Finos and starts cooperating with his productions company “Finos Films” and together they make many out of the biggest successes of the Greek Cinema.
Her star is culminating!
 
“National Star” – 1st Award of performance in Leading Part in the Movies Festival of Thessaloniki

The whole Greece finds again an era of youth and innocence in Aliki. She really is the first idol ever been created and adored as no one else in Greece , during the period after the 2nd World War. She is mentioned to as “national star”. This is a title that the audience offered her as a token of adoration and respect.
In September 1960, her great performance as Madalena, offers her the 1st Award of Performance in Leading Part in the Movies Festival in Thessaloniki . The same movie represented Greece in the international festival of Cannes and made an excellent impression.
Her fame travelled the whole world around… Scotland , Italy , Israel , Australia , Turkey …
 
Her marriage to Dimitris Papamihail and their son’s birth
In January 18th, 1965 she marries Dimitris Papamihail who was a fellow student in the Drama School . Their marriage lasted 9 years, within which they gave birth to their son Yiannis.
Their carriers seemed to be mutual; moreover all their movies and theatrical productions become great successes.
 
The last film – The first musical in Greece
Her movie carrier ends up in 1981, with the film Kataskopos Nelli, during an era that Greek cinema is in great decadence. Aliki has been a pioneer in the Greek show business since 1975, with the Neil Simon’s play Cabiria, taking once more the leading part.
Hits come one after the other!
 
The Sound of Music and the unexpected “Finis”
Her theatrical performances end up in 1996 with the play The Sound of Music of Rogers and Hammerstein in the part of Maria.
Aliki is diagnosed with cancer of aggressive type. “I am not intimidated, I am the man in my life, I will fight and win”… Illne ss however “stabbed her in the back”. It left her no choice to look and “encounter” each other in the eyes… Her departure, only three days after her birthday, brought sorrow to the whole Greek Nation.
 
 
More (in Greek) in the site sansimera.gr
 
This is a non profit site, to honor Aliki’s Vougiouklaki memory