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- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Omar Sharif, the Egyptian actor best known for playing Sherif Ali in Lawrence of Arabia (1962) and the title role in Doctor Zhivago (1965), was born Michel Demitri Shalhoub on April 10, 1932 in Alexandria, Egypt to Joseph Shalhoub, a lumber merchant, and his wife, Claire (Saada). Of Lebanese and Syrian extraction, the young Michel was raised Catholic. He was educated at Victoria College in Alexandria and took a degree in mathematics and physics from Cairo University with a major. Afterward graduating from university, he entered the family lumber business.
Before making his English-language film debut with "Lawrence of Arabia", for which he earned a Best Supporting Actor Academy Award nomination and international fame, Sharif became a star in Egyptian cinema. His first movie was the Egyptian film The Blazing Sun (1954) ("The Blazing Sun") in 1953, opposite the renowned Egyptian actress Faten Hamamah whom he married in 1955. He converted to Islam to marry Hamama and took the name Omar al-Sharif. The couple had one child (Tarek Sharif, who was born in 1957 and portrayed the young Zhivago in the eponymous picture) and divorced in 1974. Sharif never remarried.
Beginning in the 1960s, Sharif earned a reputation as one of the world's best known contract bridge players. In the 1970s and 1980s, he co-wrote a syndicated newspaper bridge column for the Chicago Tribune. Sharif also wrote several books on bridge and has licensed his name to a bridge computer game, "Omar Sharif Bridge", which has been marketed since 1992. Sharif told the press in 2006 that he no longer played bridge, explaining, "I decided I didn't want to be a slave to any passion any more except for my work. I had too many passions, bridge, horses, gambling. I want to live a different kind of life, be with my family more because I didn't give them enough time.".
As an actor, Sharif had made a comeback in 2003 playing the title role of an elderly Muslim shopkeeper in the French film Monsieur Ibrahim (2003). For his performance, he won the Best Actor Award at the Venice Film Festival and the Best Actor César, France's equivalent of the Oscar, from the Académie des Arts et Techniques du Cinéma.
Diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in 2012, Sharif died of a heart attack on July 10, 2015, in Cairo, Egypt.- Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was the last Shah of Iran, his reign lasted from 1941 until his overthrow in 1979. He was educated in Switzerland and was familiar with the western ideas. In 1941, Britain and USSR occupied Iran and forced Reza Shah the Great to resign in favor of his son. Later the young Shah became the most important ally to the West in the Middle East.
With Iran's great oil wealth, the Shah became the pre-eminent leader of the Middle East, and Guardian of the Persian Gulf. He abolished the multi-party system of government such that he could rule through a one-party regime in autocratic fashion. He made major changes to curb certain ancient elite factions by breaking up all large and middle-sized estates for the benefit of more than six million small farmers. In what was called 'the White Revolution', he took a number of populist measures, including extending suffrage to women, to favor the people. He instituted exams for Islamic theologians to become established priests ("Mullahs"), which were widely unpopular and broke centuries old religious traditions.
His policies led to strong economic growth during the 1960s and 1970s but at the same time, opposition to his autocratic rule increased. On January 18, 1979, he and his family left Iran after over a year of uprising as he didn't want for a civil war to break out in the country. Following the Shah's departure, conservative Muslims led by Ayatollah Khomeini who had returned from exile, staged a revolution. And abolished the monarchy and unfortunately established an Islamic Republic that ruined the country and led to the pointless eight year Iran-Iraq war in which both countries suffered an incredible amount of unnecessary losses.
At the same time, The Shah's cancer had worsened and after over a year of exile, in which traveling from country to country seeking what he hoped to be a temporary residence. He was finally welcomed by President Anwar Sadat of Egypt, and remained there until his death on June 27, 1980. He is interred at Al-Refai Mosque in Egypt. - Director
- Writer
- Producer
Youssef Chahine (born in Alexandria, Egypt, 1926) started studying in a friars' school, and then turned to Victoria College until the High School Certificate. After one year in the University of Alexandria, he moved to the U.S. and spent two years at the Pasadena Play House, taking courses on film and dramatic arts. After coming back to Egypt, cinematographer Alevise Orfanelli helped him into the film business. His film debut was Baba Amin (1950): one year later, with Son of the Nile (1951) he was first invited to the Cannes Film festival. In 1970, he was awarded a Golden Tanit at the Carthage Festival. With Le moineau (1973), he directed the first Egypt-Algeria co-production. He won a Silver Bear in Berlin for Alexandria... Why? (1979), the first installment in what proved to be an autobiographic trilogy, completed with Hadduta Masriya (1982)(An Egyptian Story (1982)) and Alexandria: Again and Forever (1989).
