Katerina Gogou
She published her first poetry collection at 35, then sold over 120,000 copies of her raw, confessional verse in a single year, dominating Greek bestseller lists.
1940–1993 (age 53)·Greek poet, author and actress·Birthday: June 1·The Silent Generation
Biography
Katerina Gogou's 1975 debut, *Poems*, ignited an unexpected commercial phenomenon. Her direct, visceral verse, detailing addiction, love, and street life, sold over 120,000 copies in 1976 alone, an unprecedented figure for poetry in Greece. She became the central voice of the *Neo Kyma* (New Wave) literary movement, which rejected academic formalism. Gogou also acted in nine films by director Nikos Nikolaidis, including *The Wretches Are Still Singing* (1979), where her on-screen persona fused with her poetic one. Her work—three poetry collections and a novel—drew from her life in the anarchist and queer circles of Exarchia, Athens. The state charged her with obscenity for her poem "I Am a Woman," a case later dismissed. Gogou's influence persists in Greek music; composers like Stamatis Kraounakis and bands like Trypes set her words to music, transforming poems into popular anthems. Her collected works, *I Am a Woman*, remain in print. She died by suicide in 1993, a fact that often overshadows the disruptive cultural force of her publication peak in the mid-1970s.
The Silent Generation
1928–1945
Born between the Depression and the end of WWII. Too young to fight, old enough to remember. They became the conformist middle managers of the 1950s — and the civil rights leaders who quietly dismantled Jim Crow.
Katerina was born in 1940, placing them squarely in The Silent Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Katerina Was Born
The biggest hits of 1940
#1 Movie
Fantasia
Best Picture
Rebecca
Katerina's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1940Born
The Blitz: Germany bombs London
Gas: $0.18/galHome: $2,938Min wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"I'll Never Smile Again" — Tommy DorseyBest Picture: Rebecca
1945Started school
WWII ends; atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Gas: $0.21/galHome: $4,600Min wage: $0.40/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Sentimental Journey" — Les Brown & Doris DayBest Picture: The Lost Weekend
1953Became a teenager
DNA structure discovered by Watson and Crick
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $8,750Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Song from Moulin Rouge" — Percy FaithBest Picture: From Here to Eternity
1956Could drive
Elvis Presley appears on The Ed Sullivan Show
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $10,050Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Heartbreak Hotel" — Elvis PresleyBest Picture: Around the World in 80 Days
1958Could vote
NASA founded
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $11,050Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Volare" — Domenico ModugnoBest Picture: Gigi
1961Turned 21
Yuri Gagarin becomes the first human in space
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $12,500Min wage: $1.15/hrPresident: John F. Kennedy"Tossin' and Turnin'" — Bobby LewisBest Picture: West Side Story
1970Turned 30
First Earth Day; The Beatles break up
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $17,000Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Bridge over Troubled Water" — Simon & GarfunkelBest Picture: Patton
1980Turned 40
John Lennon shot and killed in New York
Gas: $1.19/galHome: $47,200Min wage: $3.10/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Call Me" — BlondieBest Picture: Ordinary People
1990Turned 50
Hubble Space Telescope launched; Germany reunifies
Gas: $1.15/galHome: $79,100Min wage: $3.80/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"Hold On" — Wilson PhillipsBest Picture: Dances with Wolves
1993Died at 53
European Union officially established
Gas: $1.11/galHome: $86,600Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"I Will Always Love You" — Whitney HoustonBest Picture: Schindler's List
Key Achievements
- Her poetry collections sold over 120,000 copies in 1976, dominating Greek bestseller lists.
- Starred in nine cult films by director Nikos Nikolaidis throughout the 1970s and 80s.
- Her poem "I Am a Woman" was the subject of a state obscenity trial that was later dismissed.
Did You Know?
She worked variously as a seamstress, a waitress, and a newspaper vendor.
A central square in the Exarchia neighborhood is informally named after her.
The Greek post-punk band Trypes set her poem "The Kiss" to music on their 1987 album.
“I am a woman / and I have the right to be tired.”
