Zenobia Xenakes’ Untold Story: The Hidden Face Behind Tina Fey’s Genius

Zenobia Gustandina Athena “Jeanne” Xenakes (December 6, 1930 – July 25, 2024) was the Greek-American mother of comedian, writer, and actress Tina Fey. Her daughter’s stage name — “Tina” — is a shortened form of Elizabeth Stamatina Fey, a middle name chosen to honor Zenobia’s Greek heritage. Zenobia emigrated from Piraeus, Greece, as an infant, later worked as a brokerage employee in Pennsylvania, and built the quiet, laughter-filled household that shaped one of the most decorated careers in American comedy. She died on July 25, 2024, in New York at age 93.

This biography covers Zenobia Xenakes’s early life, family background, career, personal values, and lasting legacy — with all known facts verified and presented in one place.

Key Takeaways — What Makes Zenobia Xenakes’s Story Important

• The name behind the name: She is the direct inspiration for Tina Fey’s professional name and her granddaughter’s middle name, Alice Zenobia Richmond.
• A quiet foundation: Her life as a Greek immigrant and working mother provided the stable home that shaped one of comedy’s most accomplished careers.
• Full name, rarely reported: Her complete birth name was Zenobia Gustandina Athena Xenakes — a detail most articles miss.
• Passed in 2024: Zenobia died on July 25, 2024, in New York, at age 93. Many sources still report her as living.
• Lasting legacy: Her influence is woven through Tina Fey’s memoir Bossypants, her comedic voice, and two generations of the Fey-Richmond family.

Zenobia Xenakes at a Glance

Early Life and Family Background

Zenobia Xenakes was born on December 6, 1930, in Piraeus, Greece — a port city with a long history as a center of commerce and migration. She was the eldest child of Constantine “Gus” Xenakes and Vasiliki “Bessie” Kourelakos.

Family Roots

Her family heritage stretched across two distinct parts of Greece. On her father’s side, grandfather Zacharias Xenakes came from Petrina, in the Laconia region of the southern Peloponnese. Meanwhile, her maternal grandmother, Vasiliki Kourelakos, emigrated alone from the same region — Petrina, Laconia — arriving in the U.S. in February 1921. Both places boasted tight-knit communities with strong traditions of storytelling and family loyalty.

Vasiliki showed particular determination. In fact, she emigrated to the United States entirely on her own, arriving in February 1921 — a significant act of independence for a woman at that time.

Siblings

Zenobia was one of four children. In addition to her, she had three brothers:

• Zacharias C. “Jack” Xenakes (1932–2016)
• Napoleon G. Xenakes (1933–1990)
• Panagiotis “Peter” Xenakes (1938–1990)

No public records document Zenobia’s formal education. Instead, what we know is that she grew up in a traditional Greek household shaped by Orthodox Christian values, strong family bonds, and a culture that placed humor at the center of everyday life. These influences stayed with her for the rest of her life and, through her children, reached millions of people.

Immigration, Career, and Life in the United States

Zenobia emigrated to the United States as an infant with her parents, who had met and married in Philadelphia, following a path that many Greek families took during that era. Later, she settled in Pennsylvania, where she built a professional and family life.

She worked as a brokerage employee — a steady, professional role that provided financial stability for her household. The press never covered her work, and she was not a public figure. Yet her career mattered: her job as a brokerage employee wasn’t glamorous, but it helped fund the kind of stable, creative home that embodies a quiet version of the American Dream — one where the next generation could reach for something unprecedented.

Marriage to Donald Henry Fey

Zenobia met Donald Henry Fey — a university administrator and grant-proposal writer of German and Scottish descent — after arriving in the United States. In 1961, they married. Donald was born on June 9, 1933, and died on October 18, 2015.

The couple settled in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania, where they raised two children. By multiple accounts, their household encouraged laughter, intellectual curiosity, and creative expression. Donald brought structure and academic seriousness; Zenobia brought warmth, humor, and a cultural richness rooted in her Greek upbringing.

Children and Family

Peter Fey

Their son, Peter Fey, is eight years older than Tina. Following the family’s emphasis on language and storytelling, he pursued a career in writing and production.

Tina Fey

Elizabeth Stamatina “Tina” Fey was born on May 18, 1970. Ultimately, she went on to become one of the most recognized figures in American comedy — a writer, actress, producer, and author. Her career includes nine years as head writer at Saturday Night Live, the creation and lead role in 30 Rock, and authorship of the memoir Bossypants (2011), in which she writes about her mother’s influence on her sense of humor, confidence, and character.

Grandchildren

Tina Fey and her husband, composer Jeff Richmond, have two daughters: Alice Zenobia Richmond and Penelope Richmond. Significantly, the couple chose the name Alice Zenobia as a direct tribute to Zenobia Xenakes — ensuring her name continues into the next generation.

