Product Code Database
Nicholas CanavarasBelknap, Sara Yancey (1960). Guide to the Performing Arts. New York: Scarecrow Press. p. 478. . "DENNIS, NICK, actor: Real name, Nicholas Canavaras" "Character Named After the Actor". The Buffalo News. May 12, 1962. p. TV-15. Retrieved August 7, 2025. "When the producers hired him for the role of the Greek orderly they began casting about for a good character name. 'What about Nick Kanavaras?' the actor suggested. 'Great, simply great,' cried the producer, and it was agreed by all that the name was an inspiration. 'It should be all right,' pointed out Nick. 'It happens to be my real name, and I'll bet dough I'm the only actor on TV who plays a character named after him!'"MacKenzie Bob (March 31, 1963). "Nick Dennis Is an Orderly Character". The Oakland Tribune. p. 3-TV. Retrieved August 7, 2025. "The real name of Nick Kanavaras is Nick Canavaras, although he sometimes uses Nick Dennis. The producers decided to use Nick's own name for the show and changed the 'C' to a 'K' to make it sound more Greek." (born Nicolas Caravidas; "Stars on the Horizon: Hollywood and Broadway". Jennings Daily News. October 29, 1951. p. 2. Retrieved August 7, 2025. "A man who used to serve meals to President Truman in Missouri is now a well-known character actor in Hollywood. He's Nick Dennis, who was born to the Caravidas family in Greece. Nick came to this country at the age of nine ; and later went to live with a sister in Independence, Missouri. While Nick went to high school, he worked in his brother-in-law's restaurant. President Truman, who then held the office of judge in Jackson County, was a daily customer. After high school, Nick attended Illinois University where he studied to be a football coach. But he also wanted to be an actor, and he began to work in little theaters. He made his Broadway debut in 1935 in 'A Slight Case Of Murder,' a play Howard Lindsay and Damon Runyon. He has appearin more than 20, including 'A Streetcar Named Desire.' He made his film debut in the movie 'Streetcar.'Associated Press (October 29, 1951). "Stars on the Horizon: Hollywood and Broadway". p. 2. Retrieved August 7, 2025. "One of Hollywood's better known character actors, Nick Dennis, has given one of the best performances of his career ... The actor was born Nick Caravidas in Greece. His father was a patriot soldier. Nick's parents brought him to the United States when he was nine years old. Nick went to grammar school in Lowell, Massachusetts. After his father died, young Nick went to live with his sister, in Independence, Missouri. Attending high school there he worked in his brother-in-law's restaurant, where President Truman was a frequent customer. Nick later attended Illinois University where he became a popular athlete. His ambition was to become a football coach. Then he changed his mind.""New York, Book Indexes to Passenger Lists, 1906-1942"
: Sat Apr 12 11:46:29 UTC 2025), Entry for Nicolas Caravidas, 1906-1942."New York, Book Indexes to Passenger Lists, 1906-1942"
: Fri Apr 11 23:20:15 UTC 2025), Entry for Nicolas Caravidas, 1906-1942. April 26, 1904 – November 14, 1980), known professionally as Nick Dennis, was a Greek American film actor born in Thessaly, Greece.
Dennis, who began in films in 1947, was known for playing ethnic types (usually Greek) in films such as Kiss Me Deadly and the Humphrey Bogart film Sirocco. Dennis, who spoke Greek language fluently, appeared in a number of television programs in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s including playing the parts of orderly Nick Kanavaras on the medical drama Ben Casey and Uncle Constantine on the detective show Kojak.
Nick Dennis also played the role of Pablo Gonzales in Tennessee Williams' play A Streetcar Named Desire, as well as its subsequent film version in 1951.
: Tue Feb 25 18:23:20 UTC 2025), Entry for Helen Stratos and Nicholas Canavaras, Mar 1967. remarried in 1970,"California, Marriage Index, 1960-1985"
: Mon Feb 24 22:57:50 UTC 2025), Entry for Helen D Stratas and Nicholas Canavaras, 1970. and divorced again in 1972."California, Divorce Index, 1966-1984"
: Tue Feb 25 16:18:29 UTC 2025), Entry for Helen D Stratas and Nicholas Canavaras, Dec 1972. Although records of any subsequent remarriage are not readily apparent, both a 1977 Dennis profile/interview—stating that one of the daughters "lives with Dennis and his wife Hellen"Harris, Harvey (January 23, 1977). "Through Fear and Guile, Fighter Turns Actor". Greensboro Daily News. p. B15. Retrieved August 7, 2025. "He used his real name, Nick Canavaras. for the character he played in the 'Ben Casey' TV series. 'The character was a Greek orderly, a short sidekick to add a folksy touch to dramas focusing on ordeals of Casey and the other brain surgeons, and my real name fit the character perfectly.' His home has been in the San Fernando Valley since 1952. Their 22-year-old daughter, Collette, lives with Dennis and his wife, Helen. Another daughter, Virginia, is 27 years old and also lives in 'the valley' with her husband and family. "—and the more thorough of his 1980 obituaries would make it appear that a full reconciliation was reached, de facto if not de jure.
On November 14, 1980, having spent the previous six years battling myasthenia gravis and cancer, Dennis died at Sepulveda Veterans Administration Hospital in Los Angeles,Associated Press (November 18, 1980). "Character Actor Dies". Alabama Journal. p. 20. survived by his daughters and by "Helen Dennis, his wife of 34 years."
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