Vassilis Vassilikos
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Vassilis Vassilikos (Βασίλης Βασιλικός) (born November 18, 1934) is a prolific Greek writer and diplomat. A native of the northern Greek island of Thassos, Vassilikos grew up in Salonika, graduating from Law School there before moving to Athens to work as a journalist. Due to his political activities, he was forced into exile following the 1967 military coup, where he spent the next seven years.
As an author, Vassilikos has been highly prolific and widely-translated. He has published more than 100 books, including novels, plays and poetry. His best known work is the political novel Z (1967), which has been translated into thirty-two languages and was the basis of the award-winning film directed by Costa-Gavras (with music by Mikis Theodorakis).
Between 1981 and 1984 Vassilikos served as general manager of the Greek state television channel ERT-1. Since 1996, he has served as Greece's ambassador to UNESCO.