February 7 coincides with the anniversary of the departure of one of the symbols of art in the beautiful time, the artist Mohsen Sarhan, who presented a number of films that are considered classics of Egyptian cinema. On this occasion, we will present with you in this report some information about his artistic and personal life. How did a quarrel cause him to enter the art world? And why did he die of fright from the turkey?
His birth and upbringing
Mohsen Sarhan was born on January 6, 1914 in Port Said. He moved to the Sayeda Zeinab neighborhood in Cairo after graduating from university and worked as an employee at the Ministry of Agriculture in 1939. He also joined the National Theater Troupe, and decided to enrich his talent with studies and not only practice art, so he conducted free studies in the arts of cinema and theater in 1944.
Early Works
The acting debut of the artist Mohsen Sarhan came in 1937 by chance, when we intervened to break up a quarrel. Where he was known to be a boxer and was one of the shining sports stars among the youth sports clubs. One day, he was sitting with a friend at the “Byron” Café on Imad Street, and a quarrel broke out between the waiter and one of the customers. When his friend tried to intervene to end the quarrel, the customer tried to hit him, so Mohsen Sarhan intervened to defend his friend and hit the customer. Coincidentally, director and author Ahmed Galal was among those seated, and he was impressed by Mohsen’s courage, and asked him to visit him in his office at Lotus Film Company, and there he contracted with him to star in the movie “Bint Al Basha Al Mudir” in front of Asia Dagher and Mary Queenie. which was introduced in 1938. After the great success achieved by Mohsen Sarhan in the film, Ahmed Galal nominated him in 1940 to star in his second film, “Fish for Women”, after which the cinematic championships followed.
His film career
The cinematic films in which Sami Sarhan participated reached nearly 120 films, the most famous of which are: ” The life of darkness, Laila the girl of the schools, long live the sixes, the sanctuary of the Pasha, the safety rail, the beach of love, on your way, the beach girl, the victory of Islam, Samara, the flower seller, the struggle in the mountain, Shaima, wolves that do not eat meat, underwater hell, birth and its owner Gabe, a fallen woman.
Mohsen Sarhan formed a successful duet with the two great artists, Shadia and Wawtah Hamama. He presented with the first a number of films, including: “To whom shall I complain, people’s secrets, a father’s mistake, my soul was wronged, hopes, bear witness, people.” While presented with the second films: “I am the daughter of people, you have a day, you oppressor, the cup of torment, from the sweat of my forehead, the comfort of my heart, the son of the halal.”
Mohsen Sarhan continued to work in cinema until his death, and he was playing small roles that almost reached one scene, and the last works in which he participated was the movie “Love in Brackets” and the movie “Circle of Death” and they were shown in January of 1993, one month before his death .
As for the TV drama, Mohsen Sarhan participated in nearly 50 TV series, including: “Your husband, Set Hanim, the detective inspector, ladies and gentlemen, the pickpocket, nothing matters, the madmen’s nest, my side without restrictions, Jamal Al-Din Al-Afghani, One Thousand and One Nights, he and she, a woman and three faces.” He also performed in many plays, including: “Moulin Rouge, Beginning and End”.
List of the 100 best films in the history of cinema
One of Mohsen Sarhan’s films was selected in the list of the 100 best films in the history of Egyptian cinema, which is the film “For You, O Unjust”, which was produced in 1951. It stars Faten Hamama, Mahmoud El Meligy, Abdel Warith Asser and Wedad Hamdi, the story of Naguib Mahfouz, the script of Salah Abu Seif, the dialogue of Mr. Badir, and directed by Salah Abu Seif. It ranks number 47 on the list.
Awards and Honors
During his artistic career, Mohsen Sarhan received many awards and honors, including the Order of the Republic in 1964, and a certificate of appreciation from the Egyptian Society of Film Writers and Critics in 1985. The Television Shield in 1985.
Phobia of turkeys and cockroaches
Despite the enormity of his build and athletic body, and the strength and daring that Mohsen Sarhan enjoyed as a result of his practice of boxing, he was very afraid and would feel terrified if he saw a turkey. This is due to an accident that happened to him while he was a young child. Where a turkey attacked him and took a peck in his hand several times, Sami kept screaming until people rescued him with difficulty after the rooster left traces of its beak on his hands.
Mohsen Sarhan was also suffering from a phobia of cockroaches, which caused him in many embarrassing situations where he would panic if he saw a cockroach and keep jumping in his place like a small child. He may even leave the place immediately if one of those with him mentions the word cockroach. He was very careful to take all necessary measures, to ensure that there were no cockroaches in his house.
His relationship with Shukri Sarhan and Khaled Sarhan
The relationship between the four artists, Mohsen Sarhan, Shukry Sarhan, Salah Sarhan and Sami Sarhan, is always talked about. It is known that Salah Sarhan is the older brother, Shukri is the middle brother, while Sami Sarhan is the youngest. It has been said that Mohsen Sarhan is their fourth brother, when in fact he is their cousin.
When the artist Khaled Sarhan appeared, he started talking about a kinship between him and the late artist Mohsen Sarhan. Sometimes it was said that he was his son, and sometimes that he was his nephew. However, Khaled Sarhan denied these rumors, pointing out that he is not related to the artist Mohsen Sarhan or the artist Shukri Sarhan. It’s just a common name, as none of his family members was an actor.
His Marriage
Mohsen Sarhan married 4 times during his life, he also had 4 children. The first marriage was to a woman from outside the artistic community, and his wife died after she gave birth to a son and daughter, “Ibrahim, Amal”. Then came the second and most famous marriage in Mohsen Sarhan’s marriage, and he was with the artist Samiha Ayoub, whom he admired when they participated together in the movie “The Homeless”, in which she presented the character of his sister. Their marriage lasted for nearly two years, during which time they had one son, “Mahmoud”. The third marriage was also to a woman from outside the artistic community, and it did not last for long, as the divorce took place after only two months. The fourth marriage, which lasted from 1952 until his death in 1993, was from a woman named Hana Mohsen Daoud. Her family opposed this marriage because of the large age difference between them, which exceeds 19 years. However, she insisted on marrying him, and her family boycotted her after completing the marriage and did not forgive her until she gave birth to her only daughter, Amal.
His Death
Mohsen Sarhan traveled in 1993, to perform the Umrah of the month of Shaaban, accompanied by his close friend, artist Yahya Shaheen. Specifically on the night of the half of Sha ‘ban, Mohsen Sarhan felt severe abdominal and chest pain, went to the hospital for treatment, and the doctor asked him to go home. Mohsen Sarhan left our world an hour later, on February 7, 1993, at the age of 79, after suffering a heart attack.