{"id":184403,"date":"2025-12-15T16:49:26","date_gmt":"2025-12-15T14:49:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.nli.org.il\/?p=184403"},"modified":"2025-12-15T16:59:42","modified_gmt":"2025-12-15T14:59:42","slug":"not_without_my_daughter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/not_without_my_daughter\/","title":{"rendered":"When “Not Without My Daughter” Was Filmed in Israel"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

It was the dawn of the buoyant nineties. The local press – provincial in tone, perhaps – was buzzing with excitement over the arrival of an American movie star who was about to film a major Hollywood production right here in Israel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSally Field,\u201d proclaimed the headlines, \u201cwill arrive in Israel next week to film Not Without My Daughter<\/em>.\u201d And Field, a two-time Academy Award winner, indeed came, much to the delight of her fans and the Israeli paparazzi. It was not the first international production filmed in Israel, nor was she the first big Hollywood name to work here. Four years earlier, Brooke Shields had used Israeli dunes as a stand-in for the Sahara Desert, and films like Jesus<\/em> and The Delta Force<\/a><\/em> had sprinkled a bit of Hollywood glamour onto the local film scene. Even so, this production was unusual in many ways. The studio behind it was initially reluctant to grant journalists any access to filming locations and preferred, at first, to keep quiet about the fact that filming was taking place in Israel at all. Their first press conference came only months after shooting had already begun.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"91000
Actress Brooke Shields<\/a> visited Israel while filming the 1983 movie Sahara<\/em>. From the Dan Hadani Archive, the Pritzker Family National Photography Collection, the National Library of Israel<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Why was this particular film special, and why was it filmed in Israel?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On August 3, 1984, an American family boarded a British Airways flight to Tehran. They looked entirely ordinary: a father, a mother, and a small daughter. They were Dr. Sayyed Bozorg Mahmoody, an American citizen of Iranian origin; his American wife, Betty Lover; and their four-year-old daughter, Mahtob – \u201cmoonlight\u201d in Mahmoody\u2019s native language.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is a mistake,\u201d Betty thought at the time. \u201cI wish I could get off this plane right now.\u201d But she disembarked only upon landing in Tehran, her head covered with a scarf as required by the authorities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This marked the beginning of an eighteen-month ordeal – a harrowing true story of confinement and then (spoiler alert) a dramatic escape from the Islamic Republic of Iran. This was their life; it truly happened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not long after she and her daughter returned to the United States, Betty – who, despite everything, kept her husband\u2019s surname as a pen name – set down her story with author and journalist William Hoffer.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Whatsapp
Cover of the Hebrew edition of Not Without My Daughter<\/em>, Kinneret Publishing, 1990<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Published in 1987, Not Without My Daughter<\/em> became an immediate bestseller and was translated into numerous languages. The book caused enough of a stir to capture the interest of Hollywood, specifically, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios. It was a compelling, \u201chot\u201d story: a tense, emotionally charged drama that spoke directly to a core American ideal, the belief that personal freedom is the country\u2019s greatest gift to the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But one major obstacle stood in the way: filming could not take place in Tehran, and producers struggled to find American locations that looked authentic. They needed a site with a Middle Eastern feel, with appropriate exteriors and high-quality production facilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Israel raised its hand, and offered the G.G. Studios in Neve Ilan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This created an irony hard to ignore. From the Iranian perspective, the \u201cGreat Satan\u201d had come all the way to the \u201cLittle Satan\u201d to recreate the streets of their own capital in a depiction intended for global audiences.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Iran
Complex relations that knew ups and downs. From the September 28, 1951 issue of The Detroit Jewish News<\/a><\/em>, the Historical Jewish Press Collection at the National Library of Israel<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Relations between Israel and Iran were complicated, to say the least. On November 29, 1947, Iran – then still \u201cthe Imperial State of Iran\u201d under the Pahlavi dynasty – voted against the UN Partition Plan. Yet in 1950, it became the second Middle Eastern country to recognize the State of Israel, even opening a diplomatic mission here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The optimism surrounding this brief warming of ties faded quickly: less than a year later, in 1951, Iran withdrew its recognition and closed its mission. From that point onward, relations existed mostly behind the scenes, occasionally surfacing with small moments of rapprochement. In 1960, for example, the Shah declared that he recognized Israel, and in 1961 David Ben-Gurion made a secret visit to Iran.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The true rupture came in 1979, with the Islamic Revolution and the rise of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. Israel was declared an enemy state, branded \u201cthe Little Satan,\u201d second only to the supposed root of all global corruption – seductive, modern America.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Screenshot
Khomeini arrives, as Jews leave. The front page of Maariv,<\/a><\/em> Febraury 1, 1979, the Historical Jewish Press Collection at the National Library of Israel<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

