
Thanasis Veggos
Biography
Thanasis Veggos (29 May 1926 – 3 May 2011) was a Greek actor and director born in Neo Faliro, Piraeus. He performed in around 130 films, predominantly comedies in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, starring in more than 50 among them. He is considered one of the best Greek comedy actors of all time. His famous comedic catchphrase was "Καλέ µου άνθρωπε" ("My good man").
Veggos' first appearance in a film was in Windfall in Athens, produced by Mihalis Kakogiannis, which premiered in Athens as Kiriakatiko Xsipnima on 11 January 1954. Nikos Koundouros gave him a role in Magiki polis in 1955. His first major role was in Psila ta heria Hitler ("Hands Up, Hitler"), 1962 and continued many more films. For his acting in What did you do in the war, Thanasi? (1971), the public of Thessaloniki °apotheosized° him and the movie won three awards at the Thessaloniki International Film Festival. He often played everyman characters struggling to get by, but he has also played anti-heroes, he has acted in pure dramas, and on stage in the comedies of Aristophanes. His characters were often self-named "Thanasis". He often worked with directors Panos Glykofridis and Giorgos Lazaridis. In 1995, Theo Angelopoulos cast Veggos and American actor Harvey Keitel in "Ulysses Gaze". In 1997, in the role of Dikaiopoli he appeared in a live performance at the ancient Epidaurus theater.
In 2000, he survived a car accident involving a collision with a train. He later participated in advertisements promoting road safety.
A documentary of his life, whose title translates as A Man for All Seasons, was made in 2004. He always did his own stunts including the most dangerous ones, like hanging from a rope tied to a balcony fifty feet above a pavement without anything to break his fall, walking through a glass door, or falling down a stone staircase head first. During the "Golden Sixties" of the Greek film industry he made his most popular comedy films such as the sequel of Secret Agent 000, Papatrehas, Enas trellos Vengos and many others, also with surrealist humor, most of them by his own company Θ-Β Comedies (Θ-Β Tainies Geliou) which founded in 1964.
In 2008, Veggos was appointed Commander of the Order of the Phoenix by the President of Greece, Karolos Papoulias.
On 3 May 2011, he died at 7:10 a.m. He had been hospitalized at the Red Cross hospital, in Athens, since 18 December 2010.
He is survived by his wife Asimina and two sons. He will always be remembered in the more than 120 films and more recent documentaries that he starred in. The phrase "τρέχει σαν το Βέγγο" (English translation: "runs like Veggos") has been adopted into common usage in the Greek language since nobody has run more or faster than Veggos in his many slapstick comedies.
Acting (116 movies)

The Ogre of Athens
1956

Help! Vengos Visible Agent '000'
1967

The Flight of the Swan
2011

With Heart & Soul
2009

Holidays in Vietnam
1971

The Policeman of the 16th Precinct
1959

Crazy of all Greece
1983

To didymo tis symforas
1989

It's a Long Road
1998

Dictator calls Thanasis
1973

Thou-Vou Bald Agent, Operation: Havoc
1969

Diamanto
1961

A Girl in Black
1956

Madalena
1960

Marriage Adventures
1959

Every Cloud Has a Silver Lining
1958

The Wise Guy
1962

The Papadopoulou Family
1960

Mimikos and Mary
1958

Jack of All Trades, Master of None
1963

Thanasis in the land of the cuff
1976

What Did You Do in the War, Thanassi?
1971

Thanasis, Juliet and the sausages
1970

The Magic City
1955

I'll Make You Queen
1964

Mousitsa
1959

Min eidate ton Panai?
1962

Runaway Bride
1962

Holidays in Aegina
1958

Poverty can be bearable while living well
1958

The Uncle from Canada
1959

The King of Gaffes
1962

Odd Jobs
1962

Wandering Jews
1959

Hooray for Madness
1962

The Girl Has Got an Uncle
1957

Out Poverty and Good Heart
1964

Blind Nache Marlon Brando
1963

The Hustler
1964

Papatrechas
1966

He's a Mad Mad Veggos
1965

The Big Cannon
1981

Experts on the Football Field
1956

The Underdog
1960

Oi 900 tis Marinas
1961

Carefree... Nut
1971

Which Way to the Septic Tank?
1978

The Man Who Ran a Lot
1973

With Many Children
1964

School for Chauffeur Ladies
1964

Maria Pentagiotissa
1957

Hands Up, Hitler
1962

O Ippolytos kai to violi tou
1963

An Unbelievable Sucker
1969

Eftyhos... trellathika!
1961

Crazy, Nuts and Vengos
1967

Vengos the Crazy Kamikaze
1980

The Jar
1962

Lisa and the Other Woman
1961

The Madman
1963

Happy Bums
1958

Thieves Rejoice Only Once
1960

Doctor Z-Vengos
1968

Who Is Margarita?
1961

Come on People
1967

The Poor Demons
1964

Astronauts
1962

The Dervish Boys
1960

The Bus Conductor
1958

Thanasis, Take Your Gun
1972

One Vengos for All Jobs
1970

Thanasi tightened your belt even more
1980

Who Thanasis!
1969

The Wicked World of Thanasis
1979

Mitros and Mitrousis in Athens
1960

Ulysses' Gaze
1995

The Bald Student
1979

Groom for Crying
1962

Liar Wanted
1961

Love Games
1960

The Twins
1964

Quiet Days in August
1991

The Charlatan
1973

The Fairy Tale Girl
1956

A Water Mrs. Baggelio
1959

Three Ladies and me
1960

A Madhouse Named "Hellas"
1988

Sharp as a Needle
1961

The Proud
1962

Thanasis and the Cursed Serpent
1982

Just for One Night
1958

A mistake in love
1961

The Tomboy
1959

An All-Weather Man
2004

The Enigma
1998

Thanasis the Optimist
1989

Erotic Stories
1959

Bed for Five
1989

Sunday's Date
1960

The mother's curse
1961
Directing (7 movies)
| Title | Year | Job | 
|---|---|---|
| Out Poverty and Good Heart | 1964 | Producer | 
| He's a Mad Mad Veggos | 1965 | Producer | 
| Papatrechas | 1966 | Producer | 
| Help! Vengos Visible Agent '000' | 1967 | Producer | 
| Come on People | 1967 | Producer | 
| Doctor Z-Vengos | 1968 | Producer | 
| Who Thanasis! | 1969 | Producer | 
| An Unbelievable Sucker | 1969 | Producer | 
| Thou-Vou Bald Agent, Operation: Havoc | 1969 | Producer | 
| Thanasis in the land of the cuff | 1976 | Producer | 
| The Big Cannon | 1981 | Producer | 
| The Big Cannon | 1981 | Writer | 
| Crazy of all Greece | 1983 | Producer |