In 1992, Jacques Lassalle proposed him to stage a piece of his choice for Comédie Française: Chahine chose to adapt Albert Camus' "Caligula," which proved hugely successful. The same year he started writing Al-mohager (1994), a story inspired by the Biblical character of Joseph, son of Jacob. This had long been a dream-project, and he finally got to shoot it in 1994. In 1997, 46 years and 5 invitations later, he was again selected Hors Competition in Cannes with Destiny (1997).- Actor
- Music Department
- Producer
Ahmed Zaki was born on 18 November 1949 in Zaqazeeq, Egypt. He was an actor and producer, known for Days of El-Sadat (2001), Nasser 56 (1996) and His Excellency the Minister (2002). He was married to Hala Fouad. He died on 27 March 2005 in Cairo, Egypt.- Actress
- Producer
- Writer
Faten Hamama (known as "The Lady of the Arabic Screen") has become an icon and the most important actress of Egyptian and Arabic cinema. She is also the most honored actress in the Middle East. Every decade of her life represents a new era of acting and witnessed the reshaping and progression of Egyptian cinema. The progress in her different characters when she started as a child in 1938 until today parallels the progress that modern Egyptian women have made during the 20th century and their interaction with the public, culture or political life. During the celebration of 100 years of Egyptian cinema on 1996, she was chosen as the country's most important actress, and 18 of her films were selected as among the best 150 made to that time. It was no surprise that in 2000 the Egyptian Organization of Critics and Writers named her the Star of the Century.
She was born in 1931 in Elmansoura, Egypt, the daughter of Ahmed Hamama, an employee of the Egyptian Ministry of Knowledge. Her legendary journey started as a secret statement between a six-year-old girl and her father after they watched a film in their neighborhood theater, at which leading actress and producer Asya Dagher was present. Faten told her father that she felt the audience was applauding for her as the leading actress, and her father gave her a hug with a vision of helping his daughter to become a movie star. She won a contest for the most beautiful child in Egypt, and her dad sent her picture to director Muhammad Karim (a pioneer of Egyptian cinema). Karim was looking for a child for his new film with Egyptian musician Mohamed Abdel Wahab. Faten auditioned for and got a role in this movie, Yom said (1940) ("A Happy Day"). She impressed the filmmakers so much during shooting that she was actually given more lines and scenes in the picture than were originally scripted for her. Karim put her under contract, and four years later he gave her a role in a film with Mohamed Abdel Wahab again, Russassa fil kalb (1944) ("A Bullet in the Heart"). With her third movie with Karim, Dunia (1946), Faten showed filmmakers and audiences alike that she was was an actress ready for bigger roles. Her father, along with her family, moved to Cairo to help her in her career. She also began studying her craft at the High Institute of Acting in 1946.
With actor and director Youssef Wahbi (known as the dean of Egyptian theater), Faten started a new stage of her career, in melodramas. Yousef saw her talent in Karim's movies and was able to showcase it to even better advantage in his next film, Malak al rahma (1946) ("The Angel of Mercy"), in which she played his daughter. Although only 15 years old at the time, it was generally agreed that she stole the film. This teenager was soon the talk of the Egyptian cinema, and her star hasn't set since then. She made more films with Wahby, such as Confession Chair (1949) ("The Chair of Confession"), in which she played a lover of the cardinal's brother who mistakenly goes to jail for her father's murder. She had another box-office hit with El yatimatain (1948) ("The Two Orphans"), followed by a successful comedy of the travails of a wife and her mother in law in Sitt el beit (1949) ("The Lady of the House"). She was the favorite of novelists because she could attract the best writers and directors to a project, and it wasn't soon before her name alone would pretty much guarantee success for whatever film she was in.
The 1950s brought new directors to Egyptian cinema and was the beginning of what was to become known as "The Golden Age of Egyptian Cinema". Faten appeared in a number of films by these new directors, such as Salah Abouseif's first realism picture, Laka yom ya zalem (1951) ("Your Day Will Come"), which was a box-office hit and was shown at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival in France. She appeared in such successful films as El tarik el masdud (1958) ("The Barred Road") and won a Best Actresss award for her performance in the romantic political movie La wakta lil hub (1963) ("No Time for Love"). She also supported director Youssef Chahine in his first movie, Baba Amin (1950), then again in his even more successful The Blazing Sun (1954), a realistic work that was also featured at the Cannes Film Festival (Youssef is on record as saying that Faten is his favorite actress and the best Egyptian actress of all time).
