2 - 8 July 1998
Issue No.384
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Al-Ahram Weekly On-line 2 - 8 July 1998 Issue No.384 |
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 | Current issue | Previous issue | Site map | ||
Encounters with El-Hakim
Around this time of year, Tawfiq El-Hakim used to go to Alexandria, where he spent the summer months. The meetings at Casino Petrou were always an exciting and pleasant time. The conversation touched upon different topics, both public and private, which enabled me to savour his views on life in general and art in particular. He spoke of his relationship with his father, who had sent him to France to obtain a doctorate in law. Instead, he became fascinated with drama and art and returned home empty-handed. During those meetings, El-Hakim was relaxed, and his gift as an excellent speaker shone through.
During those summer encounters at the café overlooking the Mediterranean, I met several artists and writers, as well as El-Hakim's old friends, said to belong to the ancien régime. Among them were Ibrahim Farag Pasha, Burhan Nour Pasha, Shamseddin Abdel-Ghaffar Pasha and others. When I was first introduced to them, the group of pashas was somewhat suspicious of me. The reason for their suspicion was not hard to tell. I had been publishing my stories in Al-Ahram, which under the editorship of Mohamed Hassanein Heikal, was closely linked to the regime. But El-Hakim reassured them, telling them that he was my guarantor, and I was in his custody!
Based on an interview by Mohamed Salmawy. |