Fawzi el Gazayerly
(1886-1947)
Fawzi el Gazayerly (1886-1947)
Gazayerly and Abdou in The Two Delegates
The Gazayerlys wishing the Behnas a merry Christmas
Ebtessame Gazayerly asking the Behnas for the money needed for her husband at the mental hospital. The fees were 50 LE per month.
Fawzi Gazayerly acting with his daughter Ehsane
Fawzi el Gazayerly was born in Alexandria where he began his career acting in its theatrical troupes, but eventually moved to Cairo and formed his own troupe in 1917. While in Alexandria, el Gazayerly participated in the cinema associations that were established by amateurs, marking the beginning of the cinema industry in Egypt. He is given credit as the first Egyptian actor to take a leading role on screen in Madame Lorreta in 1919.
He was famous for the comic character of el Mou‘alim Bahbah and his wife Om Ahmed who was actually his own daughter, Ehsane el Gazayerly (1905-1943). They formed a duet in several films directed by Togo Mizrahiand he stopped acting after her death.
El Gazayerly’s son, Fouad el Gazayerly (1910-1979), started his career as an actor in his father’s films but eventually turned to directing. He directed some of his father’s films such as Bahbah Pasha (Bahbah Bâshâ) and Children of the Beloved (Khalaf el habâyib) in 1939.
It is said that el Gazayerly formed a production company with the Italian Alvise Orfanelli who worked as a director and director of photography in Egyptian cinema from 1936 until the fifties.
Filmography:
1919: Madame Lorreta (Madâm Lourîtâ)
1923: In the Land of Tutankhamun (Fi bilâd Tout Ankh Amon)
1934: The Two Delegates (el Mandoubân)
1935: The Sailor (el Bahâr)
1935: Dr. Farahat (el Doktor Farahât)
1935: Master Bahbah (el Mou‘alim Bahbah)
1936: Abou Zareefa (Abou Zarîfa)
1937: A Night in a Life time (Laylah fi-l-‘oumr)
1938: Bahbah Pasha (Bahbah Bâshâ)
1939: Children of the Beloved (Khalaf el habâyib)
1940: The Chief Contractor (el Bâchmouqâwil)
1941: The Three Musketeers (el Foursân el thalâthah)
1942: Bahbah in Baghdad (Bahbah fi Baghdâd)
1942: Women in Danger (el Sittât fi khatar)
1945: A Good Coin (el Qirsh el abyad)
1947: Congratulations (Mabrouk)
References:
- Darwish, Mustafa. Dream Makers on the Nile - A Portrait of Egyptian Cinema. Cairo: The American University in Cairo Press, 1998.
- Daoud, Abd el Ghani. El Rahloun fe Ma̓at ‘Âm. Cairo: Wezârat el Thaqafah, 1997.
- Kassem, Mahmoud. Mawsou‘at el Momathel fi-l-Cinema el ‘Arabiya. Cairo: Maktabet Madbouli, 2004.
- (ed.) Wassef, Magda. Egypte: 100 ans de Cinéma. Paris: Institut du Monde Arabe, 1995.
