'Black Tiger' of Egyptian film. Ahmed Zaki's acting career spanned three decades and the pinnacle of his acting that left his audience mesmerised was the portrayal of the Egyptian president Anwar Sadat in the blockbuster Ayam el-Sadat (Days of Sadat, 2001), depicting forty years of the late leader's life. Zaki created life into his characters in some 60 films and two dozen plays. His viewers applauded his 1996 portrayal of the late colonel Nasser in Nasser 56 and his 1974 portrayal of the 'doyen of Arabic literature' Taha Hussein, blinded from child, and that won Zaki several awards. Zaki with his big cheeky smile and subtle facial expression, nicknamed 'Black Tiger', acted in films that had a subtle socio-political message. Ahmed Zaki who died of lung cancer was born into a poor family from Zaqaziq near Cairo.