Olympia Dukakis is an 86 year old first generation Greek American actress. Although Dukakis became famous for her work as an actress, she has since taken on many other roles. In her personal social media bios, she describes herself as an actress, director, producer, teacher, activist, and author. Dukakis had a well established career in theater and stage performer. She did not get her big break into Hollywood acting until the age of 56 when she starred in the movie “Moonstruck”.
Personal Life
Olympia Dukakis was born June 20th, 1931 in Lowell, Massachusetts. Her parents, Alexandra (Christos) and Constantine S. Dukakis, were Greek immigrants to America. Her parents also had a son, Apollo, after immigrating to the United States of America. She is also cousin to former governor of Massachusetts Michael Dukakis. Michael Dukakis also ran against George H. W. Bush as the democratic candidate in the 1988 presidential election.
During her youth, Olympia Dukakis attended Arlington High School in Arlington, Massachusetts. After graduating from high school, Dukakis attended Boston University. While at Boston University, she completed her bachelor’s in art in physical therapy and later returned to complete her Masters in Fine Arts. Prior to moving to New York to pursue acting, Dukakis worked as a physical therapist during the Polio epidemic in Massachusetts.
In 1962, Olympia Dukakis married Yugoslav-American actor Louis Zorich. They remained married until his death in January 2018. The couple had three kids together, named Christina, Peter, and Stefan.
Olympia Dukakis identifies as a liberal and is a member of the democratic party. She is an activist and often speaks out on the topics of women’s rights and environmental issues. Additionally, she is seen as a strong ally to the gay and transgender communities.
Early Career
Olympia Dukakis was well known actress on both the classic and contemporary stage all along the east coast soon after focusing her career on acting. She was known as an adaptable actress due to her ability to portray different ethnicities and her adaptability to different many different genres. Her stage career included a range of performances from tragedy to comedy. At age 30, she made her broadway debut in "The Aspern Papers". Additional Broadway performances include "Abraham Cochrane" in 1964 and "Who's Who in Hell" in 1974. Later her Broadway performance of "Social Security" in 1986 caught the eye of Norman Jewison, who she would later work with in film.
Along with her husband Louis Zorich, Olympia Dukakis co-founded the Whole Theatre Company in Montclair, New Jersey in 1971. Dukakis ran this company for 19 years until 1990. During her time at the Whole Theatre Company, she encouraged staff and crew to try new and untested plays.
| Birth Date: | 20 Jun, 1931 |
| Age: | 88 yrs |
| Occupations: | Television actor Film actor Stage actor |
| Citizenship: | United States of America |
| Birth Place: | Lowell |
| Education: | Boston University College of Fine Arts |
| Gender: | Female |
| Description: | American actress |
| Spouse: | Louis Zorich [M. 1962] |
| Net Worth 2021: | 6 million |
