Aliki Vougiouklaki

Biography

Aliki Vougiouklaki was born in 1934 (or 1933, according to some sources) in Maroussi Attikis, Greece. She studied at the Drama School of the Greek National Theater and made her stage debut in a 1953 production of Molière's "Le malade imaginaire." She also made her film debut in "To pontikaki" (1954). The late 1950s marked her breakthrough, highlighted by a notable revival of George Bernard Shaw's "Pygmalion," where she played Eliza Doolittle, and her leading role in the popular film "Το Ξύλο βγήκε από τον παράδεισο" (1959). Vougiouklaki became Greece's most popular star, establishing her own stage group and performing a diverse repertoire that included works by Aristophanes and Tennessee Williams. She starred in numerous films, particularly light comedies and melodramas, often alongside her husband Dimitris Papamichael. Her film "Ypolohagos Natassa" (1970) remains the highest-grossing film in Greek cinema history.