Vasilis Vasilicós, Greek author of the political novel “Z”, died at the age of 89

The prolific Greek writer Vasilis Vasilicós, author of the political novel “Z”, on which the film of the same title by Constantin Costa-Gavras was based, died this Thursday at the age of 89. The writer, one of the most recognized and translated Greek authors, published more than one hundred books during his lifetime, including novels, stories, plays and poetry.

Among his best-known works translated into Spanish, the trilogy consisting of “The Leaf”, “The Well” and “The Angelization” and his ambitious novel “Lo poco que se dé Glafcos Zrasakis” stand out.

However, the work that brought him worldwide recognition was the novel “Z” (1967), a critique of political corruption inspired by the real events surrounding the assassination of left-wing Greek politician Grigoris Lambrakis in 1963.

That novel, banned during the dictatorship of the Greek Colonels (1967-1974) that forced Vasilicós into exile, was adapted to film by the Greek director Costa-Gavras (1969) with a script by the Spanish writer Jorge Semprún and is a “thriller” cult politician.

Born in the city of Kavala, northern Greece in 1934, Vasilicós studied Law at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and television directing at the Yale University School of Drama in New York.

During the Colonels dictatorship he went into exile due to his political activities and his express rejection of the authoritarian regime, and until 1994 he lived and worked abroad.

He collaborated with Greek director Nikos Kúnduros to create the script for the film Young Aphrodites (1963), while also working as a journalist and translator.

Between 1996 and 2004 he served as Greek ambassador to UNESCO. The writer never abandoned his political commitment and in the 2019 parliamentary elections he was elected deputy for the left-wing Syriza party.

With information from EFE