February 16, 1959
NIKOS PARASKEVAS: One of the country’s most dedicated and respected actors, Nikos Paraskevas has died of a heart attack. Paraskevas was playing the role of the bishop in Nikos Kazantzakis’s play «Julian the Apostate» at the National Theater, where he had been appearing in modern drama and ancient tragedy since 1931. Born in Constantinople in 1883, he studied both there and at Berlin University. He made his first appearance on stage in 1908 and worked with a number of different companies, including that of Kyveli. He distinguished himself in many roles, especially in those of Polonius and Cymbeline. GIORGOS HADJINIKOS: The pianist Giorgos Hadjinikos made what may be regarded as his most important concert appearance this year at the Fine Arts Theater, playing mostly works by modern composers. Hadjinikos is one of the few pianists in Greece who has systematically interpreted Greek composers. However, only a few of these are considered to be truly noteworthy. UNIFICATION OF SOCIAL SECURITY FUNDS: The director of the Social Security Fund (IKA) said that he was not aware of plans to merge IKA’s main and supplementary funds. The only plans, he said, were to increase the number of those insured with the fund and to absorb weaker funds.
