Actress Irene Papas dies at the age of 93 (PHOTOS)

• Beloved actress Irene Papas dies at 93.
• “She was the epitome of beauty.”
• She was a major movie star.

The world of cinema is once again in mourning as the death of the famous actress and singer Irene Papas was confirmed. With a career spanning more than six decades, she managed to win the hearts of the public that followed her movie career.

Irene Papas, the actress and singer known for her dramatic performances and austere beauty which landed her starring roles in Hollywood, French and Italian cinema over six decades, has died, according to the AP. She was 93 years old.

“Magnificent, majestic, dynamic”

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The Greek Ministry of Culture confirmed Irene Papas’ death. “Magnificent, majestic, dynamic, Irene Papas was the personification of Greek beauty on the cinematographic screen and theatrical stage, an international star who radiated the Greek essence,” Culture Minister Lina Mendoni said in a statement.

Actor and director Pedro Mari Sánchez declared: “I had the enormous fortune and privilege of meeting her in Valencia and speaking with her about theater and life. And even if it hadn’t been, I admired her deeply and will continue to do so.»

She acted in more than 50 movies

«Close, wonderful, eternal Irene Papas,» he wrote on Twitter. Her leading performance in The Guns of Navarone (1961) with Gregory Peck, and in Zorba the Greek (1964) with Anthony Quinn propelled her to international stardom.

In total she acted in fifty films. Irene Lelekou was born in a mountain village near Corinth, in southern Greece. Her parents were school teachers and her father was also a drama teacher, according to The Associated Press.

Irene Papas had a relationship with famous American actor

At age 18, she married Greek filmmaker Alkis Papas despite her family’s disapproval. They divorced four years later. After the death of American actor Marlon Brando in 2004, Ella Papas revealed in an interview with an Italian newspaper that she had been in a relationship with him.

A supporter of the Greek Communist Party, she was a staunch opponent of the military dictatorship that ruled from 1967 to 1974 and spent many years outside of Greece, in Rome, New York and other cities. Filed Under: Irene Papas dies

«The Greatest Movie Star»

Papas stood out as an actress in ancient Greek tragedy. Many of her international film roles were Greek characters but she also starred in the mafia film The Brotherhood with Kirk Douglas and the western Tribute to a Bad Man with James Cagney.

The Athens-based Greek Film Center said Papas was «Greek’s greatest international film star» and that «her image is a timeless impression of Greek female beauty.» Other artistic institutions thanked her for her support to the actors who start their careers. Filed Under: Irene Papas dies