Nikos Dimou

Born in Athens in 1935, the author studied French Philology in Athens, Philosophy and English Philology at the University of Munich. His first book was published in 1953, followed by fifty-five more (poetry, philosophy, prose, essays), which have undergone numerous reprints. He is best known to the general public for his books analyzing and critiquing Greek reality: "The Misfortune of Being Greek," "The New Greeks," "The Lost Class," "Apology of an Anti-Greek," among others. His prose works include "Nevertheless," "Small Steps," "The Heatwave Diary," "Bold Stories." In philosophy, he has written "The Path of Communication," "The Greek Buddha," "The Absolute and the Backgammon." His poetry collections include "The Book of Cats," "Poems 1950-1990." His most recent books are autobiographical narratives. He has published translations of poems from English, French, German, and Latin, and has also translated Elias Canetti's "The Voices of Marrakesh." His works have been translated into languages he does not know (Italian, Spanish, Bulgarian, Turkish). In 1962, he began working in advertising. The company he founded in 1965 quickly rose to the top ranks of the Greek market. Besides successful commercial advertisements, the company was distinguished for its public service initiatives (e.g., the "I Do Not Forget" campaign for Cyprus, or the DD Library). In 1983, he retired from business to focus exclusively on writing. Since 1979, he has been a journalist, writing columns for magazines such as "Epikaira," "4Wheels," "Tetarto," "Photographer," "Status," "Odyssey," "RAM," and newspapers like "To Vima," "Kathimerini," "Sunday Eleftherotypia," "Ethnos tis Kyriakis," "Lifo." He was the first Greek author to create television programs, previously coordinating the show "A Film - A Discussion." He returned in 1987 with the program "Dialogues," in 1991 with "Adventures of Ideas," and in 1999 with "Great Misunderstandings." On the radio, he was part of the founding team of "9.84 FM" and later had shows on the Third Program of ERA. He has received two journalism awards and has resigned ten times. Since 1950, he has been photographing, publishing two photo albums, holding three photography exhibitions, and maintaining photography columns in magazines. He has long been interested in technology (which he calls "extensional"), with a particular focus on cars and computers, leading to long-term collaborations with specialized columns in automotive and IT magazines. He was also the first Greek author to have his own website on the Internet (www.ndimou.gr). In 1997, the Municipal Council of Ermoupolis, his mother's hometown, declared him an honorary citizen. In 2000, he was awarded the "Dimitris Mitropoulos" medal.