A new Greek film hitting theaters last week is bringing Aristotle Onassis back into the spotlight, and the stories from ...

A new Greek film hitting theaters last week is bringing Aristotle Onassis back into the spotlight, and the stories from his legendary parties are every bit as wild as the myth. The film "The Birthday Party," based on a novel by Panos Karnezis and starring Willem Dafoe, centers on a fictional character clearly drawn from Onassis's world. It has sent audiences back to the real stories from those infamous gatherings aboard the Christina and on his private island, Scorpios. Onassis bought the Christina in 1954 for just $34,000. It was a decommissioned Canadian wartime frigate. He then poured $4 million into a complete rebuild, turning it into a 99-meter floating city with a permanent crew of 60, including tailors, masseurs, hairdressers, and a fully staffed surgical suite onboard. The bar stools at "Ari's Bar" were reportedly upholstered in whale foreskin leather. Onassis reportedly loved watching the discomfort on the faces of Wall Street financiers and European royals when they were told what they were sitting on. The fireplace in the main salon was carved entirely from lapis lazuli, door handles were solid gold, and the walls held original paintings by El Greco and Renoir. The pool on deck was a mosaic replica of a Minoan fresco from the Palace of Knossos. At night, a hydraulic system raised the floor, drained the water, and converted the entire space into a lit dance floor. Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor were regulars. Burton reportedly spent entire evenings at the bar working through bottles of rare malt whisky, while Taylor walked the deck draped in diamonds. The story goes that Burton was so unsettled by the Christina that he bought his own yacht, the Kalizma, shortly after. The international jet set reportedly treated his boat as a fishing trawler by comparison. Greta Garbo, who had built her entire myth around avoiding exactly these kinds of gatherings, also found refuge on the Christina. Onassis guaranteed her something no studio ever could: total protection from the paparazzi. Prince Rainier and Grace Kelly of Monaco were also frequent guests. Onassis at the time was the controlling shareholder of the SBM, the company that owned the Casino ...