Nosrat Karimi facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Nosrat Karimi
نصرت کریمی |
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| Born |
Nosratollah Karimi
نصرتالله کریمی 22 December 1924 |
| Died | 3 December 2019 (aged 94) |
| Resting place | Behesht-e Zahra Cemetery |
| Occupation | Actor, Sculptor |
| Years active | 1965–2019 |
| Spouse(s) | A'lam Danayi (divorced) Parvin Teymouri |
| Children | 3 (including Babak) |
Nosrat Karimi (Persian: نصرت کریمی; 22 December 1924 – 3 December 2019) was a very talented Iranian artist. He was an actor, director, make-up artist, professor, writer, and sculptor. His amazing career lasted for over sixty years! Many people remember him for his role as Agha Joon in the popular TV series My Uncle Napoleon.
Contents
Nosrat Karimi's Early Career
After finishing elementary school, Nosrat Karimi went to the German Polytechnic Institute. He then joined the only drama school in Tehran. From 1938 to 1941, he learned about acting, make-up, and designing stages for plays.
In 1940, Karimi started working in different theaters in Tehran. He was an actor, a make-up artist, and a stage designer.
Studying Art in Europe
In early 1953, Karimi traveled to Europe to continue his art studies. He spent his first few months in Rome, Italy. There, he met famous Italian film directors like Luchino Visconti and Vittorio De Sica. He was very impressed by De Sica's realistic films, such as "The Bicycle Thief."
After about six months, Karimi went to Vienna and then to Prague. In Prague, he studied film direction and TV production. He specialized in making puppet and animation movies. His most important teacher at The Academy of Arts in Prague was Karel Zeman, a famous Czech animation artist.
After Prague, he returned to Rome and stayed there for three more years. He worked as an assistant director for Vittorio De Sica. He also acted on stage, performed in musicals, and helped dub Italian movies for audiences in Iran.
Returning to Iran and Teaching
In 1964, after eleven years in Europe, Karimi went back to Iran. In 1965, the Ministry of Art and Culture hired him. His job was to manage and expand the state workshop for animated cartoons.
Soon after, Karimi began teaching. He became a professor at The Faculty of Fine Arts at Tehran University. He also taught at The Academy of the Dramatic Arts for over twenty years. He taught many different art styles.
Popular TV Shows
During this time, Karimi also created two TV series. One was "Mr. Plaintiff," a puppet show. The other was "The Marriage," a twenty-part family series about married life. These popular shows made Karimi well-known to many people in Iran.
In 1969, Karimi started filming The Thief and the Policeman. This was a Persian version of a cops and robbers story. However, he stopped directing the film before it was finished due to some production issues. In the same year, British director Terence Young filmed parts of Poppy is also a Flower in Iran. He hired Karimi as the make-up artist for his lead actor, Yul Brynner, and other performers.
Making Feature Films
From 1971 to 1973, Nosrat Karimi made three feature films. These were The Carriage Driver, The Solution, and A Bed for Three. For these movies, he was not only the director but also wrote the scripts and played the main characters.
The Carriage Driver was a big success and was liked by critics. This movie was chosen to represent Iran at international film festivals. However, authorities did not allow it to be shown abroad for some time. Years later, the film was finally shown in European cinemas. The famous Iranian director Abbas Kiarostami praised The Carriage Driver as an important work in Iranian Cinema.
Karimi's fame led to many offers from producers. In the 1970s, he acted in several commercial films directed by others. He also had a supporting role in a movie made by both Japanese and Iranian filmmakers. In 1975, he made his fourth and final movie as a director, The Miserable One. He wrote the screenplay for this film too. It was a funny story about the growing tensions in Tehran during the 1970s. The film was well-received and got good reviews.
Later TV Work
In 1976, Karimi played one of the main characters in the TV series My Uncle Napoleon. This show is considered one of the most successful series ever on Iranian television. A year later, he produced the TV series Khosro Mirsa II. This 16-part series was a funny story about an aristocratic family from the Qajar dynasty. He then wrote another film script and was getting ready for his next movie. However, film production stopped during the Iranian Revolution.
After the Revolution
After the Iranian Revolution, Nosrat Karimi was not allowed to work as a filmmaker or actor for a long time. During this period, he went back to his old interest: making sculptures. He created many unique sculptures that looked like faces and expressions. These were shown in many exhibitions both in Iran and other countries.
Karimi also wrote several screenplays for movies and TV shows. Some of these were made into films by other people, while others have not been produced yet.
It wasn't until 1987 that Karimi was allowed to perform a puppet show again. This show was called The Uninvited Visitor. In 1996 and 1997, he produced a puppet show for a private TV channel called Unruly. This TV series was so popular that it was re-run many times because viewers asked for it.
Other works by Nosrat Karimi after the revolution include directing short TV films about pollution control and health care. He also wrote books about theater and cinema. Nosrat Karimi lived with his wife, Parvin Teymouri, in northern Tehran.
Filmography
- Nikah Halala (1971) – writer, actor, and director
- Golgo 13 (film) (1973) - actor
- My Uncle Napoleon (1976) – actor
