Lesser-Known Facts about Omar Sharif on His 8th Death Anniv.

It has been eight years since the legendary actor Omar Sharif passed away. His contribution to Egyptian cinema and Hollywood are immense.

Born in Alexandria in 1932 as Michael Yusef Dimitri Chalhoub, he started his acting career after he graduated from the English school “ Victoria College ”, where he met his classmate Ahmed Ramzi and they became best friends since then.

Throughout his long-standing career, he featured in many international movies such as "Doctor Zhivago" (1965) and "Funny Girl"(1968), "The Tamarind Seed" (1974), and "Monsieur Ibrahim" (2003).

Moreover, he starred in a range of Arab movies, including, "La Anam’ Sleepless" (1957), "A Rumor of Love" (1960), and "There is a Man in our House" (1961), which made him a huge competitor to Salah Zulfikar, Shoukry Sarhan and Rushdy Abaza, the Egyptian cinema giants at the time.

Starring alongside Egypt’s iconic actress Faten Hamam, who was also his wife, and remarkable singer Abdel-Halim Hafiz in the 1955 movie "Ayam El-Helwa" (Our Beautiful Days), he played the role of Ahmed, who was Halim’s best friend.

In the 1950s, Sharif’s breakthrough in Ayam El-Helwa shifted cinema at the time, influencing filmmakers to move toward taking the risk of hiring younger actors. Before his appearance, many roles were held by older actors who were often visibly beyond an age to convincingly play younger characters.

Quickly, he became a big movie star after taking roles in a number of youth movies, along with his lifetime friend Ramzy, but he was drawn to enter the world of Western cinema.

At the 35th Academy Awards, the handsome actor was nominated for an Academy Award in the Best Supporting Actor category for his performance in "Lawrence of Arabia" (1962) as Sherif Ali ibn el Kharish.

The classic movie was a hit at the box office at that time and opened him up to a large fan base.

In 1965, his first lead role in a Hollywood movie came with "Genghis Khan" but it failed to impress the audience.

Some of Sharif’s blockbuster movies also include "The Yellow Rolls-Royce", "Doctor Zhivago", "Funny Girl", and "The Fall of the Roman Empire."

The late actor also received many awards and accolades including three Golden Globe Awards and a César Award for Best Actor.

During his last days, his agent confirmed he had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.

In 2015, the most acclaimed actor in his generation passed away aged 83.