Manoly Lascaris
Encyclopedia
Emmanuel George "Manoly" Lascaris (5 August 191213 November 2003) was the life partner of the Australian novelist and dramatist Patrick White
. Lascaris was born in Cairo in 1912, the son of an American woman and her wealthy Greek-Egyptian husband. Lascaris met White while they both were servicemen in the Second World War. After the war, Lascaris and White lived together in Cairo, then moved to Australia, where they lived together at White's family farm. On White's mother's death they moved to her Sydney inner city property at Centennial Park. After White died in 1990, Lascaris lived there until his death in 2003.
, the son of a wealthy Greco-Egyptian father from Smyrna
in Asia Minor
and an American mother. He was raised in Athens
and Alexandria
. In 1941 he joined the Greek Army in exile in Egypt and soon after, in Alexandria, met White, who was then serving with the Royal Australian Air Force
.
in 1948. When White's mother died, they moved to a home in Centennial Park
, in inner Sydney, where they lived for the rest of their lives until White died and Lascaris. Although it was widely known that they were lovers, such matters were not publicly discussed in Australia at that time. Lascaris was sometimes referred to as White's "housekeeper." The relationship was not openly discussed until White published his memoirs, Flaws in the Glass
, in 1981.
that was once Patrick's childhood home. "It was the closing of a circle that embraced Scone
and Smyrna, London and Alexandria, the Whites and the Lascaris."
, credits Lascaris with being the driving force who kept White to his literary labours, including the string of novels that won White the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1973. White referred to Lascaris as "the small Greek of immense moral strength who became the central mandala
in my life's hitherto messy design".
Marr wrote in an obituary for Lascaris:
After White's death in 1990, Lascaris lived alone in the Centennial Park house until his health failed in 2003. He then moved into a nursing home, Lulworth, which had been White's childhood home. Marr wrote:
Patrick White
Patrick Victor Martindale White , an Australian author, is widely regarded as an important English-language novelist of the 20th century. From 1935 until his death, he published 12 novels, two short-story collections and eight plays.White's fiction employs humour, florid prose, shifting narrative...
. Lascaris was born in Cairo in 1912, the son of an American woman and her wealthy Greek-Egyptian husband. Lascaris met White while they both were servicemen in the Second World War. After the war, Lascaris and White lived together in Cairo, then moved to Australia, where they lived together at White's family farm. On White's mother's death they moved to her Sydney inner city property at Centennial Park. After White died in 1990, Lascaris lived there until his death in 2003.
Early life
Lascaris was born in CairoCairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
, the son of a wealthy Greco-Egyptian father from Smyrna
Smyrna
Smyrna was an ancient city located at a central and strategic point on the Aegean coast of Anatolia. Thanks to its advantageous port conditions, its ease of defence and its good inland connections, Smyrna rose to prominence. The ancient city is located at two sites within modern İzmir, Turkey...
in Asia Minor
Asia Minor
Asia Minor is a geographical location at the westernmost protrusion of Asia, also called Anatolia, and corresponds to the western two thirds of the Asian part of Turkey...
and an American mother. He was raised in Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
and Alexandria
Alexandria
Alexandria is the second-largest city of Egypt, with a population of 4.1 million, extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the north central part of the country; it is also the largest city lying directly on the Mediterranean coast. It is Egypt's largest seaport, serving...
. In 1941 he joined the Greek Army in exile in Egypt and soon after, in Alexandria, met White, who was then serving with the Royal Australian Air Force
Royal Australian Air Force
The Royal Australian Air Force is the air force branch of the Australian Defence Force. The RAAF was formed in March 1921. It continues the traditions of the Australian Flying Corps , which was formed on 22 October 1912. The RAAF has taken part in many of the 20th century's major conflicts...
.
Cairo to Sydney
White and Lascaris lived together in Cairo for six years, before moving to a small farm on the outskirts of SydneySydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
in 1948. When White's mother died, they moved to a home in Centennial Park
Centennial Park, New South Wales
Centennial Park is a large public, urban park that occupies 220 hectares in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Centennial Park is located 4 kilometres south-east of the Sydney central business district, in the City of Randwick...