She also worked with director Kamal El-Shaikh in his first movie, which introduced the mystery genre to Egyptian cinema, House No. 13 (1952) ("House No. 13"), and again in Lan aataref (1961) ("I Will Not Confess"). Their film El-Lailah el-Akhirah (1963) ("Last Night") captured at least 10 awards in the 1965 national competition and was also shown at the Cannes festival. She excelled at comedy, as evidenced by her astonishing role in El-Ustazah Fatmah (1952) as lawyer Fatma. She also worked closely with two other directors of this period, Ezz El Dine Zulficar and Henry Barakat, and made successful films with both. In fact, she married Zulficar in 1947 while shooting Abu Zeid el Hilali (1947). He was known as the king of "romantic" movies and together they worked to further that vision, as in Khulud (1948) ("Immortality") by Ezz El-Dine Zulficar. They formed a production company and made Moawad ma al hayat (1953) ("Appointment with Life") also directed by Ezz El Dine Zulficar, which was voted movie of the year and received both critical and box-office success (it was this film that caused critics to name her the "Lady of the Arabic Screen", a title she has kept to this day). Faten soon became the highest-paid actress in Egyptian cinema, and remained so until her final feature, Ardh el-Ahlam (1993) ("Land of Dreams") and TV series, Wagh el qamar (2000) ("Face of the Moon"). More successful romantic roles with Ezzel Dine followed, such as Mawad ma al saada (1954) ("Appointment with Happiness"). It was during this period that Ezz El-Dine Zulficar made his famous quote about Faten: "The distance between Faten and the next runner-up is like the distance between 1 and 10". Although they were divorced in 1954, and Faten married Omar Sharif in 1955, she and Ezz El Dine Zulficar continued to make films together, many of which are considered classics of Egyptian romantic cinema, such as Bain el atlal (1959) ("Among the Ruins") and what many consider their masterpiece, Nahr el hub (1960) ("The River of Love"), their version of Lev Tolstoy's great story "Anna Karenina", opposite Omar Sharif, and the two became one of the classic romantic couples of Egyptian cinema, appearing again in Our Best Days (1955) ("Our Best Days"), Sayedat el kasr (1958) ("Lady of the Castle"), Sleepless (1957) ("Sleepless") and The Blazing Sun (1954) ("Struggle in the Valley"). Sharif and Faten divorced on 1974. He made what became a famous statement about Faten, that he only married once because he only loved once, and that was Faten.
Director Henry Barakat specialized in musical romantic movies, social commentary and women's rights in society. During the making of Lahn al khouloud (1952) ("Immortal Song"), they developed a close professional bond, and Barakat used Faten to explore all his talent and all his visions. The success of the romantic musical Lahn al khouloud (1952) that became the movie of the year challenged both of them to make more successful musical romantic films, which they did with such pictures as Daiman maak (1954) ("With You Forever") and Mawad gharam (1956) ("Appointment with Love"). IT was with Barakat that Fatan made her most famous and beloved picture, with her role as Ammna in Doa al karawan (1959) ("The Nightingale's Prayer"), which describes differences between revenge and culture through a romantic story. It was nominated for Best Film at Berlin's International Film Festival and almost made it to the Oscars in the US. This film was chosen as one of best ten movies ever made in Egypt. After this picture Faten made several more films that promoted women's rights in society and created more cultural awareness, such as El bab el maftuh (1963) ("The Open Door"), for which she received the Best Actress award at the Jakarta (Indonesia) International Film Festival. One year later they did it again in El haram (1965) ("The Sin"), which was shown at the Cannes festival that year and was chosen as one of best five movies ever made in Egypt. Faten and Barakat continued their journey together through decades for more outstanding roles as Kheit al rafeigh, -al (1971) ("The Thin Thread"), Mouths and Rabbits (1977) ("Mouths and Rabbits"); Faten won Best Actress awards from two international festival for her role in this movie, and it was the highest-grossing Egyptian film ever made until that time. Their last picture together was a remarkable hit, Leilet al quabd al Fatma (1984) ("The Night of Fatma's Arrest"). Their journey was crowned by a lifetime achievement award for their films together from the Montpellier International Film Festival on 1993. Barakat's was quoted as saying, "If I could get Faten in my films, I will guarantee us the best picture".
Faten left Egypt from 1966-1971 because she resisted political pressure that was applied to her. She divided her time between Lebanon and London, England. During this period Egyptian president Gamal Abdel Nasser asked some prominent critics and writers to try to persuade her to return to Egypt, saying that "Faten Hamama is a national treasure". Her return to Egypt on 1971 breathed life back into Egyptian cinema. She insisted that her films reflect the values of the society through the family relationships. Her first film upon return was Sahera (1971) with Salah Zulfikar. Her role in Imberaturiyyat Mim (1972) ("Empire M") as a widow with six children and the struggles she endured to raise them made the film a success both critically and financially, and she earned a special award from an organization of Soviet Union women when the film was shown at the Moscow International Film Festival. Her film Orid hallan (1975) ("I Need a Solution") which was produced by Salah Zulfikar was not only a big hit but resulted in changes to Egyptian marriage and divorce laws. Faten won the Best Actress award at the Cairo International Film Festival and a Prize of Recognition at the Teheran (Iran) Film Festival. She continued to make films that commented on society, such as Oghneyat elmoot (1973) ("The Song of Death"), Ualla azae lel sayedat (1979) ("No Condolences for Ladies"), Bad Day Good Day (1988) ("Bitter Days, Sweet Days") and her last feature, Ardh el-Ahlam (1993) ("Land of Dreams"), and her TV series, Conscience of Teacher Hikmat (1991) ("The Consciousness of Teacher Hekmat") and Wagh el qamar (2000) ("The Face of the Moon"), which was shown in 23 countries in the Middle East.
