[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 35 (Thursday, March 24, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: March 24, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                       TRIBUTE TO MELINA MERCOURI

                                 ______


                            HON. DON EDWARDS

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 24, 1994

  Mr. EDWARDS of California. Mr. Speaker, just as I look forward to 
July 4 each year to commemorate the birth of the American Republic, 
this time of year is joyous and profound to me because it marks the 
anniversary of the Greek Revolution in 1821 and reflects the democratic 
ideal that was born in that ancient land.
  On April 21, 1967, less than a month after Greek Independence Day, an 
antidemocratic junta staged a coup d'etat in Greece. Many good people 
fought with me under the banner of the United States Committee for 
Democracy in Greece in opposition to the oppression and to guide United 
States policies in support of democratic restoration. One of the 
dearest to me of that group was Melina Mercouri, who recently passed 
away. I can imagine no better way to pay tribute to Greek independence 
than to celebrate Melina.


                      A Tribute to Melina Mercouri

  Mr. Speaker, the world of the theater, the world of politics, and the 
cause of human rights lost a great champion on March 6, when Melina 
Mercouri died. She was Greece's Minister of Culture, but she was much 
more than that. She was a good person, a friend, and one of the most 
vivid personalities I have every encountered.
  Beloved by many in Greece and abroad, disliked by some, Melina 
Mercouri was devoted both to the theater and to politics. She was one 
of those few stars referred to by a single name. She was simply Melina 
all over the world.
  Melina Mercouri died on March 6 at Sloan Kettering Hospital in New 
York from complications arising from lung cancer. She is survived by 
her husband Jules Dassin, the noted film director, and by Spyros 
Mercouris, her brother.
  In 1959 Melina achieved international fame starring in ``Never on 
Sunday,'' a low budget movie written and directed by Jules Dassin. The 
movie became a classic. And it had a huge and positive influence on 
Greek tourism, which, together with the advent of jet travel, set off 
an unprecedented tourist boom. Greek music, Greek food, Greek dancing, 
Greek gusto suddenly became in.
  On April 21, 1967, a military coup took place in Greece. Over 6,000 
political people, writers, journalists, and artists were arrested in 
one night. At that moment, Melina was in the United States, touring 
with ``Ilya, Darling,'' the musical version of her movie success, 
``Never on Sunday.'' She and Dassin immediately spoke out against the 
junta.
  In view of the fact that Melina was so celebrated, she attracted 
considerable favorable publicity. She also became a target for vicious 
personal attack. In September, 1967, the junta stripped her of her 
Greek citizenship. This had one interesting consequence: the United 
States was contemplating the resumption of full military aid; now it 
hesitated. The pressure on her grew, as she balanced her career, her 
visible antijunta role, her angst, the praise and the criticism. As 
time went on, she had to deal with the agony of being barred from her 
homeland. The junta was lasting a very long time, and she and other 
exiles had to wonder when they would see Athens again. She and Jules 
retired to France, where they continued to speak out. They also gave 
sustenance to impoverished Greek friends, adding to their own economic 
woes.
  Melina and Jules come to Washington a number of times during the 
junta years. The first visit was on October 1, 1967. I would like to 
share some memories of that visit, for it displayed Melina at full 
throttle. It was vintage Melina, and the flavor was quite remarkable.
  LuVerne Conway, then my legislative assistant, arranged a party for 
Melina at the Harbour Square complex in Washington.
  At about the same time the United States Committee for Democracy in 
Greece was formed. It brought together a coalition of liberals, labor 
unionists, and people from the arts. The first chairman was the 
venerable Francis Biddle, 82, former U.S. Attorney General under 
F.D.R.--the only other chairmen were Congressmen Don Fraser, D-MN, and 
I, both of us serving 3 years apiece. The treasurer was Victor Reuther, 
of the UAW board; members included Jack Conway, who had conceived the 
committee, Senator Joe Clark--D-PA, Congressman Don Fraser, Melina and 
Jules, playwright Edward Albee, Jim Pyrros, administrative assistant to 
Congressman Lucien Nedzi--D-MI, economist Angelo Clones, and Maurice 
Goldbloom, a writer with an enormous grasp for the detail of Greek 
politics and foreign affairs in general. In time, the legendary 
Benjamin Cohen, author of much of F.D.R.'s New Deal legislation and the 
man who had conceived of the Lend-Lease Act in the dark hours of World 
War II, joined the board.
  The gathering at the October 1 party attracted 100 guests, primarily 
from the political world. Melina, then 41, was magnetic, enchanting, 
witty, and winning. Tall, tawny, she captivated with phrase and with 
gesture.
  One of the guests was Senator J.W. Fulbright, chairman of the Senate 
Foreign Relations Committee. She sat right down with him and chatted 
for 20 minutes. Looking into his eyes, she said, ``How can I ever thank 
you?'' He leaned forward and replied, ``I hope you're going to try very 
hard.''
  Melina gave a short speech, made even more effective by an occasional 
malaprop. The next day the Washington Post and Washington Star gave her 
wonderful coverage. The junta and its public relations firm fumed.
  Also on the next day, Melina came up on the Hill and taped brief 
interviews with Congressman Morris Udall--D-AZ, Congressman Don 
Fraser--D-MN, Congressman Henry Reuss--D-WI, Congressman Bob 
Kastenmeier--D-WI, and myself, to be played in our home districts. Her 
political instincts were keen.
  A Knight-Ridder reporter, Saul Friedman, got an interview with her. 
When he began to question her on small political details, she replied 
with deep insight:

       Please don't make me intelligent. If you make me 
     intelligent I must kill myself. I must stay naive. If I am 
     naive I can be effective.

