Famous Greeks

A deck by Anouk Greco · 24 cards

Philosophers, artists, athletes, and screen icons of Greek heritage — including American actor Steve Zissis.

Pythagoras

Pythagoras of Samos was an ancient Ionian Greek philosopher, polymath, and the eponymous founder of Pythagoreanism. His political and religious teachings were well known in Magna Graecia and influenced the philosophies of Plato, Aristotle, and, through them, Western philosophy. Modern scholars disagree regarding Pythagoras's education and influences, but most agree that he travelled to Croton in southern Italy around 530 BC, where he founded a school in which initiates were allegedly sworn to secrecy and lived a communal, ascetic lifestyle.

Maria Callas

Maria Callas (born Maria Anna Cecilia Sophia Kalogeropoulos; December 2, 1923 – September 16, 1977) was an American and Greek soprano, and one of the most renowned and influential opera singers of the 20th century. Critics praised her bel canto technique, wide-ranging voice, and dramatic interpretations. Her repertoire ranged from classical opera seria to the bel canto operas of Donizetti, Bellini, and Rossini, and further to the works of Verdi and Puccini, and in her early career to the music dramas of Wagner. Her musical and dramatic talents led to her being hailed as La Divina ("The Divine One").

Mikis Theodorakis

Michail "Mikis" Theodorakis (Greek: Μιχαήλ "Μίκης" Θεοδωράκης [mixaˈil ˈmicis θeoðoˈracis]; 29 July 1925 – 2 September 2021) was a Greek composer and lyricist credited with over 1,000 works. He scored for the films Zorba the Greek (1964), Z (1969), and Serpico (1973). He was a three-time BAFTA nominee, winning for Z. For the score in Serpico, he earned Grammy nominations. Furthermore, for the score to Zorba the Greek, with its song "Zorba's Dance", he was nominated for a Golden Globe.

Nana Mouskouri

Ioanna "Nana" Mouskouri is a Greek singer who has released hundreds of albums in over a dozen languages.

George Stephanopoulos

George Stephanopoulos is an American television host of Greek heritage.

Nikos Kazantzakis

Nikos Kazantzakis is the most translated modern Greek author worldwide.

Constantine P. Cavafy

C. P. Cavafy, a major figure of modern Greek literature, was a Greek poet from Alexandria.

Steve Zissis

Steve Zissis is an American actor, writer and producer. A longtime friend of Jay and Mark Duplass, he has appeared in and co-produced some of their productions, including the films Baghead (2008), Cyrus (2010), The Do-Deca-Pentathlon (2012) and the TV series Togetherness (2015–2016). He has also appeared in other films and TV shows, including the 2013 film Her.

El Greco

El Greco was a Greek painter of the Spanish Renaissance.

Nia Vardalos

Antonia Eugenia "Nia" Vardalos (born September 24, 1962) is a Canadian actress and screenwriter. She starred in and wrote the romantic comedy film My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002), which garnered her nominations for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay and the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Comedy or Musical, and which went on to spawn a media franchise.

Jennifer Aniston

Jennifer Aniston is an American actress of Greek heritage.

John Stamos

John Stamos is an American actor of Greek descent, best known for Full House.

Yanis Varoufakis

Yanis Varoufakis is a Greek economist, author, and politician, former Minister of Finance.

Hippocrates

Hippocrates of Kos, the "Father of Medicine", was a Greek physician of the classical period.

Homer

Homer was an ancient Greek poet who is widely credited as the author of the Iliad and the Odyssey, two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Although his life and authorship remain obscure, Homer was highly revered in ancient Greek society and is considered one of the most influential authors in history.

Elia Kazan

Elias Kazantzoglou (Greek: Ηλίας Καζαντζόγλου, IPA: [iˈli.as kazanˈdzoɣlu]; September 7, 1909 – September 28, 2003), known as Elia Kazan ( EE-lee-ə kə-ZAN), was a Greek-American film and theatre director, producer, screenwriter and actor, described by The New York Times as "one of the most honored and influential directors in Broadway and Hollywood history". Born in Constantinople (now Istanbul) to Cappadocian Greek parents, his family came to the United States in 1913. After attending Williams College and then the Yale School of Drama, he acted professionally for eight years, later joining the Group Theatre in 1932, and co-founded the Actors Studio in 1947. With Robert Lewis and Cheryl Crawford, his actors' studio introduced "Method Acting" under the direction of Lee Strasberg.

Pericles

Pericles was a Greek statesman and general during the Golden Age of Athens.

Alexander the Great

Alexander III of Macedon, king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon, created one of the largest empires in history.

Plato

(427 BC–347 BC) Plato was an ancient Greek philosopher of Classical Athens who is most commonly considered the foundational thinker of the Western philosophical tradition. An innovator of the literary dialogue and dialectic forms, Plato influenced all the major areas of theoretical philosophy and practical philosophy, and was the founder of the Academy, a philosophical school in Athens where Plato taught the collection of philosophical theories that would later become known as Platonism.

Aristotle

(384 BC–322 BC) Aristotle was an ancient Greek philosopher and polymath. His writings span the natural sciences, philosophy, linguistics, economics, politics, psychology, and the arts. As the founder of the Peripatetic school of philosophy in the Lyceum in Athens, he began the wider Aristotelian tradition that followed, which set the groundwork for the development of modern science.

Archimedes

Archimedes of Syracuse was an Ancient Greek mathematician, physicist, engineer, astronomer, and inventor.

Giannis Antetokounmpo

Giannis Sina Ougko Antetokounmpo is a Nigerian-Greek professional basketball player for the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). His size, speed, and strength have earned him the nickname "Greek Freak". He is widely regarded as one of the greatest players and power forwards of all time.

Socrates

Socrates was an ancient Greek philosopher from Classical Athens, perhaps the first Western moral philosopher, and a major inspiration on his student Plato, who largely founded the tradition of Western philosophy. An enigmatic figure, Socrates authored no texts and is known mainly through the posthumous accounts of classical writers, particularly his students Plato and Xenophon. These accounts are written as dialogues, in which Socrates and his interlocutors examine a subject in the style of question and answer; they gave rise to the Socratic dialogue literary genre. Contradictory accounts of Socrates make a reconstruction of his philosophy nearly impossible, a situation known as the Socratic problem. Socrates was a polarizing figure in Athenian society. In 399 BC, he was accused of impiety and corrupting the youth. After a trial that lasted a day, he was sentenced to death. As related by Plato, he was put to death by administration of poison after refusing offers from allies to help him escape.

Pete Sampras

Pete Sampras, of Greek heritage, is one of the greatest tennis players of all time.