18 WEDNESDAY 12 MAY 2010 NEWS IN ENGLISH Ï Êüóìïò Ï Êüóìïò NEWS IN ENGLISH WEDNESDAY 12 MAY 2010 15 THE SMILE SPOT ....Ýíá õãéÝò ÷áìüãåëï åßíáé ðÜíôá üìïñöï êáé ëáìðåñü. Óå áõôü ðïëëÝò öïñÝò óõìâÜëåé êáé ï ïäïíôßáôñïò, ï ïðïßïò åßíáé äßðëá óáò ãéá íá óáò äþóåé ëýóåéò êáé ôå÷íéêÝò ãéá íá áðïêôÞóåôå ôï ÷áìüãåëï ðïõ ðÜíôá åðéèõìïýóáôå ÄÑ. ÄÇÌÇÔÑÇÓ ÈÁÍÏÓ 504 Marrickville Rd., Dulwich Hill Ôçë.: 9569 0199 12792 A Plus Australia Renovations & Extensions Valley Ãéá üëåò ôéò ïéêïäïìéêÝò áíÜãêåò Greek Community feels pain Guaranteed Quality with MID the olives, fetta triots, her family - her termi- per cent and the government 13440 of the and smallgoods in a nally ill father, pensioner has raised the retirement age Home Owners Insurance AMarrickville deli, it’s mother and widowed sister - from 60 to 65 with plans to link hard to imagine the violent worry where their next meal pension payments to average a CALL PETER 0411 34 000 2 protests of half a world away. will come from. salary over a worker’s life in- For Christina Calligas, 52, “Every cent they spend stead of their final salary. BUILDERS LIC.: 186391C Kings one of 375,000 Australians they have to watch it”, she It’s all part of the austerity of Greek background, the ri- said. “You can’t go out, measures put in place in re- Story Joanne Hawkins ots in her family’s homeland there is only [enough] money turn for a 110 billion euro are deeply worrying. for food”. ($158billion) bailout from JORDAN ANTONOPOULOS Her family lives in the And things are about to the European Union. The man who turned his ancestry into an industry Southern city of Argos, and get worse. The goverment is Mrs Calligas said the fi- Äéêçãüñïé - the austerity measures im- planning to freeze pay for nancial crisis was as bad as has finally finished a sequel to the hit comedy the Wog Boy, posed by the Greek Govern- public - sector workers, with the situation immediately af- ment are hitting them hard. pay cuts also scheduled. ter World War II. ÓõìâïëáéïãñÜöïé reuniting with old mates and colleagues just in the nick of time “My family are struggling a Many public sector contract “It’s never been like this lot,” the Bexley North resi- workers will lose their jobs. and it’s hard but they have to * Áãïñáðùëçóßåò áêéíÞôùí dent said. New tax laws have hiked fight for the survival of ick Giannopoulos can still remember the belly, Lantana and The Secret Life of Us. Giannopou- would have been whipped up quickly. But it’s only now Like many of their compa- VAT from 21 per cent to 23 Greece”, she said. * Áãïñáðùëçóßåò Åðé÷åéñÞóåùí first time he met Vince Colosimo. It was los has become synonymous with what’s best described - 10 years later - that a sequel is about to hit cinemas “I 1985 and the pair were standing in the car as the ‘wog genre’, a result, initially of no one willing to work at my own pace”, explains Giannopoulos. “I’m * Ïéêïãåíåéáêü Äßêáéï park of the Victorian College of the Arts, give him any other acting work. kind of weird that way. I’m a bit of a dreamer and don’t where both were studying acting. Colosi- Giannopoulos even changed his name for six months like to be pressured to do anything”. familiesinbusiness * ÄéáèÞêåò - ÊëçñïíïìéÝò- moN was just 18, fresh out of high school but already a s- early on - to Giannos - before he realised it was impor- The Kings of Mykonos: Wog Boy 2 reunites the char- tar - thanks to his AFI Award-nominated performance tant to him “to get there without having to sacrifice my acters of Steve (Giannopoulos) and Frank (Colosimo) f you want to deal with the experts when it Ðåñéðôþóåéò åëëåßøåùò äéáèÞêçò in 1983’s coming of age drama Moving Out. But it was- surname. That was when I made a stand for myself. It who head off to the Greek island when Steve inherits a comes to all accountancy and taxation advice n’t a shared love of the dramatic arts that drew the pair was just before [the stage show] Wogs Out of Work beach from an uncle. Throw in more old favourites for companies, business, business partner- * Åðßóçò áíáëáìâÜíïõìå åîïõóéïäïôÞóåéò, to each other. No, it was the fact they were the only stu- started, in 1987, and I thought, I’m going to stop mak- from the original film (such as Costas Kilias as “Tony I dents with cars. ing apologies and stop trying to live my life how other the Yugoslav” and Steve’s beloved 1969 Valiant pacer ships and all types of returns then give Peter äçëþóåéò Å9, áãïñáðùëçóßåò êáé üëåò “And that we were the only