Faten Hamama is the fourth Pyramid in Egyptian cinema, a legend in her platinum anniversary, the diamond that remained shining and kept its glowing over the decades on the silver screen.- Hind Rostom(November 11, 1929 - August 8, 2011) was one of the most popular Egyptian actresses.
Actress Hind Rostom, is a star from the golden era of Egyptian cinema.
With her blond hair and good looks, Rostom often played the sultry seductress, and she quickly rose to become one of Egypt's best-known actresses.
She won popular acclaim for her 1958 film "Cairo Station," about the city's underclass and their struggles to survive. She starred in it with Youssef Chahine, one of Egypt's most lauded movie directors.
Among her other well-known films were "Love Rumor" and "Struggle on the Nile" with Omar Sharif -- the country's most celebrated actor.
Born in Alexandria, Rostom defied her conservative upbringing to stake out a career in film. She was dubbed by fans the Marilyn Monroe of the Arabs and "the queen of seduction" of Egyptian cinema. - Actor
- Producer
- Director
Nour El-Sherif was born on 28 April 1946 in Egypt. He was an actor and producer, known for Leila Sakhina (1995), Al-Ragol Al-Akhar (1999) and El Hag Metwali's Family (2001). He was married to Poussi. He died on 11 August 2015 in Cairo, Egypt.- Actor
- Music Department
- Soundtrack
Mahmoud Abdel Aziz was born in Alexandria, Egypt to a middle class family. He studied Agricultural Sciences and during his college days he practiced acting through the university theatre.
He started his acting career by taking a role in "Al Dawama" TV show in the mid 70s with Nelly and Mahmoud Yassin after which he entered the cinema world for the first time through "Al Hafeed" an all time Egyptian film classic. Mahmoud Abdel Aziz starred in over 25 movies during the late 70s and early 80s while his popularity was increasing dramatically, most of his movies at the time were categorized as romantic drama.
His acting path has matured when he started taking different roles which really exposed his talent. He was known to be equally adept at comedy and drama.
The 1980s marked Mahmoud Abdel Aziz as a superstar when he starred in very successful movies like "El Aar", "El Keef" and "Rafat El Haggan" TV Series which is one of the most popular works of Egyptian television based on the true story of the renowned Egyptian spy who was planted in Israel for over 20 years before the 6 days war.
Mahmoud Abdel Aziz has starred in over 100 movies and he can still surprise his audience with great work such as Bab El Khalk (2012) TV Series after 7 years of absence from the Egyptian TV.
He has two children Mohamed Mahmoud Abdel Aziz a film producer and director; and Kareem Mahmoud Abdel Aziz.- Director
- Writer
- Producer
Henry Barakat was born on 11 June 1914 in Cairo, Egypt. He was a director and writer, known for El bab el maftuh (1963), Hasan wa Naimah (1959) and Leilet al quabd al Fatma (1984). He died on 27 May 1997 in Cairo, Egypt.- Director
- Writer
- Actor
The director Mohamed Khan was born on October 26th 1942. He completed his high school in Egypt, then traveled to England where he earned his diploma in 1962. He directed several movies in 8mm. He went back to Egypt in 1963 & worked as script writer in a Cairo production company. Worked in Lebanon for few years as an assistant director, then went to live in England from 1970 till 1978 & there wrote his book "Introduction to the Egyptian Cinema" in English. He lives in Egypt now & has one daughter (Nadin) & one son (Hassan). He's one of the best known directors in the Egyptian Cinema.- Khaled Saleh was born on 23 January 1964 in Cairo, Egypt. He was an actor, known for Tito (2004), The Best of Times (2004) and Chaos, This Is (2007). He died on 25 September 2014 in Cairo, Egypt.
- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Farid Shawqi was born on 3 July 1920 in Cairo, Egypt. He was an actor and writer, known for Cemile (1968), El jassus (1964) and Abou Rabie (1973). He was married to Soheir Turk, Huda Sultan, Saneya Shawky and Zynab Abdel Hady. He died on 27 July 1998 in Cairo, Egypt.- Director
- Writer
- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Salah Abouseif was born on 10 May 1915 in Cairo, Egypt. He was a director and writer, known for El Fetewa (1957), The Monster (1954) and Mughamarat Antar wa Abla (1948). He died on 23 June 1996 in Cairo, Egypt.- He graduated from the School of French Law, and completed his university studies in France. The first movie appearance was in 1946 through the movie (I Am The East), and then returned to France again to continue the art work in the cinema, and then returned to Egypt again with the mid-seventies, and began appearing in Egyptian cinema since that time intensively, co-starring in a large number of Egyptian movies, including: (Kafany Ya Kalb), (No Consolation For Women), (Love In The Prison), (The Beginning), (The Birds Of Te Dark), and at the level of TV drama he shared in a number of series as: (Yawmiat Wanees , (El-Raya al-Bayda), (The Friends), (The Face Of The Moon).
