Abdel Fattah al-Qasri

• Name: Abdel Fattah al-Qasri
• Profession: Egyptian stage and film comic actor
• Born: 15 April 1905 — Cairo, Egypt
• Died: 8 March 1964 — Cairo, Egypt
• Active years: From the 1920s through the early 1960s

Early Life and Education

• He grew up in Cairo and received his basic education there.

Entry into the Arts and Career

• He began on the theater stage in the 1920s, then moved into cinema as Egypt’s film industry expanded in the 1930s.
• He became famous for playing the “mu'allim” — the neighborhood boss, café owner, or combative merchant — a popular archetype in Egyptian urban culture known for swagger and streetwise authority. His performances blended a sardonic Cairene accent, strong physical presence, and sharp verbal comedy.
• He is remembered for one-liners and catchphrases that turned into everyday sayings, most notably: “Ya ard, it-haddi, ma 'alayki qaddi” — roughly, “O earth, be still; there’s no one as formidable as me.”
• In later years, health problems affected his eyesight, gradually forcing him to step away from work before his death.

Key Films

• Italicized titles are the original names; English glosses are provided for clarity.
• Lend Me Three Pounds (Salfini Talata Gineh, 1939)
• Si Omar (1941)
• The Lady’s Game (Le'bat al-Set, 1946)
• Abu Helmous (1947)
• The Barber of Baghdad (Hallaq Baghdad, 1949)
• The Wedding Night (Laylat al-Dukhla, 1950)
• My Mother-in-Law, the Atomic Bomb (Hamati Qanbala Zariyya, 1951)
• Ibn Hamido (1957)
• Sugar Lady (Sukkar Hanem, 1960)

Artistic Style and Influence

• A master of popular comedy built on disciplined improvisation, playful language, and vivid physical presence.
• He shaped the comic image of the “mu'allim” on stage and screen, and his lines remain part of Egypt’s collective memory.

Personal Life and Death

• He suffered vision-related health issues beginning around the late 1950s and died in Cairo on 8 March 1964 at the age of 58.

Facts and Anecdotes

• He had a mild strabismus (a slight squint), which became a signature part of his comic persona on screen.
• For many years, he was the go-to choice for “mu'allim” roles thanks to his authentic command of the popular urban milieu — its language, gestures, and rhythms.