Rena Vlahopoulou

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Rena Vlahopoulou at a young age.

Rena Vlahopoulou (Ρένα Βλαχοπούλου) (1923 - July 29, 2004) was a famous Greek actress and singer. She starred in theatre, musical and Greek cinema productions, including The Gambler and The Countess of Corfu

Biography

She was born on the island of Corfu, the fifth of nine children. Her introduction to the arts was the piano, taught by her father, Giannis Vlachopoulos. When she turned ten, she begun singing at a local bakery. In 1938, Vlahopoulou fell in love with an AEK footballer, Kostas Vasiliou.

They later arrived in Athens and Rena had her first wedding in the summer of 1937. In Athens, at a variete Oasis in Zappeio where Mimis Traiforos presented her new works, Rena begun singing there. In the winter of 1930-40, she sang at the World Theatre of Kostas Makedos at Panepistimiou Street. Later, the Kalouta sisters representing Kyriakos Mavreas, Iro Chanta and Yiannis Fleury. In the winter of 1940, the Italian Army bombed Corfu where she lost two of her relatives. The marriage with Vasiliou ended and in 1942 married her second husband, a banker named Yiannis Kostopoulos .

She later continued her career with Yiannis Spartakos at the Pantheon where she composed jazz songs. The press called her Jazz Queen. Her big luck went beyond the greek singing borders with her song Tha Se Paro Na Fygoume which went number one at Wellcome by Alekos Sakellarios and Dimitris Evangelidis during the summer of 1944 at Kyveli theatre. She continued her discography with the Odeon (oh-deh-OHN). With Spartakos they singed for a few years. She divorced Kostopoulos in 1946. She began singing with Spartakos in Lebanon, Iran and North America. They also spoke English, French, Spanish and Italian. In Greece, between July 1946 and the summer of 1951, she practiced at Samartzi theatre in Athens. On August 24, 1951 she attended the Festival in Athens with Orestis Makris, Koulis Stoligas, Nikos Stavridis and the Kaloutas brothers. She filmed in the movie with a Turkish actor Anatolitikes Nychtes, she later starred in Tha Se Paro Na Fygoume. She appeared in musicals including Vasilissa tis Nychtas, Na Ti Tha Pei Athina, Kai o Minas Echei Ennia and Poulia ston Aera with Vasilis Bournelis . She played with other persons including Vasilis Argyropoulos , Yiannis Prineas with Spyridionas Trichas , Paraskevas Oikonomou , Orestis Makris with Spyros Patrikios and Mimis Kokkinis with Georgia Vasiliadou and Kostas Doukas. In the summer of 1952, she acted at the Acropole with Bournelis. In 1953, she acted with Alekos Leivaditis, Marika Krevvata and Georgios Gavriilidis.

She was first as a director at the theatre not as a singer with Sofia Vembo , she appeared in Sousourada (Mimis Traiforos -Georgios Giannakopoulos, music were done by Menelaos Theofanidis, chorografers were Yiannis Fleury and Aliki Vembou) with the number Ala Pasa Mou, Kane mou Tetoia. Together with Nikos Stavridis .

In 1956, the American movie producer Peter Melas tried to play in a Greek movie with Vlachopoulou. Yiannis Petroulakis directed the movie Protevousianikes peripeteies about the story of a Corfiot who arrived in Athens. Also starring were: Nikos Rizos , Stefanos Stratigos and Koulis Stoligas. In the movie, she sang Mazi sou gia Panta (Beside You Forever) with Menelaos Theofanidis. This movie sold over 100,000 tickets.

In 1959, the First Music Festival of NBC sang You Are the Summer, I Am the Winter from Kostas Kapnisis and Thanos Sofos.

In 1960, she appeared in a duette with Yiannis Vogiatzis and sang Proto chelidoni. She later appeared with NBC, and sang with Iakovisis, Spathi, Katsaros, Morakis, Plessas, Mouzakis and Manos Hadjidakis.