- Actor
- Additional Crew
Ahmed Khalil was born on 1 July 1940 in Karachi, Sind Province, British India. He was an actor, known for Doctor Who (1963), Watch All Night (1980) and The Good Guys (1992). He died on 9 November 2021 in Cairo, Egypt.- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Mahmoud Al Meleji was born on 22 December 1910 in Cairo, Egypt. He was an actor and writer, known for The Flirtation of Girls (1949), Amir el-Inteqam (1950) and El Fetewa (1957). He was married to Alwiya Gamil. He died on 6 June 1983 in Cairo, Egypt.- Art Director
- Writer
- Set Decorator
Chadi Abdel Salam was born on 9 March 1930 in Alexandria, Egypt. He was an art director and writer, known for The Mummy (1969), El Fetewa (1957) and Zaman el ajab (1952). He died on 9 October 1986 in Cairo, Egypt.- Director
- Actor
Hatem Ali was born on 2 June 1962 in Golan Heights. He was a director and actor, known for The Long Night (2009), Salah Al-deen Al-Ayyobi (2001) and Saqr Qoraish (2002). He was married to Dala' Al Rahabi. He died on 29 December 2020 in Cairo, Egypt.- Ismail Yassin was born on 15 September 1912 in Suez, Egypt. He was an actor, known for Ismail Yassine fil madhaf el shami (1956), Ismail Yassine Tarazane (1958) and Ismail Yassine fil tayyaran (1959). He died on 24 May 1972 in Cairo, Egypt.
- Naguib Mahfouz was born on 11 December 1911 in Cairo, Egypt. He was a writer, known for El Fetewa (1957), The Monster (1954) and Between Heaven and Earth (1959). He was married to Atiyyatallah Ibrahim. He died on 30 August 2006 in Cairo, Egypt.
- Anwar Sadat was born on 25 December 1918 in Mit Abu al-Kum, Al-Minufiyah, Egypt. He was married to Jehan Sadat and Ehsan Madi. He died on 6 October 1981 in Cairo, Egypt.
- Shukri Sarhan was born on 21 March 1925 in Alexandria, Egypt. He was an actor, known for Habibi el asmar (1958), Rannet el kholkhal (1955) and Shati el zekriat (1955). He was married to Nermeen Aouf. He died on 29 March 1997 in Cairo, Egypt.
- Actress
- Music Department
- Soundtrack
Shadia was born on 8 February 1929 in Cairo, Egypt. She was an actress, known for Lahn el wafaa (1955), Shati el zekriat (1955) and Uyoon Sahranah (1956). She was married to Salah Zulfikar, Aziz Fathi and Imad Hamdi. She died on 28 November 2017 in Cairo, Egypt.- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Ahmad Mazhar was born on 8 October 1917 in Cairo, Egypt. He was an actor and writer, known for Saladin (1963), Noufouss haira (1968) and El dow' El khafet (1961). He was married to Dodi. He died on 8 May 2002 in Cairo, Egypt.- Actor
- Director
- Writer
Youssef Wahbi was born on 14 July 1898 in Faiyum, Egypt. He was an actor and director, known for Confession Chair (1949), Al defaa (1935) and Gharam wa intiqam (1944). He was married to Elena Lunda, Saeeda Mansour and Aisha Fahmy. He died on 17 October 1982 in Cairo, Egypt.- Nadia Lutfi was born Poula Mohamed Shafiq in 1937 in Cairo to an Egyptian father and a Polish mother. Her father was an accountant. Acting started as a hobby, when she was 10 years old she participated in a play at her school and did very well.
Her first roles in Egyptian cinema were in Soultan (1958) and Cairo Station (1958), both the same year. The latter brought filmmaker Youssef Chahine to international attention and acclaim when it was a competitor at the Berlin Film Festival. Her career progressed and she appeared in El saman wal karif (1967) (based on the book by Nobel-winning author Naguib Mahfouz). She closed out the 1960s in Abi foq al-Shagara (1969) opposite Abdel Halim Hafez as a night club dancer who beds a much younger man.
She married three times, first time before she was 20 years old. She had one child, a son, Ahmad. - Alaa Waley El Din was born in 1963 in Egypt. He was an actor, known for The Terrorism and the Kebab (1992), Kashf el-Mastoor (1994) and Laughter, Games, Seriousness and Love (1993). He died on 11 February 2003 in Cairo, Egypt.
- Actor
- Director
- Producer
Mahmoud Yassine was born on 19 February 1942 in Port Said, Egypt. He was an actor and director, known for Souk El-Asr (2001), Mama Fi El-Qism (2010) and The Message (1976). He was married to Shahira. He died on 14 October 2020 in Cairo, Egypt.- Director
- Writer
- Actor
The director of seven shorts and seven full-length feature films, Saleh graduated in 1949 in English literature and was trained in cinema in Paris until 1951. Tewfik Saleh's oeuvre is the only one in Egyptian cinema which may be considered purely "Third Worldist". All his films deal with social injustice, underdevelopment, political abuse and the class struggle.