wogs in VCA!” guffaws people are trying to make me live it. Wogs Out of Work car) and a dastardly vilain (played hilariously by Alex Theophilou (OAM) also Bankstown Citizen of the Giannopoulos , 46. was a way os saying, “We’re here, we’re part of this Dimitriades) and you have an amusing - if somewhat Year 1996, or his daughter Cynthia (pictured ôéò íïìéêÝò óáò õðïèÝóåéò óôçí ÅëëÜäá “Yeah, we were the only two that had our clothes country and we’re bloody funny. Come and spend your cheesy - romp that should do wonders for Greek right) a call on 9642 4801. While some tax pay- pressed by our mums and dads”, quips Colosimo, grab- $20 and have a great night out, whether you’re a wog or tourism. * Ðëçñåîïýóéá bing the joke baton and sprinting away with it. “And we not”. Giannopoulos has been working on the film since ers still prefer to complete their own tax returns, could smell each other out because we wore cologne”. After that came more highly successful stage shows - 2005 (he co-wrote it with long-time collaborator Chris many are turning to experienced tax experts for * ¼ëùí ôùí åéäþí áóöáëéóôéêÝò áðïæçìéþóåéò The pair collapse into giggles and it’s some time be- Wog-A-Rama and Wog Boys all of which Giannopou- Anastassiades, as well as being the producer) and ad- professional advice. With over 55 years experi- fore they’re able to pull themselves together, especially los co wrote, produced and starred in. The latter was mits to being nervous ahead of its release. “I’m anx- Æçôåßóôå ôïí ÉïñäÜíç Áíôùíüðïõëï when Giannopoulos reminds Colosimo that he used to made into the film The Wog Boy, which co-starred ious” he says. It’s a tough period before a film opens, ence between them, Peter and Cynthia are two drive his dad’s daggy station wagon to college so he did- Colosimo. Released in February 2000, it broke the because the nature of films today is that you have one such experts. They are qualified accountants and Ôï ðñþôï ñáíôåâïý äùñåÜí n’t mess up his treasured V8: “How many times did it opening weekend box office record for an Australian or two weekends and that’s it. Five years’ work is com- registered tax agents and have attended all semi- 13199 actually com up out of the garage, Vince?” film and went on to gross $13.4 million in ticket, video pounded into a couple of weekends. When he’s at last able to speak, Colosimo, 43 says, and DVD sales. “You’re also up against massive American movies nars relevant to the new tax changes. Peter Theo Ôçë.: 97969796 35113511 “We became mates pretty much straightaway. We knew With those kind of figures, you’d think a follow-up such as Iron Man 2 and Robin Hood. You’re this little OAM can be located at: 332 Waterloo Road, we were alike in a lot of ways and we also both felt like Aussie fish swimming in a massive pond and you start to Greenacre, Phone: 9642 4801 Suite 24, 432 Chapel Rd, Bankstown fish out of water in the institution. The people around sh*t yourself. us weren’t our everyday peers, so hooking up with a fel- His apprehension is understandable. After success on low wog was quite comforting”. stage, screen and TV (he starred in Seven Network’s Twenty five years on, and the boys from inner-city Acropolis Now sitcom from 1989 to 1992), his charmed Stamatios Melbourne - one with Greek heritage, the other with I- run came to a grinding halt with the release of The Perris ÅËÁÉÏ×ÑÙÌÁÔÉÓÌÏÉ ÊÁÔÏÉÊÉÙÍ talian, are still close. Their friendship has survived ca- Wannabes in 2003. The film was his first project outside reer highs and lows, relationship breakdowns and other of the ethnic genre - he played a failed actor involved KAI ÅÐÁÃÃÅËÌÁÔÉÊÙÍ ×ÙÑÙÍ dramas, but they’re as tight as ever. “If you can make with a crooked Wiggles - like children’s group - and an- two or three friends like Vince in your life, you’ve done ticipation was high. Subsequently, it tanked (although ÁÑÉÓÔÇ ÐÏÉÏÔÇÔÁ - ÅÃÃÕÇÌÅÍÇ ÅÑÃÁÓÉÁ well”, says Giannopoulos. Giannoupoulos - a born salesman who can talk the talk, He (the Greek one) of course, has built a thriving ca- not to mention talk and talk - is at pains to point out it ☛ ABN: 45703922951 ☛ Lic. No: 219318C reer out of his background. While Colosimo (the Italian did well on DVD). Ãéá ÄùñåÜí ÅêôéìÞóåéò Ôçëåöùíåßóôå: 0434 284 874 one), has gone on to star in varied fare such as Under- “I wanted to do something different”, he says of his Email: [email protected] ÅÐÉÓÊÅÖÈÅÉÔÅ ÔÇÍ ÉÓÔÏÓÅËÉÄÁ ÌÁÓ ÓÔÏ INTERNET: www.risper.com.au.