Vlachopoulou played at the Metropolitan Theatre . She appeared with the director Alekos Sakellarios in 1962 in the movie Otan Leipei I Gata with Vasilis Avlonitis , Nikos Rizos, Marika Krevvata, Stavros Paravas and the Breuer sisters. In the same year, she appeared in Merikoi to protimoun kryo (Some like it cold), the movie sold over 300,000 tickets. Sakellarios and Dalianidis played several roles in their movie careers. Dalianidis left from Finos. She played Odo Oneiron (Dream Street) in the summer of 1962 at the Metropolitan theatre, the actors were Minos Argyrakis , the singer Manos Hadjidakis, Zoe Fytousi , the Adelfes Tata (Tata Sisters) including Niki Lempesi and Maro Kontou. Vlachopoulou later starred in Amartisa gia to Paidi Mou where Vlachopoulou sang the song Amartisa gia to Paidi while sitting next to the sheep.

In 1963, Vlahopoulou starred in Ena Koritsi Yia Dyo (500,000 tickets), Kati Na Kaiei (750,000 tickets), in 1964, The Gambler (later on the theatrical works of Dimitris Psathas , 600,000 tickets, third movie, along with Lambros Konstantaras , Sapfo Notara and Kostas Voutsas), Koritsia Gia Filima (750,000 tickets, in this movie, she sang with Mimis Plessas from Konta Sou Ellada Mou(Close to you my Greece), Gela Galazios O Ouranos and Athens By Night. In 1965, she appeared in Fonazei O Kleftis, Rantevou ston Aera (Rendez-vous in mid Air), the director in all of her movies were Yiannis Dalianidis.

Viva Rena, a 1967 production.

She married her third and final husband, Giorgos Lafazanis on September 18, 1967. She raised no children. Vlachopoulou left Finos Film in 1966 and moved to Karagiannis-Karatzopoulos . She later appeared in more films including Vouleftina in 1966, Viva Rena in 1967 (500,000 tickets), Ziliara with Georgios Konstantinou (and three other movies with direstor Kostas Karagiannis and the singer Georgios Katsaros ) and Pariziana in 1968 with Dalianidis from Finos Films, Vlachopoulou appeared in Mia Treli Sarantara and I Theia Mou I Hipissa in 1970, Mia Ellinida Sto Haremi and Ziteitai Epeigontos Gampros (director Alekos Sakellarios), The Countess of Corfu (director A. Sakellariou) in 1972. In 1972, I Rena Einai Offside of Sakellariou sold 190,000 tickets. From 1972, the Greek cinema with periods of decline due to the increasing number of viewers after the introduction of television in Greece in 1967. She continued to star in more movies for the next seven years.

In 1979, she appeared in Fantarines with Dimis Dadiras (sold 300,000 tickets). In the same year, Georgios Skourtis worked in a musical comedy titled Lysistrati '79 of Lysistrates by Aristophanes. In 1980, she appeared in Rena Na I Efkairia (250,000 tickets), in 1981, Tis Politismas To Kagelo (director: Kostas Karagiannis, 200,000 tickets) I Manoulam To Manouli Ki O Paidaros in 1982 (150,000 tickets, I Sidira Kyria (director Takis Vougiouklakis) in 1983, in 1985, Rena Ta Resta Sou (director: A. Sakellarios). After she suffered gastrorrhagia in which she knew, she continued until the end of the 1980s. She sang in her reruns. Between 1992 and 1993, she played for her last time in the show Gia Tin Ellada Re Gamo To (Για την Ελλάδα ρε γαμώ το) which she left the theatre. In 1993 and 1994, of Psatha went to broadway to perform Chartopaiktria or The Gambler. In 1997 she sold CDs with her jazz songs.

She was talented as an actress, dancer and singer. She appeared in 105 plays at the theatre for 55 years between 1939 and 1994 and 26 movies between 1951 and 1985. She loved animals and loved smoking.