His first film, Darb al-mahabil (1955), co-written by Naguib Mahfouz, was set in a popular neighborhood but represented a kind of allegory of greed and materialism, dismantling the opportunism of the alley's inhabitants who chase a mentally retarded homeless person after they learn he has won the lottery. It took Saleh another seven years to direct his Sira' al-abtal (1962), set during the cholera epidemic of the 1930s. It featured Shukri Sarhan as a leftist country doctor who battles not only against the disease, but also against the peasant's ignorance, the midwife's intrigues and the egocentric interests of the feudal landowner.
Saleh's next films were produced by the General Film Organization. His Yaumiyat na'ib fi-l-aryaf (1969), taken from 'Taufiq al-Hakim''s novel, counts among the best adaptations. Yet he often came up against censorship and bureaucracy. Al-moutamarridoune (1968) and Al-sayyid bulti (1969) (in English: "Mister Fish"), both had to wait two years until their release. In the case of "Mister Fish", which deals with the struggle of working fishermen against a monopolist, the censor used a scene of two young women occupied with removing the hair from their legs to postpone the release of the film.
Finally, in the early 70s, Saleh left the country. His The Dupes (1972), produced by the Syrian National Film Organization and adapted from Ghassan Kanafani's novel "Men Under the Sun", was one of the first Arab films to move away from a melodramatic approach to the Palestinian question and to express scepticism regarding regarding pan-Arab solidarity. Saleh's last feature Al-ayyam al-tawila (1980) was produced by the Iraqi Theatre and Film Organization, and presented _Saddam Hussein_ as a patriotic guerilla. Saleh, who had moved to Iraq in 1973 in order to teach cinema, returned to Egypt in the mid-1980s to teach at the Higher Film Institute.- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Salah Zulfikar was an Egyptian actor and producer. He started his career as a police officer before becoming an actor in 1956. He is considered one of the greatest Egyptian actors of all time. He was one of the most consistent box-office performers in Egyptian cinema. Zulfikar starred in over fifty box office hits, remaining a bankable star for almost three decades.
Descendant from the Zulfikar family, one of the noble and most well-known families in Egypt.
Zulfikar's notable films as an actor include; Djamilah (1958), Money and Women (1960), The Second Man (1960), The Cursed Palace (1962), Saladin (1963), Soft Hands (1963), Dearer than My Life (1965), My Wife, the Director General (1966), Good Morning, my Dear Wife (1969), The Killers (1971), Featureless Men (1972), The Other Man (1973), Secret Visit (1981), and The Peacock (1982). In the 1980s and early 1990s, he started focusing on television serials, and became the highest paid TV actor in the Arab World in mid 1980s.
In 1958, he established a film production company, with his brother Ezz El-Dine Zulficar, together they produced major productions such as Among the Ruins (1959), The Second Man (1960). In 1962, he established his own film production company and produced notable films such as My Wife, the Director General (1966), A Taste of Fear (1969) and I Want a Solution (1975).
As an actor and producer, he participated in 13 films listed in the Top 100 Egyptian films of all time. Zulfikar won several awards during his career. He won the state award for his acting performance in a leading role for five times in: Soft Hands (1963), Dearer than My Life (1965), My Wife's Dignity (1967), Secret Visit (1981), and The Peacock (1982). He also won the state award for production for two times in (My Wife, the Director General (1966), I Want a Solution (1975).
He was married to Nafisa Bahgat, the mother of his children Ahmed Zulfikar and Mona Zulfikar. His second wife was Zahrat El-Ula and third wife, Shadia.
Salah Zulfikar died at the age of 67 on December 22, 1993 in Cairo, Egypt.- Hosni Mubarak was born on 4 May 1928 in Al-Minufiyah, Egypt. He was an actor, known for Wadaa' fi elfagr (1956), 60 Minutes (1968) and Vremya (1968). He was married to Suzan Mubarak. He died on 25 February 2020 in Cairo, Egypt.
- Her career began with "Badia Masabni" band where she was involved in dancing in groups, and in 1943 began working in the field of cinema where she formed a successful dual team with the artist "Farid al-Atrash" in several movies and did the most famous dances with him. Her dance was characterized by combining Eastern dancing and Western dances, as Samia Gamal focused in her dance in providing a state of fascination for the spectators through clothing, music and lighting.
