Omar Sharif Has Died
Another piece of the Golden Age of Hollywood has broken off, grown wings and flown up to the great beyond. Oscar-nominated actor and old school hot piece Omar Sharif died of a heart attack today at a hospital in Cairo, Egypt at the age of 83.
Omar’s agent told The Associated Press last May that he had Alzheimer’s Disease. Omar’s son, Tarek Sharif, was taking care of him.
Omar’s acting career started in Egypt, but it really took off after his first Hollywood movie, Lawrence of Arabia (Side note: I hate Samantha Jones for making me think of her coochie lips every time I type “Lawrence of Arabia“), became a huge hit. He was nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. He went on to star in Doctor Zhivago, Genghis Khan, Funny Girl, Funny Lady, Che and a million more movies. His last role was in the French-Moroccan movie Rock the Casbah in 2013.
One thing I learned while reading Omar’s Wikipedia page today is that he was one of the world’s greatest bridge players at one time. He retired from the bridge game in 2006.
“I’ve stopped altogether. 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.”
Rest in peace, Omar Sharif.
And now I must Skype console my mom who is probably doing a serious slow wall slide of sadness right now.