  After Congressman Udall finished his taping, he smiled at her, ``Have 
you thought about trying the movies or the theater?'' She laughed, 
``You think I have a future there?''
  Melina gave the issue of democracy in Greece greater prominence than 
it otherwise would have had, although the American press, some Senators 
and Congressmen, and some academicians stood tall. The U.S. Government, 
heavily influenced by Pentagon hardliners, was either indifferent or 
supportive of the junta during the years of the dictatorship. So was 
the Greek Orthodox Church in America and the fraternal order of AHEPA. 
Many individual Greek-Americans, however, were antijunta, and I came to 
know a number of them.
  The U.S. committee provided a focus and helped keep the issue alive. 
Articles were placed in the Record, journalists and broadcasters were 
briefed, and joint statements by Members of Congress were issued. These 
were invariably picked up by BBC and Deutche Wells and broadcast widely 
in Europe and to Greece itself. We pushed for release of political 
prisoners and helped obtain information for the families of victims. 
The late Congressman Ben Rosenthal--D-NY, did extraordinary work on the 
issues.
  The Committee also provided a forum for visiting Greek exiles and 
political personalities. In addition to Melina, we hosted Andreas 
Papandreou, Constantine Mitsotakis, and George Rallis--all future Prime 
Ministers. Also, newspaper publishers Eleni Vlachou, parliamentarians 
Dimitri Papaspyrou, John Zighdes, and Emmanuel Kothris, city planner 
Antoni Tritsis, Lady Amalia Fleming--widow of the discoverer of 
penicillin, Gen. Orestes Vidalis, and others, both liberal and 
conservative. We raised moral issues, we set forth alternatives to 
rigid and shortsighted policies, and we provided hope. I am proud of 
those days.
  Our experiences demonstrated that an individual or a small group can 
make a difference.
  There are many untold stories from those times, and I would like to 
tell briefly two of them. They will illustrate how our group networked 
before that term became commonplace.
  On the day of the April 21, 1967, coup, the main concerns of our 
small group were: First, the fate of Greece; second, the U.S. role and 
response; and third, the fate of Andreas Papandreou, who was believed 
to be the junta's primary target and the prisoner most likely to be 
shot. For the first year, until Andreas was released and went into 
exile, we concentrated on him. Later, we became acquainted and friendly 
with many democratic politicians across the political spectrum.
  But on April 21, Athens Airport was closed; nobody was allowed out of 
the country. Once the airport reopened, a Danish official, Deputy 
Finance Minister Mogers Comer, the last foreigner to see Andreas 
Papandreou before the coup, got out. He was carrying a dramatic 
message. Andreas had told him, ``If anything happens to me, get a hold 
of Galbraith.'' He was given Angelo Clones' phone number in Washington.
  Thus it was that on the morning of Monday, April 24, Clones received 
an urgent call from Europe. It was Comer. But John Kenneth Galbraith, 
Harvard economist, former Ambassador to India, and friend of John F. 
Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson, could not be found. Clones' call to 
Harvard was met with the response that Galbraith was on vacation at his 
rural retreat and his phone number was unknown. Clones, alarmed and 
desperate, called Jim Pyrros. Pyrros provided the connection: He knew 
that Galbraith had recently been chosen president of Americans for 
Democratic Action, and that none other than Jack Conway was executive 
director. A quick call to Conway provided the number, and Clones 
reached Galbraith. As has been written, Galbraith called Joseph 
Califano, of President Johnson's staff. Whereupon LBJ issued his 
celebrated directive, ``Tell those bastards not to kill that son of a 
bitch.''
  Galbraith told Clones that he and Princeton economist Carl Kaysen, a 
friend of Papandreou's, were already working on it. But it is 
reasonable to believe that Clones' call, relaying the dramatic Comer 
message, added urgency to Galbraith's subsequent action.
  The other story is this: In December, 1967, Papandreou received a 
Christmas amnesty. He, his wife, and four children went into exile, 
settling briefly in Paris.
  LuVerne Conway was primarily responsible for inviting Papandreou to 
Washington for a speech at the annual dinner of the Washington Chapter 
of ADA on March 9, 1968. He had arrived from Paris the day before. It 
was his first public appearance following his exile. And it was on that 
weekend, I understand, that Melina Mercouri and Andreas Papandreou, and 
their spouses, met for the first time. The day after the speech, 
Papandreou appeared on ``Meet the Press,'' and gave a crisp, impressive 
performance. Afterwards there was a small reception at the home of 
Victor Reuther. That night, Papandreou and Justice William O. Douglas 
were the featured guests at the Edwards home. Those were the days of 
turmoil, and distress over American foreign policy, but it can be said 
that we met and worked with some memorable people.
  Later, when Papandreou and his PASOK party was elected to power in 
Greece, Melina Mercouri, already a member of Parliament, served as 
Minister of Culture from 1981 to 1988. Last October, when PASOK was 
returned to power, Melina again became Minister of Culture.
  Soon, on April 22, Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou will have a 
working visit to the White House with President Bill Clinton. Life has 
come almost full circle. Democracy in Greece is well established. And a 
27-year history moves on. Unfortunately, Melina Mercouri is no longer a 
direct part of it.
  But Melina, often larger than life, will long be remembered. No one 
else was quite like her.
  I could not have presented this reminiscence of Melina had it not 
been for the enormous contributions of Jim Pyrros and LuVerne Conway, 
who were such a part of the events of those days, and who shared their 
journals and personal recollections with me. My thanks to both of them.

                          ____________________