- Composer
- Actor
- Music Department
Mohamed Abdel Wahab was born on 13 March 1901 in Cairo, Egypt. He was a composer and actor, known for Good Bye Lenin! (2003), Mamnou'a el hub (1942) and The Sheltering Sky (1990). He was married to Nahla Al Qudsi and Iqbal. He died on 3 May 1991 in Cairo, Egypt.- Director
- Actor
- Writer
Hussein Kamal was born on 17 August 1934 in Egypt. He was a director and actor, known for Imberaturiyyat Mim (1972), Al-boustaguy (1968) and Away from Land (1976). He died on 24 March 2003 in Cairo, Egypt.- Actress
- Producer
- Writer
Mary Queeny was born in 1913 in Lebanon. She was an actress and producer, known for Wakhz el damir (1932), El zouja el saba (1950) and Son of the Nile (1951). She died on 25 November 2003 in Cairo, Egypt.- Hassan Hosny was born on 19 June 1931 in Cairo, Egypt. He was an actor, known for The Student Cop (2004), Afarit el-asphalt (1996) and The Innocent (1986). He was married to Magda. He died on 30 May 2020 in Cairo, Egypt.
- Maryam Fakhruddin was born on 8 January 1933 in Faiyum, Egypt. She was an actress, known for Sleepless (1957), The Cursed Palace (1962) and Bila awda (1961). She was married to Mohamad Altawel, Mahmoud Zulfikar, Sharif Alfadali and Fahd Ballan. She died on 3 November 2014 in Maadi, Cairo, Egypt.
- Nahed Sharif was born on 1 January 1942 in Alexandria, Egypt. She was an actress, known for The Bad Guys (1970), Kuwait Connection (1973) and Fatat el mina (1964). She was married to Kamal El-Shinnawi, Hussein Helmy El-Mohandess and Edouard Djeredjian. She died on 7 April 1981 in Cairo, Egypt.
- Mohamed Morsi was born on 20 August 1951 in El-Adwah, Sharqiya, Nile Delta, Egypt. He was married to Naglaa Mahmoud. He died on 17 June 2019 in Cairo, Egypt.
- Actress
- Composer
- Music Department
Umm Kulthum was born on 4 May 1904 in Tammay al-Zahayrah, Daqahliyah, Egypt. She was an actress and composer, known for Wedad (1936), Nashid al-Amal (1937) and Aydah (1942). She died on 3 February 1975 in Cairo, Egypt.- Kouka was born on 7 March 1917 in Cairo, Egypt. She was an actress, known for Antar wa Ablah (1945), Rabha (1945) and Wedad (1936). She was married to Niazi Mostafa. She died on 29 January 1979 in Cairo, Egypt(undisclosed).
- Naimah Akef was born on 7 October 1932 in Tanta, Egypt. She was an actress, known for El nimr (1952), Tamr Hinnah (1957) and Min ajl Hanafi (1964). She died on 23 April 1966 in Cairo, Egypt.
- Actor
- Writer
Harold Lang was born in 1923 in London, England, UK. He was an actor and writer, known for Garry Halliday (1959), World Theatre (1959) and Dead on Course (1952). He died on 16 November 1970 in Cairo, Egypt.- Talaat Zakaria was born on 18 December 1960 in Alexandria, Egypt. He was an actor, known for Fattah Ainaik (2005), Cinema Enthusiast (2000) and Tabbakh el-Rayyes (2008). He was married to Sherine Al Manzalawi and Sabah. He died on 8 October 2019 in Cairo, Egypt.
- Actress
- Soundtrack
Shouweikar was born on 4 May 1935 in Alexandria, Egypt. She was an actress, known for The Most Dangerous Man in the World (1967), Men Don't Marry Beauties (1965) and Circle of Revenge (1976). She was married to Fouad El-Mohandes, Youssef Medhat and Hassan Nafie Aljawaherji. She died on 14 August 2020 in Cairo, Egypt.- Actor
- Composer
Ezzat Abu Ouf was born on 21 August 1948 in Egypt. He was an actor and composer, known for Asrar el-banaat (2001), Paparazzi (2015) and Ice Cream in Gleam (1992). He was married to Fateema. He died on 1 July 2019 in Cairo, Egypt.- Actress
- Music Department
- Soundtrack
Laila Mourad was born on 17 February 1918 in Cairo, Egypt. She was an actress, known for The Flirtation of Girls (1949), Shati el gharam (1950) and Leila, bint el rif (1941). She was married to Fatin Abdulwahhab, Wageeh Abaza and Anwar Wagdi. She died on 21 November 1995 in Cairo, Egypt.- Writer
- Producer
Through more than 100 films, TV dramas, radio shows and theatrical productions, Egyptian screenwriter Wahid Hamed carved a place for himself in the Arab world by utilizing all the dramatic tools he could get his hands on since the 1970s and over 50 years. The success of his work was reflected in the rave reviews received from audiences and critics alike for his indelible masterpieces, such as the celebrated films Al Bare'e (The Innocent), Al Le'eb Ma'a Al Kobar (Playing with Giants), Al Erhab Wal Kabab (Terrorists and Kebab), Toyour Elzalam (Birds of the Dark), Edhak El Soura Tetla'a Helwa (Smile, the Photo May Look Nicer), El Ghoul (The Ogre), Ehky Ya Shahrzad Film (Scheherazade, Tell Me a Story), Malaf Fel Adab (Vice Police), El Takhsheeba (In Prison), and Kashf El Mastour (Revelations), as well as serial dramas: Al Gama'a (The Party), Al A'aela (The Family), and Bedoun Zekr Asmaa (Without Mentioning Names).
