Nikos Dimou


Nikos Dimou is a Greek writer and columnist and copywriter.

Biography

He graduated from Athens College and studied French literature in Athens. From 1954 to 1960, he studied philosophy at the University of Munich in Germany. He published his first book in 1953.
In 1962, he started working in advertising as a copywriter. In 1965, he founded his own company. Other than trading commercials, the company created goodwill ads and public initiatives. In 1983, he withdrew from all business ventures in order to work full-time as a writer. In 1979, Dimou started writing columns for magazines, including Epikaira, 4 Trochoi, Tetarto and Photographos and newspapers including To Vima, Kathimerini, and the Sunday editions of Eleftherotypia and Ethnos.
Dimou hosted his first talk show on Greek television in 1979, Μία Ταινία – Μία Συζήτηση, and returned in 1987 with a show called Διάλογοι. He also ran Περιπέτειες Ιδεών in 1991, and Μεγάλες Παρεξηγήσεις in 1999. As for radio, he was part of the team that founded Athens 98.4 FM. Later, he had a show on the Third Programme of the ERA state radio. He has won two journalist awards. In 1997, he became an honorary citizen of Ermoupoli, his mother's hometown. Dimou was awarded the Dimitris Mitropoulos award in 2000.
Dimou has published over 60 books, mostly light non-fiction, including On the Unhappiness of being Greek, The New Greeks, The Lost Social Class, Apology of an Anti-Hellene. He has done some hobby photographic work, published two photo albums and has had three photo exhibitions. For seven years he was a columnist in the Greek free press magazine LIFO and lately published in the site "Protagon.gr".
His book "On the Unhappiness of being Greek" has been reprinted 40 times and has been translated into at least 10 languages. Poems of his have been translated in Italian, Portuguese and Spanish. 2014 he also published a new book in Germany "The Germans are to blame for everything"..
In politics, he failed to become elected in the European Parliament election in 2009 for the Greek party Drasi.
In March 2014 he became a member of the new Greek party "The River". He resigned one month later because of a difference of opinions on state-church relations.

Books

  • Par' ola Afta,
  • Mikra Vimata,
  • Imerologio tou Kafsona
  • Tolmires Istories.
Popular philosophy:
  • To Apolyto kai to Tavli
  • Triptyque: Communication, Love, Freedom.
Poetic books:
  • To Vivlio ton Gaton,
  • Poiimata 1950–1990
  • Listes.
His works also include light essays and aphorisms:
  • I Dystihia tou na Eisai Ellinas
  • Apologia enos Anthellina
  • Prosengiseis
  • Dokimia I: Odysseas Elytis
  • Dokimia II: Ta Prosopa tis Poiesis
  • I Teleia Diadromi
  • Psifiaki Zoi
Autobiographies:
  • Apo tin Michail Voda stin Syrou
  • Apo tin Odo Rinou stin Hess Strasse
  • Odos Galinis
  • Oi dromoi mou
Nikos Dimou translated poems from English, German and Latin and also translated The Voices of Marrakesh by Elias Canetti.