Sener Kokkaya Şener Kökkaya

Şener Kökkaya — Biography

Born İzzet Şener Kökkaya on June 30, 1942, in Antalya, he began his stage career with amateur theatre in Eskişehir in 1957, leaving the Eskişehir Academy of Economic and Commercial Sciences in his second year. He performed in numerous plays at the Eskişehir Chamber Theatre and the Eskişehir Municipal City Theatre, and founded the Pendik Theatre in 1966.

He joined the Ankara Art Theatre the following year, working as both an actor and stage manager until 1982, and became widely known in the 1970s for co-hosting the TRT program "5 Dakika" with Savaş Yurttaş before the evening news. In 1986 he moved to İzmir for health reasons and founded the İzmir Art Theatre; he also wrote poetry and play scripts, taught acting in Denizli, and later worked at the Adana State Theatre.

His film career began with Sürü in 1978, and he went on to appear in productions including Vizontele (2001), Organize İşler (2005), Nokta (2008), Ay Lav Yu (2009), Uzun Hikaye (2012) and Aşka Geldik (2017), as well as television series such as Sakarya Fırat and Kaçak, playing memorable supporting characters. He died in Adana on July 20, 2024, at the age of 82; his passing was announced publicly by fellow actor Zafer Algöz.