* Youssef Chahine is an important figure in world cinema history. But, he remains as a inor celebrity for people in Western nations.
Youssef Chahine (January 25, 1926 – July 27, 2008) was an Egyptian film director active in the Egyptian film industry since 1950. He was credited with launching the career of actor Omar Sharif.
Illness and death
Chahine was hospitalized at Ach-Chourouq hospital in Cairo in a coma following an apparent cerebral haemorrhage, on Sunday, June 15, 2008.
On Monday, June 16, 2008, Chahine was flown to Paris on an emergency flight and admitted to the American Hospital in Neuilly-sur-Seine, west of Paris, where his niece told AFP his condition was "critical but stable."
Youssef Chahine died in his Cairo home on Sunday July 27, 2008