In Omar Sharif’s native city, word of the actor's passing drew proud recollections from some of his contribution to world culture –- but also blank stares from some younger Egyptians.
“I am sorry, but I don’t know of this person,” said 20-year-old Mohammed Safr, a gangly engineering student.
As word spread late Friday afternoon of Sharif’s death, most Egyptians were hurrying home on their way to iftar, the evening meal that breaks the daylong fast during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
But a few stopped to share their thoughts. Ahmed Sarwar, an Alexandrian physician in his late 60s, recalled a sense of national pride when Sharif vaulted to international fame in the 1960s.