The importance of his films was not only apparent through their ticket sales at the box office, or the number of awards that Wahid Hamed won for screenwriting, but also through the challenges his films faced in regards to censorship. The most notable film that faced similar struggles was Al Bare'e (The Innocent), but the list also includes other films, such as Al Ghoul (The Ogre), Toyour Elzalam (Birds of the Dark), Al Takhshiba (Imprisonment), Kashf El Mastour (Revelations), and El Noom Fel Asal (Sleeping in Honey).
In Egypt, which has the oldest and largest cinema industry in the Arab world, there is an unwritten rule that all writers must abide by. The rule states that writing in general, and writing dramas in particular, are all stages that precede screenwriting as the field that enjoys more attention from the public.
Throughout the years, his films remain to be highly valued by the audiences and critics alike. Hamed is one of the earliest Egyptian writers who highlighted terrorism in his work of films, TV series, and published articles, which blacklisted his name during the 1990s.
Hamed began his career as a radio scriptwriter in the 1970s with his series Ta'aer El Leil El Hazeen, which achieved massive success and attracted the attention of producers that Hamed transformed it into a film screenplay, which also gained wide acclaim. To date, Wahid Hamed remains the writer with the most works that have been transformed from radio series scripts to movie scripts and acclaimed TV dramas. Among his many successful projects are: Ana Wenty Wa Sa'at Alsafar, El-Donya A'la Genah Yamama, and Kol Haza Al Hob.
Since the mid-1980s, Hamed dedicated his attention to cinema. Therefore, he was keen on remaining up to date with the latest screenwriting trends in Egypt and around the world. Hamed insisted on being deeply acquainted with his main characters, which enabled him to present unique and unseen worlds from the top and bottom of Egyptian society equally well, form prisons and detention facilities, to camps of Central Security Forces and the halls of the ruling party, the behind-the-scenes of football matches, luxurious private parties and even thieves' dens and gypsies' hideaways.
Throughout his career, Wahid Hamed collaborated with the most prominent directors of different generations, including Samir Seif who helmed over 13 films and TV series written by Wahid, Sherif Arafa (six films), Atef El Tayeb (five films), Hussein Kamal, Yousry Nasrallah, Mohamed Yassin, Tamer Mohsen, Ali Abdel Khalek, Mohamed Abdelaziz, Nader galal, Atef Salem, Omar Abdel Aziz, Muhammad Ali, Sherif Elbendary and Marwan Hamed. Also, his films featured some of the biggest stars, including Adel Emam, Nour El Sherif, Ahmed Zaki, Yousra,Yehia El-Fakharany, Mahmoud Abdel Aziz, Mahmoud Morsi, Farid Shawqi, Nabila Ebeid, Madiha Kamel, Nadia El Gendy, Elham Shahin and Laila Eloui. Furthermore, his works featured prominent Arab stars, at the time, including Mahmoud Abdel Moghny, Asser Yassin and Mohamed Farrag.
In addition, Hamed produced a number of TV series, such as: Al Gawareh, El Bashayer, Eldam w Elnar and Al Gama'a, along with several films like El Lea'b Ma'a Elkobar, El-Mansy, Toyoor El-Zalam, El Noom Fi El Asal and Ma'ali Al-Wazir.
Throughout his career, Wahid received full recognition for his works, including dozens of awards and accolades, either granted by the state-run and foreign entities or voted by audience. These awards include the State Appreciation Award (2008), The Nile Prize (2012), which is the highest award granted by the country, The Golden Pyramid Award for Lifetime Achievement from the prestigious Cairo International Film Festival (2020), as well as the America Abroad Media's (AAM) Award (2018).
Furthermore, Hamed's films reaped a plethora of Best Screenplay awards, including Best Screenplay Award from the Valencia Film Festival (1991) for Al Le'eb Ma'a Al Kobar (Playing with Giants), Silver Award for Best Film at the Milano Festival for African Cinema (1993) for Al Erhab Wal Kabab (Terrorists and Kebab), and the Arab Lifetime Achievement Award at Dubai International Film Festival.- Actress
- Producer
- Director
Magda is an Egyptian actress. She started her career at the age of 15 using a pseudonym, so that her parents wouldn't know. Her breakthrough came in 1949 in the film "Al Naseh" (The Mentor), after which she went on to become one of the most popular female actresses in Egyptian cinema history. Her most notable films include "Anf Wa Thalath Oyoun" (A Nose and Three Ears), "Jamila" and "Ayna Omry" (Where's my Life?). She got married once to the actor Ihab Nafia'a, and has one daughter (Ghada).- Mirna Al Mohandas was an actress, known for Kalam Garayed (2014), Mister Dollar (1993) and El academia (2009). She died on 5 August 2015 in Cairo, Egypt.