, in inner Sydney, where they lived for the rest of their lives until White died and Lascaris. Although it was widely known that they were lovers, such matters were not publicly discussed in Australia at that time. Lascaris was sometimes referred to as White's "housekeeper." The relationship was not openly discussed until White published his memoirs, Flaws in the Glass
Flaws in the Glass
Flaws in the Glass is Australian writer Patrick White's autobiography, published in 1981.The first 150 pages are given over to an introspective "Self Portrait". Two sections, "Journeys" and "Episodes and Epitaphs" follow. The "Journeys" are a colourful description of White and Manolys' movement...
, in 1981.
Later life
After White's death in 1990, Lascaris was allowed, by the terms of the will, to stay in the house in Centennial Park and to receive income from White's share portfolio (after Lascaris died, these assets would be shared among four charitable causes.) Although Lascaris claimed that White left him nothing, he was well provided for. Lascaris lived alone in the house he had shared with White until his health failed in 2003. He then moved into a nursing home, Lulworth, which had been White's childhood home. Marr wrote: "Patrick White believed coincidences were signs of divine order. Certainly they prove life always has more surprises to spring than art. A few months ago, when it was time for Manoly to move to hospital, he was taken to Lulworth, the old mansion at the back of Kings CrossKings Cross, New South Wales
Kings Cross is an inner-city locality of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is located approximately 2 kilometres east of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Sydney...
that was once Patrick's childhood home. "It was the closing of a circle that embraced Scone
Scone, New South Wales
Scone is a town in the Upper Hunter Shire in the Hunter Valley region of New South Wales, Australia. At the 2006 census, Scone had a population of 4,624 people. It is located on the New England Highway north of Muswellbrook about 270 kilometres north of Sydney, and is part of the Hunter and Upper...
and Smyrna, London and Alexandria, the Whites and the Lascaris."
Appreciation
Lascaris was in many ways the gentle and urbane face of his life partnership with the prickly and difficult White White's biographer, David MarrDavid Marr (journalist)
David Ewan Marr is an Australian journalist, author, and progressive political and social commentator. His areas of expertise include the law, Australian politics, censorship, the media and the arts...
, credits Lascaris with being the driving force who kept White to his literary labours, including the string of novels that won White the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1973. White referred to Lascaris as "the small Greek of immense moral strength who became the central mandala
Mandala
Maṇḍala is a Sanskrit word that means "circle". In the Buddhist and Hindu religious traditions their sacred art often takes a mandala form. The basic form of most Hindu and Buddhist mandalas is a square with four gates containing a circle with a center point...
in my life's hitherto messy design".
Marr wrote in an obituary for Lascaris:
"Everyone loved Manoly. He was courtly, intuitive and gentle. He protected people from White's outbursts of fury while remaining, at heart, absolutely loyal to his lover. 'There must be one person in the world Patrick can trust absolutely'"
After White's death in 1990, Lascaris lived alone in the Centennial Park house until his health failed in 2003. He then moved into a nursing home, Lulworth, which had been White's childhood home. Marr wrote:
"A last coincidence was waiting. When it was time for Lascaris to move to a nursing home, he was taken to Lulworth, the old mansion at the back of Kings Cross which was Patrick's childhood home before becoming a hospital after the war. The shades of so many of White's characters hung around the house. Aunt Theo gazed across the water to Darling Point. Laura Trevelyan waited here for the explorer Johann Ulrich Voss to call. Hurtle Duffield played under the bunya pine on the drive. Now the cast was joined by the original of all the dark, wise, muscular Greeks of the novels. Manoly died at Lulworth on 13 November 2003, at the age of 91, oblivious to the closing of a great circle that had come to embrace Scone and Smyrna, Sydney and Alexandria, the Whites and the Lascaris..'."