Rena Vlahopoulou died in Athens on July 29, 2004 at 04:00 (UTC), 07:00 (EET) at the Athens Medical Center of cardiac arrest. She was hospitalized since July 16 for an operation to stomach related problem caused by diabetes. A few days before her death she had fallen into a coma state.

Filmography

  • 1951 - Anatolitikes Nychtes (Ανατολίτικες νύχτες / Eastern Nights)
  • Tha Se Paro Na Fygoume (Θα σε πάρω να φύγουμε / I'm Going to Get You and Leave)
  • Vasilissa tis Nychtas (Βασίλισσα της νύχτας /Queen of the Night)
  • Na Ti Tha Pei Athina (Να τι θα πει Αθήνα / What is Athens is about)
  • Kai o Minas Echei Ennia (Και ο μήνας έχει εννιά / And it's the ninth of the month)
  • Poulia ston Aera (Πουλιά στον αέρα / Birds In The Air)
  • 1956 - Protevousianikes Peripeteies (Πρωτευουσιάνικες περιπέτειες / Adventures in the Capital)
  • 1956 -Mazi sou gia Panta (Μαζί σου για πάντα / With You Forever)
  • 1962 -Otan Leipei I Gata (Όταν λείπει η γάτα / When the cat is absent)
  • 1962 - Merikoi to Protimoun Kryo (Μερικοί το προτιμούν κρύο / Some like it Cold)
  • 1962 - Odo Oneiron (Οδό ονείρων / Dream Street)
  • 1962 - Amartisa gia to Paidi mou (Αμάρτησα για το παιδί μου / I have sinned for my child)
  • 1963 - Ena Koritsi Gia Dyo (Ένα κορίτσι για δύο /One Girl For Two)
  • 1963 - Kati Na Kaiei (Κάτι να καίει / Something that's hot)
  • 1964 - I Chartopaiktra (Η Χαρτοπαίκτρα / The Gambler)
  • 1964 - Koritsia Gia Filima (Κορίτσια για φίλημα / Girls For Kissing)
  • 1965 - Fonazei O Kleftis (Φωνάζει ο κλέφτης / The Robber Is Screaming)
  • 1967 - Vouleftina (Βουλευτίνα / The Senator)
  • 1968 - Viva Rena (Βίβα Ρένα)
  • 1969 - Ziliara (Ζηλιάρα / Jealous)
  • 1969 - Pariziana (Παριζιάνα / The Parisienne)
  • 1968 - Mia Treli Sarantara (Μια τρελή σαραντάρα / One Crazy 40-year-old)
  • 1968 - I Theia Mou I Hippissa (Η θεία μου η χίπισσα / My aunt the hippie)
  • 1970 - Mia Ellinida Sto Haremi (Ελληνίδα στο χαρέμι / A Greek woman in the Charem
  • 1970 - Ziteitai Epeigontos Gempros (Ζητείται επειγόντως γαμπρός / Groom wanted - immediately)
  • 1972 - I Komissas tis Kerkyras (Η κόμησσα της Κέρκυρας The Countess of Corfu)
  • 1972 - I Rena Einai Ofsaid/Offside (Η Ρένα είναι οφσάιντ / Rena Is Offside)
  • 1979 - Fantarines (Φανταρίνες / Women GIs)
  • 1979 - Lysistrati '79 (Λυσιστράτη '79) = Lysistrates '79
  • 1980 - Rena Na I Efkairia (Ρένα να η ευκαιρία / Rena Here's the Opportunity)
  • 1981 - Tis Politismanas To Kagkelo (Της πολιτσμάνας το κάγκελο / The police officer's chaotic situations)
  • 1982 - I Manoulam To Manouli Ki O Paidaros (Η μανούλα, το μανούλι κι ο παίδαρος / The mom, the babe and the hunk)
  • 1983 - I Sidira Kyria (Η σιδηρά κυρία / Iron Lady)
  • 1985 - Rena Ta Resta Sou (Ρένα τα ρέστα σου / Rena Your Change)