Selection: Michalis Katsigeras

RIGAS GOLFIS: The poet Rigas Golfis (the pen name of Dimitris Dimitriadis) died yesterday. Born in Mesolongi in 1886, he worked as a notary public in Athens and was a regular contributor to the magazine Noumas. He published several collections of poetry. DIVA ASSOLUTA: Rome, 4 – Although the press and public are still reacting to the “opera scandal,” there is a growing tendency to cast a more kindly eye on the move that brought Maria Callas into the spotlight. (Ed. note: She walked out of a performance of “Norma” at the Rome Opera House attended by Italian President Giovanni Gronchi.) Callas, born in New York to Greek parents, studied at the Athens Conservatory. Her career began in 1947 in Italy in the role of Gioconda. She went on to perform in the greatest opera houses in the world, but from early on displayed a highly strung temperament. The press has frequently published stories of her differences with theater directors and other singers. However, these incidents intensified when the famous soprano went on a diet and lost about 30 kilos and her good temper in the process. According to sources in the opera world, her diet may have affected her voice.