Melina Mercouri

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Melina Mercouri
Mercouri in 1982
Minister for Culture
In office 13 October 1993 – 6 March 1994
Prime Minister	Andreas Papandreou
Preceded by	Dora Bakoyanni
Succeeded by	Thanos Mikroutsikos
In office 21 October 1981 – 2 July 1989
Prime Minister	Andreas Papandreou
Preceded by	Andreas Andrianopoulos
Succeeded by	Anna Psarouda-Benaki
Member of the Hellenic Parliament for Piraeus B
In office 20 November 1977 – 7 May 1985
Member of the Hellenic Parliament for National list
In office 17 June 1985 – 6 March 1994
Personal details
Born	Maria Amalia Mercouri (1920-10-18)18 October 1920 Athens, Greece
Died	6 March 1994(1994-03-06) (aged 73) Upper East Side, New York City, U.S.
Resting place	First Cemetery of Athens
Political party	PASOK
Spouses	Panos Harokopos ​ ​ (m. 1941; div. 1962)​ Jules Dassin ​ (m. 1966)​
Parents	Stamatis Mercouris Irene Lappa
Alma mater	National Theatre of Greece Drama School
Occupation	Actress singer (1945–1977)

Maria Amalia "Melina" Mercouri (Greek: Μαρία Αμαλία "Μελίνα" Μερκούρη, 18 October 1920^[a][1] – 6 March 1994) was a Greek actress, singer, activist, and politician. She came from a political family that was prominent over multiple generations. She received an Academy Award nomination and won a Cannes Film Festival Best Actress Award for her performance in the film Never on Sunday (1960). Mercouri was also nominated for one Tony Award, three Golden Globes and two BAFTA Awards in her acting career. In 1987 she was awarded a special prize in the first edition of the Europe Theatre Prize.^[2]

Mercouri was a member of the Hellenic Parliament, elected as a representative of PASOK. In October 1981, she became the first female Minister of Culture and Sports. She has the longest tenure of any of Greece's Ministers of Culture, having served from 1981 to 1989 and then from 1993 until her death in 1994, during PASOK governments. Mercouri's political activism included her long campaign for the return of the Parthenon Marbles.^[3] One of her greatest achievements was the establishment of the European Capitals of Culture, with Athens chosen as the first capital in 1985.^[4]

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