Sabah

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Sabah صباح
Sabah in 2007 in Beirut
Background information
Birth name	Jeannette Gergi Fighali
Born	November 10, 1927 (1927-11-10) (age 82)[1]
Origin	Beirut, Lebanon
Genres	Egyptian classical and Lebanese music
Years active	1943–present

Sabah (Arabic: صباح) (born November 10, 1927) is a Lebanese singer and actress whose career stretches from 1943 to the present. She has released over 50 albums and has acted in 98 movies, as well as 20 stage plays. She is among the most prolific Arabic-language singers, with a reported 3,500 songs in her repertoire.

Early life

Sabah was born as Jeannette Gergi Fighali in Wadi Chahrour, Lebanon, although other records state that her birth place is the village of Ahmed Hamed Harb. In her youth she started acting in school with roles such as "Amira Hend".

Career

In the 1940s she started singing and acting in Egyptian movies.

Still a prominent performer at the age of 82, Sabah continues to perform both in concert and on television, including programs like Lebanon's Star Academy (the Arabic equivalent of the United Kingdom's Fame Academy) where she sang her new single on a stage lined with mannequins displaying costumes from several of her early films and musicals.

The singer is known to her fans by the diminutive Sabbouha and is also called Al Shahroura, or the singing bird. She is well-known for her ability to sustain a single note for over a minute when performing in the Lebanese 'ataba style. Lately, she said that her "off" used to last for 50 seconds.

Her only European TV performance was in 1980, when she was a guest on the French TV show Le Grand Echiquier where she performed "Saidi" and the duet "Aal Naddaa" with French singer Enrico Macias.

In the 90s, Sabah and her former husband Fadi Lubnan (Kuntar) made a documentary about her life.

In 2005, Sabah released a new dance single and in 2006 a duet with Lebanese singer Rola. It is a remake of a 1970s hit. The accompanying video, in which Sabah is shown as "the notorious diva" to whom her younger colleague pays tribute, has received wide play on Arabic music channels.

On November 10, 2007, while celebrating her birthday with friends, Sabah received a rose and a phone call from General Aoun, a well known Lebanese politician.

Marriages

Sabah has been married seven times. Her marriage with Najib Shammas lasted five years. Her marriage with Egyptian violinist Anwar Mansy lasted four years. She was also married to Egyptian composer Baligh Hamdy, Egyptian television presenter Ahmed Farrag, Egyptian actor Rushdy Abaza, (to whom she was married for three days only until she found out he had not divorced his wife) Joe Hammoud, Wassim Tabbara, and Fadi Kuntar. Lately, she said that all her husbands have taken advantage of her career; especially, when she was at her summit of fame. She also admitted that her big love was Joe Hammoud. Sabah was named by her former husbands as "Madame Bank" because she used to spend her money generously on the people she loved.

There were rumors that she was engaged to Amr Mihio ("Mr. Lebanon") in 2003. When the relationship ended in 2004, she admitted that it had been a stunt to launch Amr's acting career. In April 2008, a publication with photos announced that she got married to Joseph Gharib, her hair dresser for 17 years. It was later revealed that she was only pulling an April Fool's joke on the public. She has two children. Her son Sabah from her marriage with Najib Chammas is a doctor and is married to Zeina Chammas. Her daughter Howayda Mansy from her marriage with Anwar Mansy is a dance teacher in the United States. Sabah has two grandchildren, Danielle Chammas and Naji Chammas, who both live in California.

Selected filmography

Many of Sabah's movies have not been released commercially on either VHS tape or DVD. Movies she has acted in include:

• Kanat Ayyam (1970)
• Nar el shawk (1970)
• Mawal (1966)
• El Aydi el naema, (1963)
• El Motamarreda (1963)
• Jaoz marti (1961)
• El Rajul el thani (1960)
• El Ataba el khadra (1959)
• Sharia el hub (1959)
• Salem al habaieb (1958)
• Izhay ansak (1956)
• Wahabtak hayati (1956)
• Khatafa mirati (1954)
• Lahn hubi (1954)
• Zalamuni el habaieb (1953)
• Khadaini abi (1951)
• Okhti Satuta (1950)
• Sabah el khare (1948)

References

1. ^ LaTeef, Nelda (1997). Women of Lebanon: interviews with champions for peace‎. University of Michigan: Mcfarland. p. 72. ISBN 0786403292. "Born Jeannette Feghali on November 10, 1927, Sabah is as famous for her blonde, glamorous looks as she is for her amazing vocal cords." 

External links

• Sabah (I) at the Internet Movie Database