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Khayyam
Literature
Great Omar
Khayyam's debt to Edward Fitzgerald
By Cyrus Kadivar
January 14, 2000
The Iranian
Several years ago whilst strolling on Charlotte Street in London I came
across a house with a blue circle which read: Edward Fitzgerald Lived Here.
For me, an Iranian living away from my beloved roses and nightingales,
this was a rather special discovery.
Few people know that Fitzgerald's "translation" into English
of Omar Khayyam's Rubaiyat is probably the best-selling book in the entire
history of English poetry. It exists in many editions probably more than
two hundred, according to one collector. Enjoying massive popularity throughout
the 20th century, many people have carried it around, taken it to war,
kept it in the car, ordered it for reading on a putative desert island
>>>
GO TO FEATURE
Music
Shadmehr Aghili
The Iranian
January 14, 2000
 If he sings like a Pop star, looks like a Pop star and has millions
of teenage fans like a Pop star, he IS a Pop star. Even in the Islamic
Republic. How is that possible? God knows.
Shadmehr Aghili is perhaps more than a Pop star -- he's a super star
in a country where Pop was banned for nearly two decades. His music is
not that original -- it's kind of a light mixture of Daryoush, Moin and
maybe even a little bit of Googoosh. If his style could be described in
a word, it would probably be "sweet" >>>
GO TO FEATURE
Outlook
In 'Tehrangeles' America's biggest Iranian community
serves as a bridge
By TESSIE BORDEN
Associated Press Writer
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- As the Iranian popular singer Siavash took the stage
at the foot of the Hollywood Hills, tiny pinpoints illuminated a darkened
concert hall crowded with Iranian teen-agers. It wasn't lighters they were
holding up -- it was cellphones.
Half a world away, dozens of their relatives gathered in their homes
and listened to the call on speaker phones, the percussion-heavy Eastern
beats of an emerging Iranian music industry filling the room. Daring for
conservative Iran, the free-wheeling sounds tied them to a city they have
nicknamed "Tehrangeles." >>>
FULL TEXT
Independence, my...
Did you know that Iran got its "independence" on April 1,
1979? That's not an April Fool's joke. That's according to the CIA. And
you know they never make any mistakes >>>
GO HERE
Thanks to Ansari
More Letters
* My neighbor, Googoosh
Simin Habibian writes:
I don't remember Googoosh in the film "Qesaas".
But I was her neighbor when we were kids. We were almost the same age.
Back then she was about 11-12 years old and living with her father, stepmother
and stepbrother. They had rented an apartment across from our house on
Bahar Street, Kouche Saarem, in Tehran.
Googoosh also went to the same elementary school as I did (Dabestan-e
Vedadi). By the way our principal from that school now lives in Maryland,
where I live.
As kids we were curious and we would go on the roof top to watch Googoosh's
house and we could see how she had to do a lot of house work and the stepmother
was not nice to her at all.
When I recently asked our principal about Googoosh for an article I
was writing, she said that because Googoosh was working at nights and was
also bothered by her stepmother, she could not attend school long and could
not continue.
For the same reason the school was not that eager to have her as a student
either -- She used to sing at night clubs at that age.
* Not popular, but important
Manou Marzban
writes: The result of the Iranian
of the century survey is skewed by emotional tangents. By no means
am I a fundementalist or even vaguely religious, but as a historian - I
assure you that the Iranian who has most impacted our society, socially,
politically and in respect to our future, has been R. Khomeini.
M. Mossadegh is an emotional choice - a man that didn't quite fulfill
his legacy. And we all like to dream that had he fulfilled his legacy -
we may have avoided the revolution of 1979. Hence, we look at him with
much nostalgia.
Like it or not, man of the century doesn't neccessarily have to be the
most popular individual - democratically speaking. Khomieni changed Iran
like no one before... and that is a fact.
* Just ask in the kucheh
Alireza writes: That's
great! You have simply showed how BIG is the population of the late Mosasdegh's
fans (363 x 0.42 < 160) ["Iranian
of the century"].
For sure, you have done your best to get as many votes as possible by
sending your questioner to SELECTED people.
However, if you really mind whom the Iranians in GENERAL respect and
follow -- and still you don't know-- just go to Iran and ask the people
of "koocheh va baazaar".
* Poetry: Khoie's poetry reading, n.
California
Anjomane Sokhan in northern California is happy to announce that Dr.
