CAIRO: Fouad El-Mohandes, one of Egypt s most beloved comedians whose plays and movies made over a half century brought him fans across the Arab world, has died.

He was 82.

El-Mohandes suffered from liver problems during the past few years, according Egypt s state-run news agency MENA, which reported that he died Saturday in Cairo.Born in Sept. 1924 to an upper-class family in the Abbassiya district of Cairo, El-Mohandes father, Zaki, was a linguistics scholar who encouraged his son to act after obtaining a BA in commerce.

El-Mohandes idol was Naguib El-Rihani, the century s uncontested master of Arab comedy whose films were box office hits.

During the 1950s, El-Mohandes played supporting roles in movies and his voice was heard every morning on a 30-minute radio program To House Wives. Later, he presented Just a Few Words, playing the role of social critic and reformer for a quarter century.

Performances in the 1960s in comedies on the stage and screen with his ex-wife, actress Shwikar, catapulted him to stardom.

El-Mohandes is survived by two sons, Ahmed and Mohammed. AP