Michael Constantine

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Michael Constantine (born Gus Efstratiou (Ευστρατίου); May 22, 1927 – August 31, 2021) was an American actor. He is most widely recognized for his portrayal Kostas "Gus" Portokalos, the stubborn Greek father of Toula Portokalos (Nia Vardalos), in the film My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002).^[1] For his performance, Constantine won the 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 (2016).^[2]

Early life

Constantine was born Gus Efstratiou in Reading, Pennsylvania. He was the son of Andromache (née Fotiadou) and Theocharis Ioannides Efstratiou (a steel worker), both immigrants from Greece.^[3]

Career

He began his career on the New York stage in the mid-1950s as understudy to Paul Muni in Inherit the Wind.^[3]

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 (1959). He had a small but memorable supporting role in The Hustler (1961). 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.^[4] He also appeared in another 1965 Death Valley Days episode "The Great Turkey War".^[5] 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 (1979), 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 (1989). 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 (1996). 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.^[6]

Personal life

On October 5, 1953, Constantine married actress 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 1969, the same year that Constantine began his role on Room 222. He later married Kathleen Christopher in 1974, though they also later divorced in 1980.^[3]

Death

Constantine died at his home in Reading, Pennsylvania, on August 31, 2021, at age 94, from natural causes.^[7][8] My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3, which was released two years after his death, was dedicated to his memory.^[9]

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1959	The Last Mile	Ed Warner, Convict
1961	The Hustler	John 'Big John'
1963	Island of Love	Andy
1964	Quick, Before It Melts	Mikhail Drozhensky
1966	Hawaii	Mason
	Beau Geste	Rostov
1968	Skidoo	'Leech'
	In Enemy Country	Ladislov
1969	Justine	Memlik Pasha
	If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium	Jack Harmon
	Don't Drink the Water	Commissar Krojack
	The Reivers	Mr. Binford
1972	Deadly Harvest	Stefan Groza	TV movie
1974	Death Cruise	Dr. Burke
1975	The Night That Panicked America	Jess Wingate
1976	Voyage of the Damned	Luis Clasing
	Peeper	Anglich
1978	Summer of My German Soldier	Harry Bergen	TV movie
	The Pirate	Yashir
1979	The North Avenue Irregulars	Marvin 'Marv' Fogleman
	Crisis in Mid-Air	Frank Piovano	TV movie
1983	The Forty Days of Musa Dagh	Talaat Pasha
1985	Pray for Death	Newman
1987	In the Mood	Mr. Wisecarver
1989	Prancer	Mr. Stewart
1991	By a Thread	Unknown
1993	Question of Faith
	My Life	Bill Ivanovich
	Deadfall	Frank
1996	The Juror	Judge Weitzel
	Thinner	Tadzu Lempke
2002	My Big Fat Greek Wedding	Gus Portokalos	Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture Nominated - Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Nominated - Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie Hissy Fit
2016	My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2		Final film role

Television

Awards and nominations

Year	Association	Category	Production	Result
1970	Primetime Emmy Awards	Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in Comedy	Room 222	Won
1971	Primetime Emmy Awards			Nominated
	Golden Globe Awards	Best Supporting Actor - Television
2003	Satellite Awards	Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Comedy or Musical	My Big Fat Greek Wedding	Won

References

External links

• Michael Constantine at IMDb
• Michael Constantine at the TCM Movie Database
• Michael Constantine at AllMovie