Persian poet, philosopher and mathematician Omar Khayyam is probably the most famed of all Persian poets in the West, ever since Edward Fitzgerald translated the Rubaiyat in Victorian 19th century. This profoundly influenced the West's perception (or misperception) of Persia in the turn of the century. In fact as unusual as it may seem, one of the original manuscripts of the Rubaiyat was carried aboard the Titanic and was to dissapear with the doomed liner under the sea never to resurface again.

The popularity of Khayyam's quatrains -- sold for one Pence as a pocket book -- was such that it was enjoyed not just by London's upper class, or only in cultural circles. In fact they became an international hit, including in the United States where Khayyam's poems became a symbol of earthly wisdom and celebration of epicurian life.

Thus Khayyam became a formidable merchandizing vehicle, cited in ads promoting all sorts of items ranging from Persian rugs, wine, and porcelain figurines.
There were even restaurants named after him, like Omar Khayyam in Pittsburgh or Omar Khayyam in Fresno, California, established in 1932.

A number of artists put his poetry into musical form, including British Composer Hubert Bath's Omar Khayyam: Four Eastern Impressions for Piano.
In mid 1920's, Girl O' Mine was a song in a musical based on Omar Khayyam's poetry. In 1931 a mystery-adventure series -- Omar - Wizard of Persia,13 episodes -- was broadcasted with a great deal of success on US national radio.
It is therefore not a surprise that Hollywood very soon discovered the potentials of a film on Khayyam's life and times. The Oriental touch of Khayyam's poetry, his glorification of the good life and the universal appeal of his poetry, made him attractive to movie goers thirsty for exotic romance and adventurer.

At least three silent films exist on Khayyam: A Lover's Oath (1922; released 1925), Omar the Tent Maker (1922), and Omar Khayyam (1924). A Lover's Oath (also released under the title The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam) was directed by Ferdinand Pinney Earle, starring Ramon Novarro as Ben Ali ,with co-stars Kathleen Key as Sherin, Edwin Stevens as Hassen Ben Sabbath, and Frederick Warde as Omar Khayyam.

Ben Ali, the son of Omar (Frederick Warde), is engaged to Sherin (Key), but lusty old sheik Hassan Ben Sabbath (Edwin Stevens) wants Sherin for himself. Although Ben Ali gets the girl, Edwin Stevens walks off with the acting honors, and occasionally another actor's presence emerges memorably in the midst of all the fancy backgrounds and harems, most notably funny-faced character actor Snitz Edwards as Omar's servant.

This was Ramon Navarro's (known as Samaniego) first starring role. However, the film was initially without a distributor, and stayed hidden in a vault for three years until Navarro had become a full fledged star in Fred Niblo's 1926 Silent Epic Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ . By then, both the actor and the film had changed names.

Omar the Tentmaker directed by James Young and produced by Richard Walton Tully was one of the first attempts to adapt Khayyam's own "life story" to the silver screen. It was adapted from the stage play by Tully with mixed results. It shows Omar (Guy Bates Post, who also played the role on stage) as a student in love with Shireen (Virginia Brown Faire), the daughter of his teacher.

The couple marry in secret, but the Shah (Noah Beery) has heard of Shireen's beauty and carries her off to his native land. When she turns down his advances, she is imprisoned. Shireen gives birth while she is locked up and the Shah orders that both she and the baby girl be thrown off a cliff. They are saved, and the child is handed over to Omar, but Shireen is sold into slavery.

It takes 17 years for Omar and Shireen to be reunited. During that time, their daughter (played by Patsy Ruth Miller) grows up, and falls in love with a Christian slave. Do not expect to learn much about Omar Khayyam nor his poems in this Art Deco silent film, but it has the charm of its time.

Not much can be said either of Bryan Foy's Omar Khayham based on his screenplay starring Phil Dunham which basically follows the same plot as Omar the Tentmaker.

When Frank Freeman Jr., son of the longtime head of Paramount Pictures, read Manuel Kamroff's novel, The Life, the Loves and the Adventures of Omar Khayyam, he is more than thrilled, and suggests screen writer Barry Lyndon to work on it immediately.

This was the 19050s. A research staff gather material from more than 300 books on 11th century Persian history, politics and art. The result is a mammoth screenplay of 1.5 million words which served as the backbone to a multi-million-dollar film with the most popular stars of the time: Cornel Wilde, Debra Paget, John Derek, Michael Rennie and Raymond Massey.