Khoie is recovering well from a flu and will reading his poetry at Carmichael
Library in Sacramento on Friday the 14th of January and in Berkeley (Dwinelle
Hall Room 145 at 5:00 PM) on Saturday the 15th of January. For more information
please call 650 562-3848
SELL
TICKETS ONLINE AT YOUR SITE
Books of the Week
* Saaniyeh-yeh
aakhar (1999)
Y2K issues in Iran
By Dr. Ali Parandeh
* Barandeh-haa
ham baazandeh-and (1999)
A memoir by a former mayor of Tehran, with photos
By Ahmad Nafisi
* Jazireh
sargardaani (2nd edition, 1998)
Novel
By Simin Daneshvar
* Mumia
va assal (1996)
Novel
By Shahriar Mandanipour
* Mehr-e
giaah (1998)
Novel
ByAmir Hassan Cheheltan
See more
Iranian books for sale
THE IRANIAN
Bookstore
Video of the Week
Through
the olive trees
This is Abbas Kiarostami's most romantic film (English subtitles). It
is the third part of a trilogy set in northern Iran. For other Kiarostami
videos, click here.
THE IRANIAN
Video Store
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TEHRAN,
Jan 13 (AFP) - An Iranian opposition party called on President Mohammad
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that at least one had been tortured in detention. "Khosro Seyf, Bahram
Namazi and Farzin Mokhbar have been in prison for six months. There has
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FULL TEXT
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not to create crises
TEHRAN,
Jan 13 (AFP) - Iran's powerful Assembly of Experts warned members of the
parliament to be elected next month not to "create crises," the
official IRNA news agency reported Thursday. The assembly met on Wednesday
and issued a statement stressing the primordial role of parliament, which
it said had the means "both of creating and of avoiding crises,"
IRNA said >>> FULL TEXT
For a change, courts to try a conservative
journalist
TEHRAN,
Jan 13 (AFP) - Iran, which has become accustomed to seeing moderate newspaper
editors stand trial, will witness the trial next week of a conservative
publication's chief, a Tehran press court judge said Thursday. Hossein Shariatmadari
will have to defend himself against 27 charges concerning news published
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the judge told AFP >>> FULL TEXT
U.S. and Iran Soccer Match Encouraging
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Woman medical students protest poor education
TEHRAN, Jan 13 (Reuters) - Students at an all-women medical school
in Iran have gone on strike to protest against poor education which they
blame on segregation of the sexes, a newspaper reported on Thursday. The
daily Aftab-e Emrouz said the students from Fatemieh medical school in the
city of Qom, a stronghold of the Shi'ite Moslem clergy, had boycotted classes
for two weeks >>> FULL TEXT
Opec determined to keep oil price high
High oil prices look set to stay after several of the world's major
oil producers hinted that they will try to keep production cuts in place
for the rest of the year. In January 1999, one barrel of crude oil could
be bought for under $10. Since then the price has soared to more than $25,
as a direct result of production cuts agreed by members of the Organisation
of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) and several of their allies
>>> FULL TEXT
Iran's NIOC International put on back burner
LONDON, Jan 11 (Reuters) - The operations of National Iranian Oil
Company (NIOC) International, a subsidiary of state oil company NIOC, have
been temporarily put on ice just months after the company's creation, Iranian
oil sources said on Tuesday. When it assumed NIOC's trading activities in
October, NIOC International's brief was to handle all of Iran's international
and downstream oil and gas business in a manner similar to the world's oil
majors, industry sources said >>> FULL TEXT
Iran and Turkey agree to delay in gas deliveries
TEHRAN, Jan 12 (AFP) - Iran has agreed to delay its gas deliveries
to Turkey until September 2001 because the Turks are not ready, the official
news agency IRNA quoted Iran's deputy oil minister Hamdollah Mohammad-Nejad
as saying Wednesday. But Mohammad-Nejad, who is also head of the Iranian
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Three mermaids
Tehran
(Asr-e Azadegan) - Comparing the mermaids created by Goli Taraqi in her
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>>> FULL TEXT IN PERSIAN
Award
Tehran
(Hamshahri) - Ebrahim Mokhtari's documentary -- about the hardships of a
woman who was forced to get married at a young age -- has won an award in
a film festival in France >>> FULL TEXT IN PERSIAN
New cinemas
Tehran (Hamshahri) - The government will hand out loans totaling
six billtion tomans next year to encouarge the private sector to build cinemas
>>> FULL TEXT IN PERSIAN
Iran beat Ecuador under-23 team
LOS ANGELES, Jan 12 (Reuters) - Ali Daei and Ali Mosavi scored
to give Iran's national soccer team a 2-1 victory over Ecuador's under-23
team Wednesday night in a friendly at the Memorial Coliseum >>>
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Gotta move fast
Tehran
(Iran daily) - Two thirds of the ticktes for Sunday's match between Iran
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Iran vs. Asia
Tehran
(Asr-e Azadegan) - The Iranian national soccer team will face the Asian
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BBC
Persian Service
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Quote Unquote
Khayyam
Enjoying massive popularity throughout the 20th century, many people
have carried [Fitzgerald's Rubaiat Khayyam] around, taken it to war, kept
it in the car, ordered it for reading on a putative desert island.
-- Cyrus Kadivar
"Great
Omar"
The Iranian
January 14, 2000
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