“My first name is Elizabeth, but I’ve always gone by Tina even in, you know, from elementary school on.” — Tina Fey, speaking to The Quad

Zenobia’s Influence on Tina Fey’s Work and Comedy

You don’t have to guess about Zenobia’s impact—Tina Fey wrote it down. In *Bossypants*, she traces her comic instincts straight back to her mother’s laugh, her calm, and the way she never had to raise her voice to be heard.

Moreover, this influence shows up concretely in Tina Fey’s work. The characters she wrote and played — whether at SNL or in 30 Rock — consistently center women who are sharp, grounded, and funny without performing fragility. That template has roots in the home she grew up in.

Zenobia avoided publicity—but every time someone says ‘Tina Fey,’ they’re echoing a name her mother helped choose — every time someone calls her daughter “Tina.”

Career, Awards, and Achievements

Zenobia Xenakes received no public awards. However, her daughter’s achievements reflect the environment she helped build:

• Saturday Night Live: Multiple Writers Guild of America Awards; Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Program (2002)
• 30 Rock: Golden Globe Award for Best Comedy Series (2008, 2009); multiple Primetime Emmy Awards
• 9 Primetime Emmy Awards in total across her career
• 3 Golden Globe Awards
• 5 Screen Actors Guild Awards
• Peabody Award (as executive producer of 30 Rock)

Personal Life

Those who knew Zenobia remember her wit, intelligence, and warmth. Her upbringing in the Greek Orthodox Church shaped her values — she placed family, community, and honesty at the center of how she lived, a faith she quietly carried into the Fey household. Despite her daughter’s growing fame, she had no interest in public recognition and kept her life almost entirely private outside the small community in Upper Darby where she raised her family.

In her later years, she remained close to her family. No public records link any controversy or conflict to her name.

Death and Legacy

Zenobia Xenakes passed away on July 25, 2024. Many older sources still list her as living—this article reflects verified, current information.

As a result, Zenobia never made headlines. But her name lives on as a matrilineal thread—from a Greek grandmother who crossed the Atlantic alone to Alice Zenobia, her granddaughter, and in Tina, the woman who became one of TV’s most decorated writers, shaped by a mom who worked a brokerage job, raised two kids in Pennsylvania, and never once spoke to a reporter.

FAQs

Who was Zenobia Xenakes?

Zenobia Gustandina Athena “Jeanne” Xenakes was the Greek-American mother of comedian and writer Tina Fey. Born in Piraeus, Greece, in 1930, she immigrated to the United States and raised her family in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania. She died on July 25, 2024, in New York, at age 93.

What is Zenobia Xenakes’s full name?

Her full birth name was Zenobia Gustandina Athena Xenakes. She commonly went by her middle name, “Jeanne,” in everyday life in the United States.

Is Zenobia Xenakes still alive?

No. Zenobia Xenakes died on July 25, 2024, in New York, at the age of 93. Some websites still report her as living — this information is outdated.

How did Zenobia Xenakes influence Tina Fey?

Tina Fey has credited her mother’s humor, resilience, and confidence as central to her own comedic voice. In her memoir Bossypants, Fey writes about her upbringing and the values her parents modeled. Zenobia’s sharp wit and quiet composure are frequently cited as formative influences on Tina Fey’s character and work.

Why is Tina Fey’s name “Tina” if she was born Elizabeth?

Tina Fey was born Elizabeth Stamatina Fey. Her middle name, Stamatina, was chosen as a tribute to her mother’s Greek heritage. She has gone by “Tina” — a shortened form of Stamatina — since elementary school.

Who is Alice Zenobia Richmond?

Alice Zenobia Richmond is Tina Fey’s eldest daughter with composer Jeff Richmond. The middle name Zenobia was chosen in honor of Tina Fey’s mother, Zenobia Xenakes.

Did Zenobia Xenakes appear in any of Tina Fey’s work?

Not directly. Zenobia kept a private life and never appeared publicly in the media. However, Tina Fey has referenced her mother’s influence in interviews and in Bossypants, making Zenobia’s personality and values an indirect presence throughout her daughter’s body of work.

Who were Zenobia Xenakes’s siblings?

Zenobia had three brothers: Zacharias C. “Jack” Xenakes (1932–2016), Napoleon G. Xenakes (1933–1990), and Panagiotis “Peter” Xenakes (1938–1990).

Final Thoughts

What Zenobia Xenakes’s life demonstrates is straightforward: influence does not require visibility. She never appeared on a stage, never gave an interview, and never sought recognition. Yet her name threads through two generations of the Fey-Richmond family, her humor is documented in one of the best-selling comedic memoirs of the 21st century, and her heritage gave the world the name it uses for one of comedy’s most accomplished figures.

Her story is a precise example of how the most consequential things are often the least publicized.