Omar Sharif, star of such movies as "Lawrence of Arabia" and "Dr. Zhivago," has died of a heart attack in a hospital in Cairo at the age of 83. He had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease.
Sharif's death was confirmed to
The Associated Press by his agent, Steve Kenis.
"In his prime, Sharif – with his dark eyes, debonair demeanor and exotic accent – was considered one of the most handsome men on the planet, his looks getting as much attention as his acting ability," wrote Todd Leopold and Hannah Carter of
CNN.
While Sharif never won an Oscar, he captured Golden Globes for his work in "Lawrence of Arabia" and "Dr. Zhivago" in a long cinematic career, they noted.
"When he walked on the 'Zhivago' set in Spain, I took one look and said, 'I can't act with that man. He's too gorgeous,'" Geraldine Chaplin, one of Sharif's former co-stars told The New York Times in 1965.
Tim Dowling wrote in a 2004 interview with
The Guardian that Sharif disputed reports that he had become bitter and a heavy gambler in his old age.
"I've never been unhappy in my life," Sharif told Dowling. "I know which [articles] you're talking about. They made me sound unhappy. I'm not unhappy at all. … I was never a gambler in the sense of the term; I only gambled when I was alone, I had no friends, no one to eat with."
Sharif was remembered by fans on social media.
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