Synopsis
Eleventh Century Persia is beset with enemies . The Mighty Byzantine army threatens its border. At Court a band of fanatical murderers, The Assassins, plot to set up their own Shah. Eyeing the throne is also Prince Ahmud (Perry Lopez), vindicative, jealous offspring of the Shah's first Wife, Zarada (Margaret Hayes). Ahmud, hates handsom Prince Malik (John Derek), courageous son of the Shah and rightful heir to the throne.
Amid this scene of intrigue and treachury is Omar Khayyam (Cornel Wilde), adventurer, poet, astronomer and man of action. The shah ( Raymond Massey) appoints Omar as counselor to the court, a move which pleases the Shah's chief Minister Nizam (, who needs Omar's wisdom for guidance.

Learning that the Shah and Malik have been wounded and half their forces wiped out, Prince Ahmud, who is in t league with the Assassins, rides with his army to cut off what is left of the Shah's forces.

Omar seeks out the Shah and prevails upon him to muster his remaining soldiers and attack the Assassins stronghold. Through Omar's knowledge of chemistry and geology, the forteress is destroyed and the Assassins defeated. Omar seeks out the Shah and prevails upon him to muster his remaining soldiers and attack the Assassins stronghold. Through Omar's knowledge of chemistry and geology, the forteress is destroyed and the Assassins defeated.
Although details of Khayyam's life are unknown, this movie invents one for him that include his real achievements - inventing a new calendar and of course penning poems. Thus the film provides us with a splendid cinematic introduction to Persia's greatest poet.

Khayyam appears as a compassionate and noble figure whose extraordinary literary talent and all-encompassing intellect displays no natural boundary. Khayyam is admirably portrayed as a fascinating personality. The casting of the movie is exceptional and we are treated to fine supporting performances by distinguished actors of the time such as as Michael Rennie as Hassan Sabbah (Hassani) and Sebastian Cabot as Nizam al-Mulk (Nizam) among others.

Somehow Hollywood seems to have only retained Khayyam's celebration of wine by making Cornel Wilde play an often-drunk Omar who longs for his sweetheart whom the Shah (Raymond Massey) keeps in his harem as his third wife. Omar works in the Shah's court as a mathematician who is drawing up a new calendar. The movie also attempts to explore key historical issues surrounding the life and times of Khayyam. We learn about the Byzantine Roman Empire's war with Persia involving an alliance composed of Bulgars, Greeks, Franks and Lombards. We also confront a number of other historical and scientific issues that are portrayed with an interesting admixture of detail and insight that seems to be unusual for such Hollywood productions.

Khayyam additionally provides us with a fascinating glimpse of the assassins, a sect known as the infamous "Hashashin" and led by Hasani (Michael Rennie). Also the film has Khayyam romancing with Sharain (Debra Paget) while foiling the sect's plot to kill the Shah's son Prince Malik (John Derek) (historically the future Malik Shah).

In his efforts to root out the assassins out of their extrodinary mountain fortress, Khayyam is led to cross swords with a sect whose members are deluded by their leader into thinking that they are in paradise when they are actually in a hashish-induced zombie state.
Thus Cornel Wilde as Khayyam appears as a remarkable military genius in addition to his poetic and scientific skills; while Nizam who historically was a political genius of his time, is reduced to a supporting role by Sebasien Cabot. Hassan Sabbah, portrayed by Michael Rennie, is a suave and calculating villain with deceiving good manners.
This leads us to conclude that Khayyam's portrayal in Dieterle's film is certainly highly exagerated, especially regarding Khayyam's military skills, and tends to reduce his poetry to the love af wine. The real Khayyam may have been more in phase with the the one depicted by Amin Maalouf in his bestselling novel Samarkand. However the film can still be considered as a sincere, albeit highly romantized, tribute to Khayyam's genius very much in the style of other Hollywood movies such as The adventures of Marco Polo (1938) starring Gary Cooper, The Life of Louis Pasteur (1936) or The Life of Emile Zola (1937) starring Paul Muni -- the latter also directed by William Dieterle).

This article has been republished with the permission of the author.

Sharain (Debra Paget), Khayyam (Cornel Wilde) and the Shah of Persia (Raymond Massey) on video release poster of the 1957 film.