New Candid Film Footage of Ray’s Friend, Egyptian Star Samia Gamal

A few months ago, I published a blog post telling the story of Ray's friendship with Egyptian movie star Samia Gamal. Gamal was declared the “The National Dancer of Egypt” by King Farouk in 1949, which led to a nightclub tour by her in the US the following year, setting off interest in "belly dancing" in … Continue reading New Candid Film Footage of Ray’s Friend, Egyptian Star Samia Gamal →

Performance Venues Page Updated

I've just updated the Performance Venues on the site, listing all of the documented places Ray appeared, year by year, during his career. At least, these are the venues I've been able to document so far, based on newspaper and magazine ads, reviews, and articles. The material has been drawn from my research library over … Continue reading Performance Venues Page Updated →

Research on Ray, Summer 2019

Research on Ray has been an ongoing process over the past twenty-five years, sometimes with fits and starts and often with long periods where nothing turns up. Here’s an overview of what I’m currently researching about Ray and leads I’m following this summer. If you have any ideas on places to look or resources to … Continue reading Research on Ray, Summer 2019 →

Ray, Egyptian Star Samia Gamal, and the Pet Camel

Did you know that Ray Bourbon had a pet camel and was friends with one of the biggest stars of Egyptian films? On Ray’s UTC album, Around the World in 80 Ways, he included a long list of clubs he appeared at that included “Symia’s” in Cairo, Egypt. I thought this might be a bit … Continue reading Ray, Egyptian Star Samia Gamal, and the Pet Camel →