Name Reza Imanverdi | Role Actor | |
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Full Name Gholamreza Imanverdi Born 15 June 1936 Tehran
Iran Other names The man of thousand faces Website Facebook Beyk Imanverdi Died September 13, 2003, Laveen, Arizona, United States Movies Leyli and Majnoon, Pahlevan mofrad, Mardan‑e Sahar, The Tempest, Sobh‑e Khakestar Similar People Manouchehr Vossough, Iraj Ghaderi, Pouri Banayi, Naser Malek Motiee, Mohammad Ali Fardin | ||
Reza Beyk Imanverdi (Persian: رضا بیک ایمانوردی, Born 15 June 1936, Tehran Iran - Died 13 September 2003 Arizona, United States and buried in Los Gatos, California) was an Iranian actor and director.
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Biography
Reza Beyk Imanverdi, was born in Iran, in 1936; he found employment at the American embassy in Tehran since he had a good knowledge of the English language. Beyk loved cinema and aspired to be an actor. In 1958, he joined a theatrical group named "Oscar".
His stroke of good luck happened when he met Samuel Khachikian in a road accident. Khachikian was one of the most innovative film directors and screen writers whose films were box office hits of the time. He was impressed by Beyks' athletic physique and cinematic looks, It was in 1961, that Khachikian offered him a minor role in his movie " Midnight's scream", This small role was the very start of Beyk's successful career.
Soon his popularity with the Iranian movie-goers placed him in high demand. During the 60's and 70's, he starred in more than 150 movies.
He was nicknamed as The man of thousand faces by the media. He received recognition as an "action star" as well as for his roles in "comedy". He was able to reach even a larger audience, by acting a comic role that replicated Peter Falk, This role propelled him to mainstream success in the commercial movie industry.
Shortly thereafter, he left Iran for Italy where he was offered the lead role in the Italian movie "Electric chair", He was the first Iranian actor to act in an Italian movie. He also acted in numerous Turkish movies, He gained popularity in Turkey and became quite well known there. Beyk's success was due to his superb acting and his athletic abilities. He was a professional champion of Catch wrestling, He trained and coached rigorously in several athletic clubs in Tehran. He was a stunt performer who excelled in martial arts and one of the few actors to have performed all of his film stunts. He eventually used his sport to elevate and enhance the fighting scenes in the Iranian cinema. Beyk established his own film studio named : "Studio RB". He then started producing and directing his own movies as well as acting.
After the Islamic revolution in Iran in 1979
Beyk, like other stars of the Iranian cinema, had been forbidden from acting. He had to leave the country against his will. He left Iran for Germany first and then moved to US, where he worked as a truck driver for a decade.
Death
In 2002 he was diagnosed with lung cancer. After a yearlong battle with the disease, he died on September 13, 2003.