Lady of the Screen: In Memory of Faten Hamama

  [caption id="attachment_103253" align="alignright" width="294"] Egyptian actress Faten Hamama[/caption] Egypt says goodbye to Faten Hamama, an icon of Egyptian film who was a pioneer for other actresses in the industry By Egypt Today Staff Egyptians are mourning the loss of one of their best-loved actresses after it was announced that film and TV star Faten Hamama passed away on January 17 at the age of 84. Hamama was a film icon, known throughout the region, whose peak lasted for two decades between the 1950s and 1970s. She starred in a number of films and TV shows that shot her star to fame and made her a pioneer in the Egyptian film industry, both as a woman and an indisputable talent who maintained her poise throughout her career. Born in 1931 in the Egyptian delta city of Mansoura, Hamama made her debut as an actress at the young age of seven, when she starred in Youm Saeed (Happy Day) alongside legendary singer Mohamed Abdel Wehab. Having been paired with such a star was a sign of great things to come for Hamama, who went on to star in nearly 100 films, including an American film called Cairo, and a number of popular TV shows. Her stardom eventually honored her with the nickname "Lady of the Screen." Hamama made a comeback during the 1990s with the TV show Dameer Abla Hekmat (The Conscience of Ms. Hekmat) and at the start of the millennium when she starred in the television miniseries Wajh al-Qamar (Face of the Moon). In 2000 she was chosen as the "Star of the Century" by the Alexandria International Festival. She is also well known for having married another famous Egyptian movie star, the internationally renowned Omar Sharif. Sharif and Hamama married in 1955 and divorced in 1974. Sharif was her second marriage as she had previously wed Ezzeldine Zulficar in 1947 in a marriage that ended in 1954. The cause of death has not yet been announced, but Hamama's son Tarek Sharif has confirmed that his mother had passed away and state news agency MENA reported that she had died as a result of "health problems." Hamama is survived by her son Tarek Sharif, daughter Nadia Zulficar, and third husband Mohammad Abdel Wahab Mahmoud.