Greek American

A Greek American is a citizen of the United States who has significant Greek heritage. Greek Americans have a heavy concentration in New York City (most notably in Astoria) and Chicago. Tarpon Springs, Florida is also home to a large Greek-American community.

Popular culture

• The popular 1970s show Kojak featured Telly Savalas as Greek-American police detective Theo Kojak, and his brother George as Detective Stavros. Kojak was originally supposed to be Polish (hence the name), but this was changed to match Savalas' profile.
• The 2002 comedy film My Big Fat Greek Wedding portrayed the love story of a Greek-American woman (portrayed by Greek Canadian Nia Vardalos) and a non-Greek-American man. It also examines the protagonist's troubled love/hate relationship with her cultural heritage and value system. The movie spawned an unsuccessful TV series, My Big Fat Greek Life.
• The Famous Teddy Z was a acclaimed but short-lived TV series about a fictional talent agent named Teddy Zakalakis, portrayed by Jon Cryer.
• The TV series Full House was about a family that included Greek-American Uncle Jesse, portrayed by John Stamos. Jesse's Greek dad was also recurring character.
• The Greek Restaurant was a recurring sketch in the early years of Saturday Night Live. More recently, Tina Fey has often joked about her Greek heritage on the show.
• Tom's Restaurant, a Greek-American owned business, has become one of the symbols of urban New York life.
• Elektra Natchios is a Marvel Comics superhero, portrayed by Jennifer Garner in the 2005 movie Elektra.