Hollywood horror actor finds out he is an Afghan Prince

[Maciamo]

BBC News : US movie actor is 'Afghan prince'

A Hollywood actor who starred in horror film Dawn Of The Dead has found he is prince of the Afghan province of Ghor.
Scott Reiniger, who appeared in the 1978 movie, is the great, great, great grandson of Josiah Harlan, the first American to set foot in Afghanistan.

As a result of a treaty Harlan signed, his heirs are granted the title Prince of Ghor in perpetuity.

Reiniger only found out his title after UK journalist Ben Macintyre published a book on his ancestor's life.
...
He discovered he was the prince of the western province of Ghor when his younger brother - who is named Harlan - emailed him after reading reviews of Macintyre's book.

Macintyre, who had been examining the history of Afghanistan's troubles in the wake of 11 September, decided to investigate after he found that Josiah Harlan's name continually cropped up.
...
Harlan was a Pennsylvania-born adventurer who travelled to Afghanistan in the early 19th century, having sworn never to return to the US after an incident in Calcutta left him stranded.

He headed to Afghanistan with the intention of being made a king. He soon met up with Afghanistan's exiled king, to whom he was contracted to stir up rebellion in Kabul.

He was skilled at playing two sides against each other and continually switched his allegiance. But his skill as a military general was noted and the Emir of Kabul, Dost Muhammad Khan, made him commander-in-chief of Afghanistan's army.

In the winter of 1839, Khan asked him to take on a prince on the other side of the Hindu Kush with 4,000 men, 600 camels and an elephant.
This mission formed the basis for Rudyard Kipling's book The Man Who Would Be King, which, in a further Hollywood twist, was made as a film starring Sean Connery.

Harlan agreed to return with a large, trained army with which they would conquer Refee's neighbours. In return, Refee agreed to hand over sovereignty over Ghor to Harlan, and his heirs, in perpetuity.

"The treaty remains in effect," Macintyre explained.

"Although it would be a brave man who attempted to reassert his claim to be the Prince of Ghor at this stage."

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I love these kind of adventure stories.

[kirei_na_me]

That is very, very interesting indeed. That is a great story. Can you imagine finding out you're a prince and that your ancestor's story was the basis for The Man Who Would Be King? That in itself sounds like a movie!

[mad pierrot]

A few great books about the conquest of central Asia:

The Great Game and Setting the East Ablaze

both by Peter Hopkirk.

[ashuri2]

i'm still waiting for the letter that asserts that i'm a long-lost nubian princess from a lost country in africa, and that my rich and respected relatives are awaiting my return ...until then, i'll go work on my summer reading and figure out how i'm gonna pay for college...LOL

[Hachiko]

Now that's fairy-tale fodder for ya...lol!

[playaa]

Yeah, that COULD be a good situation until they pop some law that requires you to come rule, and live in poverty with the people :P

[EscaFlowne]

i'm still waiting for the letter that asserts that i'm a long-lost nubian princess from a lost country in africa, and that my rich and respected relatives are awaiting my return ...until then, i'll go work on my summer reading and figure out how i'm gonna pay for college...LOL

Now that would be the life! Nubian Prince or Princess and not every place in africa is poor and in poverty

[ashuri2]

Now that would be the life! Nubian Prince or Princess and not every place in africa is poor and in poverty

you're right about the poverty part. but that's the automatic thought it think, cause in most places i've seen it's portrayed that way but let's not get into that, cause that's an entire controversy waiting to happen right there...