Michael Constantine


Michael Constantine was a Greek-American actor. He is most widely recognized for his portrayal of Kostas "Gus" Portokalos, the stubborn Greek father of Toula Portokalos, in the film My Big Fat Greek Wedding. For his performance, Constantine won a Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actor – Musical or Comedy.
Early in his career, Constantine earned acclaim for his television work, especially as the long-suffering high school principal, Seymour Kaufman, on ABC's comedy-drama, Room 222, for which he won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series in 1970; he was again recognized by the Emmy Awards, as well as the Golden Globe Awards, the following year. After the conclusion of Room 222, Constantine portrayed night court magistrate Matthew J. Sirota on the 1976 sitcom Sirota's Court, receiving his second Golden Globe nomination. Constantine reprised his role as Gus Portokalos in My [Big Fat Greek Wedding 2].

Early life

Michael Constantine was born Gus Efstratiou on May 22, 1927, in Reading, Pennsylvania. He was the son of Andromache and Theocharis Ioannides Efstratiou, both immigrants from Greece.

Career

He began his career on the New York stage in the mid-1950s as understudy to Paul Muni in Inherit the Wind.
He studied acting with such prominent mentors as Howard Da Silva and played character roles on and off Broadway in his mid-twenties, supplementing his income as a night watchman and shooting-gallery barker. In 1959, he appeared in his first film, The Last Mile. He had a small but memorable supporting role in The Hustler. In 1964 and 1965, Constantine appeared on Perry Mason, first as wannabe private eye Dillard in "The Case of the Blonde Bonanza", and then as Pappy Ryan in "The Case of the Runaway Racer". In 1965, Constantine was cast as the historical John Chisum in the episode "Paid in Full", on the syndicated television anthology series Death Valley Days. He also appeared in another 1965 Death Valley Days episode "The Great Turkey War". In 1967, he appeared in the first part of "The Judgment", the two-episode conclusion of The Fugitive, starring David Janssen. Constantine played a long-suffering anti-organized-crime agent in Walt Disney's caper film The North Avenue Irregulars, where he appeared alongside Edward Herrmann and Cloris Leachman. He also played an organized crime mobster who worked for Frank Nitti in the television version of The Untouchables. In 1988, he played the estranged father of one of the main characters in Friday the 13th: the Series.
He played Santa Claus in Prancer. In 1993, Constantine appeared in the independent drama Question of Faith, starring Anne Archer and Sam Neill. He played Tadzu Lempke in Stephen King's Thinner. In 2002, he enjoyed an unexpected comeback as the Windex-toting Gus Portokalos in the hit movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding, a role he reprised on the short-lived television series My Big Fat Greek Life, and a sequel film with the original cast, My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2, which was released on March 25, 2016, which ended up being his final major acting role of any kind. In 2023's My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3, his character was revealed to have died before the events of the film.

Personal life

On October 5, 1953, Constantine married actor Julianna McCarthy, whom he met while in the cast of Inherit the Wind. They had two children, Thea Eileen and Brendan Neil. The marriage ended in divorce in 1972, the same year that Constantine began his role on Room 222. He married Kathleen Christopher in 1974 and they divorced in 1980.

Death

Constantine died at his home in Reading, Pennsylvania, on August 31, 2021, at age 94, from natural causes. My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3, which was released two years after his death, was dedicated to his memory alongside Constantine Vardalos and Bruce Gray.

Filmography

Television

Brenner Target: The Corruptors!, 1961The Untouchables The Lloyd Bridges Show The Eleventh Hour as Dr. Jamison in episode "And God Created Vanity" The Dakotas as Marshak in "Trouble at French Creek" Channing as Nick in "No Wild Games for Sophie" Gunsmoke The Twilight Zone as Sheriff Koch in "I Am the Night Color Me Black"Slattery's People one episode as Hungerford in "Remember The Dark Sins of Youth?"Perry Mason The Outer Limits My Favorite Martian Profiles in Courage The Virginian Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea – The Indestructible Man The Fugitive I Spy 12 O'Clock High The Road West in episode "To Light a Candle" The Dick Van Dyke Show The Jean Arthur Show Hogan's Heroes as Heinrich -episode- "It Takes a Thief...Sometimes"Hey Landlord Combat! Dundee and the Culhane The Invaders The Flying Nun Mission: Impossible Room 222 Series – Seymour Kaufman Bonanza The Odd Couple