Abbas Mirza Sharifzadeh

Abbas Mirza Abdulrasul oglu Sharifzadeh (Sharifov) (Azerbaijani: Abbas Mirzə Şərifzadə) (22 March 1893, Shamakhi – 16 November 1938, Baku) was an Azerbaijani actor, film director and film editor, and Honoured Artist of the Azerbaijan SSR (1935).

Acting career

Abbas Mirza Sharifzadeh was born into a family of a teacher, who taught at Seyid Azim Shirvani's Usul-i Jadid school. After the 1902 Shamakhi earthquake, the family moved to Baku, where Sharifzadeh became a member of a drama club at his school. In 1908, he started acting in serious plays. But he had not gained fame until a successful portrayal of Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar in Abdurrahim bey Hagverdiyev's play of the same name in 1911. Not having received any professional training in dramatic arts Sharifzadeh was remembered for his outstanding performance of primary roles in stagings of both local and Western pieces.

Abbas Mirza Sharifzadeh first appeared on screen in the 1916 Russian movie Knyaz Temir-Bulat. In 1924, he played the role of the Khan in the Azerbaijani film Baygush ("Owl"). His other notable role was in the movie Avaz-avaza ("An eye for an eye") in 1929.