Funny Girl - Cast

Barbra Streisand reprised her acclaimed Broadway performance as Fanny Brice for the movie of "Funny Girl" and she won the Academy Award for her efforts. She was perfect as Fanny, even if she might have overplayed some of the scenes. Omar Sharif, on the other hand, was rather odd casting as Nicky Arnstein. It was probably the only time an Egyptian actor was hired to play an American Jew or European descent.

The supporting cast included established actors and actresses, including Kay Medford, Walter Pigeon and Anne Francis.

Omar Sharif(1932-)

Omar Sharif was born Michel Demitri Shalhoub in Alexandria, Egypt in 1932. He changed his name in 1955 to Omar al-Sharif after he converted to Islam.

Prior to becoming an actor, Sharif studied mathematics and physics and received degrees from Victoria College in Alexandria and Cairo University.

Sharif's first film was an Egyptian film in 1954. He appeared in Egyptian and international films until his break into American movies in 1962 with "Lawrence of Arabia." Although Sharif had a prolific, international film career from 1954 to 2006, he is probably still best known for his lead role in "Doctor Zhivago" in 1965.

In addition to being a successful actor, Sharif is also a world-class bridge player and he had success in this field from the 1960s through the 1980s.