Omar Sharif Dies Aged 83

Born in Egypt to a Syrian-Lebanese family, he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in 1962 for playing Sherif Ali in “Lawrence of Arabia“, a movie that launched him to stardom.

Though he had over 100 films to his credit, “Doctor Zhivago” was considered his Hollywood classic. Meanwhile, the US National Institute of Aging describes Alzheimer’s disease as “an irreversible, progressive brain disorder that slowly destroys memory and thinking skills, and eventually the ability to carry out the simplest tasks”.

The report says Sharif died of a heart attack in a Cairo hospital, according to his longtime agent, London-based Steve Kenis, and the head of Egypt’s Theatrical Arts Guild, Ashraf Zaki. He was a great storyteller, a loyal friend and a wise spirit.

The Egyptian government’s travel restrictions stopped Sharif from taking part in some worldwide films, and that influenced him to stay in Europe between films. Sharif was then hired and later earned an Oscar nomination.

Even as he became fast friends and drinking buddies with his co-star Peter O’Toole, the acculturation process wasn’t seamless.

The world stage has lost one of its iconic legends of the silver screen.

Egyptian actor Omar Sharif, best known for roles in Doctor Zhivago and Lawrence of Arabia, died yesterday at the age of 83 in Cairo, Egypt. However, as time went on Sharif began to lose interest in acting, which he blames on having starred in various “bad” movies. Sharif went on to star in other western movies in the following decades, including amusing Girl opposite Barbra Streisand, and played the roles of Genghis Khan in 1964, Archduke Rodolf in Mayerling (1968), Che Guevara in Che! His career was back on track.

As one of the world’s leading bridge players, he was a familiar figure in casinos around the globe. His next big-ticket film, Dr.

After two years, he was ordered to attend anger management classes and served two years probation after assaulting a Beverly Hills parking valet.

“My philosophy of life is that I’m living every moment intensely, as if it were the last moment”, Omar Sharif told New York Times 12 years before his death.