Egyptian cinema mourns Saladin's departure
Egypt, People, 5/14/2002

Egypt's cinema community last week was devastated by the death of great movie actor Ahmed Mazhar. He was 83. Nicknamed, the "knight of Egyptian cinema", Mazhar is well remembered for his mesmeric performances in dozens of feature films and TV dramas.

Interestingly, he had never planned to be an actor. A cadet of the Egyptian Military Academy, Mazhar was the colleague of Gamal Abdul Nasser and Anwar Sadat, who later became Egypt's presidents.

He remained a career officer in the chivalry corps until 1956. Mazhar walked into the acting field by mere coincidence in 1951 when he was chosen by filmmaker Ezzul Din Ali for his movie "Zohour al Islam" (The Advent of Islam), which was based on the novel by leading Egyptian writer Taha Hussein also known as the Doyen of Arabic Literature.

The battles included in the movie required well-trained horsemen. The director, who was also the producer, recruited the service of 100 army horsemen including Mazhar.

During the rehearsal, Mazhar was surprised when the director offered him to play the lead role. He was intensely coached in acting for six months before he started shooting his role.

Once the movie was completed, Mazhar forgot everything about the experience and resumed his military career. Five years later, Mazhar, however, received an offer to co-star in the classic movie "Rodda Qalbi" (Return my Heart), adopted from the novel by veteran novelist Youssef el-Sebai, who was also an army officer.

Impressed by the script, Mazhar decided to accept the offer. He eventually quit the military career to be a professional actor.

In a career fanning over 50 years, Mazhar starred in 120 movies, 100 TV dramas and three theatrical shows. He is well remembered for playing the title role in historical epic movie II Nasser Salahul Din" Saladin the Triumphant) which deals with Saladin's feats during the Crusades.

His other credits included "Al Aydi al Na'ima" (Delicate Hands); 'Douaa al Karawan" (The Nightingale's Ode); "Al Nazara al Sawdoa" (The Black Glasses); "Al Zawga al Azraa" (The Virgin Wife); "Gharam al Asiad " (Love of Masters); and "Al Shimaa"; 'Wa Islamah" (Oh, Islam) Mazhar's last movie was "Atabet al Settat" (The Ladies' Entrance) in 1994.

His last TV work was "Damir Abla Hehmat" (The Conscience of Mrs. Hekmat) shown in the mid eighties, with veteran movie actress Faten Hamama in the title role.

Mazhar's performance earned him several awards, the most important of which is the Order of Sciences and Arts (First Class), which is a prestigious Egyptian honour.

Previous Stories:
  Fallen Star:The death of actor Ahmed Mazhar   (5/11/2002)
  Renowned Egyptian actor dies at 85   (5/9/2002)
  Al-Tahtawi's impact on Egyptian thought assessed   (4/29/2002)

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