The Two Lives of Harry Loupakis : Cal State Fullerton Gymnast Is Also a Greek Heartthrob

Most people dream of a life of adventure and intrigue, but few experience it. Instead, they are placated by the vicarious thrills of late-night videos or two-bit romance novels.

Harry Loupakis doesn’t wander into the surreal world of The Better Life. He doesn’t pacify his dreams by watching a television mini-series or reading a Harlequin Romance.

One one hand, he is a studious gymnast at Cal State Fullerton acting out the life of a Southern California commuter student.

In this reality, Loupakis is a 20-year-old sophomore who lives in a Fullerton house with two buddies from the team. He is so busy studying and training for the Titans, he rarely has time to date. The theater arts major is just another aspiring student-actor on the Fullerton campus; an introverted painter who delves into the subliminal world of modern art.

But when he leaves the United States to return to his native Greece . . .

There awaits a mountain of fan letters from teen-age girls who have read about their latest heartthrob in the Greek teen magazine, Kathrine.

There awaits images of Loupakis cruising on a yacht off the island of Crete, basking in the sun and surrounded by women.

There awaits movie contracts, adulation and recognition.

His fans could care less about his suburban American life.

To them, 5-foot 7-inch Harry Loupakis is a hunk. He shares magazine covers with Michael Jackson and is the star of “New York, Athens,” a romance film expected to be released in Greece this summer.

The movie also will been shown in various Greek community theaters throughout the U.S. next fall.

“It’s nice going back to Greece,” he said. “Those magazines are just to help the movie. I’m not near the star I’d love to be. I’m thinking of trying to make it in Hollywood or New York, and if it does work out, have an early retirement and go back to Greece.”

In the movie, Loupakis plays the son of a Greek immigrant whose family lives in New York. Loupakis and the daughter of a rich Greek fall in love, but are later torn apart because of a misunderstanding over a debt the daughter’s father thinks Loupakis’ father owes him.

The film includes racy scenes with Loupakis appearing nude, which he said he doesn’t find embarrassing.

“Why should I be?” Loupakis asked, then added: “Well, I guess most people would be, but things are different in Greece. I’ve been to nude beaches there, so it really didn’t bother me.

“It’s funny really because most of my friends don’t even know about the movie.”

In some ways, the movie follows Loupakis’ life. Originally from the island of Crete, Loupakis and his brother, Peter lived with their father, Tony Loupakis, after their parents’ separation when Harry was 4. His mother remained in Greece, but Harry moved to Queens, N.Y. in 1971 with his father and brother.

He has dual citizenship and travels abroad frequently.

Loupakis’ apprenticeship into the world of the performing arts began at an early age. Tumbling was a Loupakis family trademark, and when Tony--a former four-time national champion in Greco Roman wrestling--became interested in acrobatics, he also involved his sons--then 2 1/2 and 1 1/2 years old.

“We didn’t do much hard stuff at that age,” Harry said. “A lot of little rolls and they just kind of bounced us around.”

Harry performed with his family in the Apollo Circus, but spent most of the time performing in outdoor theaters--which Greeks enjoy attending.

“There are guitars and ice cream and everyone just sits outside and there’s singers, dancers and then, there’s the acrobats,” he said.

During one performance when he was 6, Loupakis climbed to the top of a 25-foot pole to do a headstand. While he was coming down, he slipped and fell.

“I fell back and luckily, I don’t even know how I did it, I wrapped my legs around that pole while I was falling and the pole had these little spikes and one of those lodged right in my knee and stopped my fall,” he said.

He was badly cut, but as they say in the biz, the show must go on; Loupakis knew his family would be fired if the performance was stopped.

“I had to,” he said. “It was either that or getting fired and it didn’t work that way then. My father didn’t expect me to stop the show. He expected it to go on.”

It paid close to nothing. Maybe $15.

“Now I can get $200 or $250 a night,” he said of the shows he performs today. “It’s kind of like a pastime and it pays for my vacation and stuff.”

Tony Loupakis remained on the fringes of show business when he came to the U.S., and eventually opened a school in Pennsylvania for karate, gymnastics and dance, a combination in which Harry has become well versed.

Loupakis, a second-degree black belt, won the junior middleweight Karate All-American Open title two straight years.

“I only had to use karate once (in a real fight),” he said. “Once, and they never bother you again.”

Loupakis discovered gymnastics while attending Long Island City High School. Being a former tumbler, circus acrobat and karate kid, he was a natural gymnast.

It didn’t take him long to become good enough to compete at the youth national championships as a member of the prestigious Pennsylvania club, Gymnastrum. But when it came time for college, he went to the recruiters instead of vice versa.

“My club coach suggested that I write some letters,” Loupakis said. “We wrote to a lot of schools.”

One was Cal State Fullerton, where Coach Dick Wolfe has turned a rag-tag group into one of the country’s top five teams. Wolfe received a form letter from Loupakis and decided to scout him at the 1983 junior nationals.

What he first saw wasn’t impressive.

“He was so bad in the events that I saw him in, I was literally hiding behind people so Harry couldn’t find me at the meet,” Wolfe said.

But then came the floor exercise, and Loupakis, the performer, came to dazzling life.

“He was so dynamic, so charismatic, I said, ‘Wow.’ ” Wolfe said. “I said we could work with his other weaknesses and problems because he’s got it. He’s got that magic, the X factor that’s difficult to teach.”

Loupakis, no doubt, had had plenty of crowd-pleasing experiences by then.

“In gymnastics, the physical and mental attributes definitely come together,” he said. “I can’t just go out and do a routine, I’ve got to perform it.”

Loupakis was advised against attending Fullerton, but he had an immediate rapport with Wolfe, a performer in his own right.

“There was a certain chemistry between us,” Wolfe said.

Under Wolfe’s guidance, the rough edges have become polished. As a freshman, Loupakis scored in the high 7s on the floor, pommel horse, rings, vault, parallel and high bar events. This season he is scoring in the low 9s. In a recent meet he earned three personal bests--a 9.6 in the floor, a 9.35 on the horse and a 9.4 on the high bar.

“That’s phenomenal improvement,” Wolfe said. “He’s the toughest kid I’ve ever worked with. He can land on a steel high bar and come away wanting to try again. Others would be out for the season. You think of Harry as being indestructible.”

Loupakis also has made a big impression on the Fullerton students, Wolfe said. Before he begins a floor exercise, Loupakis turns and smiles at the audience as if he were back in the Apollo Circus.

“He has more history and character than 10 kids,” Wolfe said. “He’s about 20 years old going on 35.”

Though a U.S. citizen, Loupakis still returns to Greece to compete at the country’s gymnastic national championships. He is the two-time defending champion and with his improvement this season he is a favorite to make it three straight. He didn’t compete at the Summer Olympics because Greece didn’t qualify in gymnastics. But if Loupakis continues to improve at his current rate, he may wind up in Seoul--either representing the U.S. or Greece.

First and foremost, however, is his acting career, which began through the help of his father’s show business contacts.

“I hope to go to the ’88 Olympics, but I’d rather choose a career to make money and be set up for the rest of my life,” he said.

If anyone can cross over into the life of the rich and famous, Harry Loupakis is the man.