CAIRO, 11 June 2005 — Renowned Egyptian actor Abdullah Mahmoud, 49, died yesterday morning in a Cairo hospital after falling into a coma.
He left behind a legacy of great films. Although his fans throughout the Arab world were aware of his yearlong battle with brain cancer, most were still taken aback with the sad news.
Thousands of Egyptians from around the country flocked to Nasr Institute Hospital to bid a final farewell to one of their favorite film figures.
Mahmoud, best known as the “bird of fire”, discovered he had brain cancer in April 2004 after being urged by a close friend to visit a doctor.
“I just thought that the headache I used to have is something normal. But then, the pain became very severe and I was told that it is cancer in a late stage,” Mahmoud said in an interview on Egyptian state TV last April. Early this year, Mahmoud’s health had actually improved to the point that his hopeful fans thought that he was in remission especially after the actor began filming his new movie “One Cappuccino”. In his last appearance on TV he expressed his gratitude to the Egyptian government for paying the medical expenses of his costly treatment. He died without completing the film.
He leaves behind a son, Ahmed, and a legacy of great dramatic performances and classic movies such as “The Citizen is Egyptian”, “Road to Ellat”, “Palm Climber” and “The Storm”.
