CRATES

born c. 424 BC, , Athens actor, author of comedies, and regarded as the founder of Greek comedy proper. According to Aristotle's Poetics, Crates abandoned the traditional comedy of invective and introduced stories of a more general and nonpersonal nature with well-developed plots. He is said to have been the first to represent the drunkard on the stage. Before turning to writing, he acted in the plays of Cratinus, a celebrated Athenian author of the Old Comedy.