Göksel Arsoy

Göksel Arsoy — Biography

Göksel Arsoy was born in Kayseri on 15 March 1936. His mother came from a family of Cretan origin and his father was pilot Remzi Arsoy; he is the nephew of classical Turkish music composer Yesari Asım Arsoy. After finishing his early schooling at home and graduating from Haydarpaşa High School, he attended Istanbul University's Faculty of Economics while working at Yeşilköy Airport. On producer Fuat Rutkay's encouragement he entered cinema in 1957 with Kara Günlerim, directed by Sırrı Gültekin, and became known the following year with Samanyolu; he shared the lead in most of these films with actress Belgin Doruk. Given the nickname 'Altın Çocuk' (Golden Boy) by director Halit Refiğ, he became one of the most in-demand leading men of Turkish cinema in the early 1960s, scoring box-office hits such as Bulunmaz Uşak and Taş Bebek, and also produced films through his own company. Alongside acting he recorded records, held posts at the Actors' Association and the Istanbul Tennis Club, and chaired Turkey's Sports for All Federation from 2002 to 2008. He married Soley Arsoy in 1961; the couple had two children, Gökhan and Aşkım, and Gökhan also became an actor. He published his autobiography, Altın Çocuk, in 2017. He received the Golden Orange Lifetime Achievement Award in 1999 and the Presidential Culture and Arts Grand Award in 2024.