Zoe Laskari

Greek actress (1942–2017)

Zoe Laskari (Ζωή Λάσκαρη, ; 12 December 1942 – 18 August 2017) was a Greek actress and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Star Hellas 1959 and represented her country at Miss Universe 1959 where she placed Top 15.

Zoe Laskari was born Zoe Kouroukli in Thessaloniki, Greece, on 12 December 1942—not 1943 or 1944, as had been misreported during her lifetime and after her death—into a middle class family which had a long tradition of service to the Hellenic Army. Her father was murdered during the German occupation in late 1943. She was raised by her maternal grandparents. In 1959, she won the title of Star Hellas (Miss Greece) in order to participate in the pageant she added two years to her age to be of age and went on to represent Greece at the Miss Universe pageant in Long Beach, California where she made it to the semifinals. However, while being in the United States, it was revealed that she was still legally a minor, having obscured her true age. She refused to return to Greece and stayed in New York City for about 18 months.

In 1967, she married industrialist Petros Koutoumanos, by whom she had her first daughter, Martha Koutoumanou. Their marriage ended in 1971. In June 1976, she married criminologist Alexandros Lykourezos; they had a daughter, Maria Eleni Lykourezou. Her stage work included famous plays like Edward Albee's Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, the ancient Greek tragedy The Trojan Women by Euripides and Neil Simon's Barefoot in the Park. Her theatrical hits include the play Oi erastes tou Oneirou which was also her first play in Athens. Laskari's first television appearance was her leading role in the TV series Romaios kai Ioulieta in 1976. from heart failure. She was survived by her two daughters.