Youssef Wahbi

Youssef Abdallah Wahbi Qotb (14 July 1898 – 17 October 1982) was an Egyptian stage, film actor and director, a leading star of the 1930s and 1940s and one of the most prominent Egyptian stage actors of all time, who also served on the jury of the Cannes Film Festival in 1946.

He was born to a high state official in Egypt but renounced his family's wealth and traveled to Rome in the 1919 to study theatre, married with Elena Lunda. Besides his stage work, he acted in around 50 films in Egyptian cinema, starting with Awlad al-Zawat (Sons of Aristocrats, 1932) to "Iskanderiya... lih?" (Alexandria... Why?, 1978).

Early life Youssef Wahbi was born into an Egyptian family, from the Fayoum region. He was named after the place where he was born, Bahr Yussef and his father worked as an inspector in the Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation.

Career In 1926, Turkish filmmaker Vedat Örfi Bengü approached Wahbi to play the role of the Prophet Muhammed in a European film which would be financed by the Turkish government and a German producer. Whilst the President of Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, and the Istanbul council of ulamas gave their approval to the film, the Islamic Al-Azhar University in Cairo published a juridical decision stipulating that Islam forbids the representation of the prophet and his companions.

Wahbi started acting in the golden age of the Egyptian Cinema in 1932, he has also starred in several plays which he translated into many languages due to his fluency in English, French, and Italian, along with his native Arabic tongue. He played many roles that were different and unusual for both Egyptian film and plays. He once played the Devil and he later on wanted to play Muhammad but the media and Al-Azhar University, the authoritative institution on Sunni Islam, were opposed to the idea and he was forbidden from going through with it.

He is one of the most respected and beloved artists of all time in the Cinema of Egypt and several French and English companies tried to save his movies by reissuing them again.

Death He died in 1982 at the age of 84 in Cairo, Egypt, sick with arthritis and with a fractured pelvis. He was survived by his wife.

Even though he came from a very rich family, throughout his career and life his focus was the film industry.

Selected filmography Year Film Role International English Name(s) 1932 Awlad el zawat Actor a.k.a. the Spoiled Children or Sons of Aristocrats 1935 Al Defaa Actor and director a.k.a. The defense 1937 El Magid el khalid Actor a.k.a. Eternal Glory 1938 Saet el tanfiz Actor a.k.a. The Hour of Fate 1940 Leila momtera Actor a.k.a. Stormy night 1941 Leila, bint el rif actor a.k.a. Leila, the schoolgirl Areess min Istambul Actor a.k.a. A Suitor from Istanbul 1944 Gharam wa intiqam Actor and director a.k.a. Love and RevengeBerlantiActor, writer and directora.k.a. Berlanti 1945 Safeer Gohannam Actor and director a.k.a. The Ambassador of Hell 1946 Malak Elrahma Actor and director a.k.a. The Angel of Mercy 1949 Ghazal Al Banat Actor (as himself) a.k.a. The Flirtation of Girls1951AminaActora.k.a. Amina 1955 Hayat ou maut Actor a.k.a. Life or DeathBahr El-GharamActora.k.a. Sea of Love 1960 Mal Wa Nissa Actor a.k.a. Money and Women1960Isha't HubActora.k.a. A Rumor of Love1967Come rubammo la bomba atomicaActor 1979 Iskanderija... lih? Actor a.k.a. Alexandria... Why?