Stathis Giallelis
Stathis Giallelis | |
---|---|
Born | |
Years active | 1963–1983 |
Stathis Giallelis (
America America
Giallelis' entire prominence revolves around his central role in America America. He appears in nearly every scene of the 174-minute film and gives what some critics described at the time as a "towering performance". He has not, however, faced a camera since 1980 and his biographical details remain sketchy. The date of his birth is generally accepted as correct, although two sources indicate 1939 as the year. All listings agree that he was born in Greece, but none specify the location. The medium-height, slightly built Giallelis was twenty-one years old in mid-1962, upon Elia Kazan's arrival in Greece looking for someone who could capture his uncle's life in 1890s Anatolia and the struggle to achieve his determined dream of immigrating to the United States. Kazan wanted an unknown actor in whom the audience would see the character rather than the familiar face. In his autobiography, Elia Kazan: A Life, the director describes the details of his search for "a ferret, not a lion", someone who, like his uncle, did not always behave honorably, but had "my boy's single redeeming quality, devotion to his father and family".
Kazan first tried to find his leading actor in England and, subsequently, in France, where a likely candidate was found, tested and rejected as "too handsome" and "lacking desperation". Even the
Short-lived fame
Giallelis worked on his English for nearly 18 months while preparing for and filming his role. He received positive critical notices. The New York Times' Bosley Crowther, in his December 16, 1963 review of the film, noted that "Greek lad Stathis Giallelis (pronounced STAH-this-Ya-lah-LEASE) is incredibly good as the determined hero, putting fire and spirit into the role". Other critics called his performance "mesmerizing", "heartbreaking" and "unforgettable".
America America earned three
Later roles in the 1960s
As America America received wide distribution in Europe and elsewhere in 1964-65, Giallelis basked in the spotlight. In the months between the end of production and its December release, he completed a cameo role in
Giallelis' first post-America America film offer came shortly after the epic went into wide release during Christmas week of 1963.
Two more years would pass before Giallelis was seen in another film. Blue was a well-budgeted independent western directed on picturesque Utah locations by Silvio Narizzano. Billed fourth after Terence Stamp (as "Azul" ["Blue" in Spanish]), Joanna Pettet and Karl Malden, Giallelis, as the son of Mexican bandit Ricardo Montalbán had little to show for his dramatic efforts and, with Montalban's "Special guest" billing factored in, he actually was, again, in fifth place. Released by Paramount on May 10, 1968, Blue was perceived by a number of critics as an anti-war allegory, specifically focusing on Vietnam. Saddled with a mostly negative response from the critics, the film was quickly out of theaters.
Last years of activity as an actor
Some sources credit Giallelis with a role in the
In 1974,
After a passage of another two years, Giallelis appeared in his last-to-date American film, The Children of Sanchez. Hall Bartlett's adaptation of the Oscar Lewis novel was filmed on location in Mexico and starred native-born Anthony Quinn as his country's putative everyman, Jesus Sanchez. Giallelis received yet another fifth billing, following two veteran Mexican actresses, Dolores del Río and Katy Jurado, as well as Venezuelan Lupita Ferrer who, at the time, was married to Hall Bartlett. Gialellis's role as Roberto was relatively small and underwritten, but he did receive a couple of closeups, which showed premature aging on the 37-year-old actor's once-youthful face. Upon its Los Angeles premiere on November 22, 1978, the film received mixed to poor reviews, with the primary attention going to Chuck Mangione's lively score.
Two additional years elapsed before Giallelis made one more passage in front of the cameras. In writer-director
Career evaluation
In his autobiography, Elia Kazan faults Giallelis for having been pampered by his mother and four sisters and never developing enough ambition to become a viable screen personality. He writes that the young actor should have devoted more time to losing his accent so he would not be cast exclusively in ethnic roles and his speech pattern could be better understood by American audiences. However, Kazan's biographer, film critic and historian
Later life
After his years as an award-winning actor, Giallelis exited the life of Hollywood glam and went to work at the United Nations International School in Manhattan, New York, working as a child supervisor and mentor. He retired in the summer of 2008.[citation needed]
References
- Byron, Stuart and Rubin, Martin L. (edited by ISBN 1-57806-224-1
- Kazan, Elia (1988). Elia Kazan: A Life, pp. 444, 629. New York: Knopf. ISBN 0-306-80804-8
- Schickel, Richard (2005). Elia Kazan: A Biography, pp. 392–93. New York: HarperCollins. ISBN 978-0-06-019579-3
External links
- Stathis Giallelis at IMDb