The revolution, along with the fierce antisemitism that preceded it, gave Israel an unexpected advantage when it came to filming: tens of thousands of Jews immigrated from Iran during those years. They spoke fluent Persian and possessed a deep familiarity with Iranian culture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And so, eleven years after the Islamic Revolution had rejected Hollywood cinema entirely, Israel was chosen as the filming location for a movie set almost entirely in Tehran. Jaffa\u2019s market transformed into Tehran\u2019s central bazaar. Bialik Street in Ramat Gan and the Tel Aviv Central Bus Station were plastered with images of Khomeini and symbols of the Islamic Revolution. Acre\u2019s Khan al-Umdan, a fascinating historic site in its own right, became a Muslim school, and the mountains of Eilat stood in for the rugged ranges of Kurdistan on the Iranian-Turkish border.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Screenshot
Khan al-Umdan, Acre<\/a>. Photo from the Dr. Bernard Weinstein Collection, Yad Yitzhak Ben-Zvi (Israel Revealed). This item is part of the Israel Archives Network project and is made available through the collaboration of Yad Yitzhak Ben-Zvi, the Ministry of Jerusalem and Heritage, and the National Library of Israel.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Sally Field arrived in Israel along with Sheila Rosenthal, who played her daughter; director Brian Gilbert; British actor Alfred Molina, who portrayed Dr. Mahmoody; and several dozen cast and crew members. A single photo of Field and Rosenthal from that time survives in the National Library archives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In an interview with Hadashot<\/em>, Lee Harmon, Field\u2019s makeup artist on the film, described her as \u201cthe nicest of all the actresses I\u2019ve worked with.\u201d His r\u00e9sum\u00e9 included such stars as Barbra Streisand, Faye Dunaway, and Jane Fonda. \u201cI wouldn\u2019t be here [in Israel] if I didn\u2019t love Sally,\u201d he said. \u201cI had offers from places where I could play golf every weekend.\u201d (Our apologies, Mr. Harmon, on behalf of Israel\u2019s somewhat modest golf scene.)<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"19064
Sally Field and Sheila Rosenthal<\/a> at the Dan Hotel Tel Aviv, March 1990. From the Dan Hadani Archive, the Pritzker Family National Photography Collection, the National Library of Israel<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Naturally, the international production gave several Israeli actors the chance to appear in a Hollywood film, even in small roles, particularly those of Persian or Turkish origin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Producers initially approached the pop-singer Rita, likely the most famous Israeli of Persian background, but she had to decline due to her preparations for the Eurovision Song Contest in Zagreb (where she performed Shara Barhovot<\/em> – “Singing in the Streets” \u2013 and finished 18th).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Those actors who did take part included Sasson Gabay as the kind-hearted bazaar vendor who lets Betty use his phone; Yosef Shiloach, who traveled from Paris to accompany Betty and Mahtob through the treacherous \u201cKurdistan mountains\u201d (in reality, Eilat); and many other familiar Israeli faces: Ya’ackov Banai, Dafna Armoni, Gili Ben-Ozilio, Jonathan Cherchi, and more. The film opened in the United States under a cloud of threats from extremist groups. On the night of its premiere, someone called the Los Angeles police claiming a bomb had been planted in the theater. After a full search, it was deemed a hoax, and the screening proceeded as planned. Sally Field was assigned a security guard for a time.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Screenshot
Sally Field during filming in Tel Aviv. Israeli media could not resist, despite the production\u2019s attempt to keep filming discreet. From the February 27, 1990, issue of Hadashot<\/em><\/a><\/em>, the Historical Jewish Press Collection of the National Library of Israel<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Betty Mahmoody, whose name appeared on millions of book covers, lived for many years in the United States under an assumed identity, fearing retaliation from her former husband\u2019s family. She founded an organization to assist multicultural families and campaigned against the phenomenon of child abduction within such households.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She, the book, and the film were all criticized for their portrayal of life in Iran and of Islam, though she repeatedly emphasized that her goal was simply to tell her own story as it happened. She was careful, she said, never to condemn the religion itself, only the individuals she encountered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The true heroes, she stressed time and again, were the Muslim Iranians who appear in her book under pseudonyms – the ones who helped her, and at times risked their lives to save her and her daughter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Israel, the film premiered at the festive reopening of the Shachaf Cinema, a \u201cmodern and sophisticated movie center\u201d, alongside another major release: The Godfather Part III<\/em>. In Iran, the film was never screened.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Mar19910328
Film premiere announcement, Not Without My Daughter<\/em> alongside The Godfather Part III<\/em>, from the March 28, 1991 issue of Ma\u2019ariv<\/em><\/a><\/em>, the Historical Jewish Press Collection at the National Library of Israel.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

And to end with – here\u2019s a little challenge for you: According to the Ma\u2019ariv<\/em> column \u201cThings Happen,\u201d published on April 10, 1991, \u201cAnyone who didn\u2019t blink at that exact second could spot a ‘Dan’ bus – line 63 – making its way, quite innocently, down one of Tehran\u2019s streets.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Have you seen the movie? Let us know in the comments if you spotted the bus. Feeling inspired to rewatch it? Try to catch the bus during the film and tell us if you managed to find it!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Can a country become part of a movie cast? The number of major international films shot in Israel can likely be counted on two hands, and when the film crews did come, many used the local landscape to stand in for other Middle Eastern countries. In the National Library archives, we uncovered documentation of how Ramat Gan became Tehran, and well-known Israeli actors found themselves playing Persians and Turks.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":312,"featured_media":183584,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[217],"tags":[2083,4958,2093,1648,1727],"tags2":[3067,4959,2676,2813,2766],"class_list":["post-184403","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-land-of-israel","tag-books","tag-iranian-jewry","tag-israeli-culture","tag-newspapers","tag-persian-culture"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nWhen "Not Without My Daughter" Was Filmed in Israel<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Can a country become part of a movie cast? 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In the National Library archives, we uncovered documentation of how Ramat Gan became Tehran, and well-known Israeli actors found themselves playing Persians and Turks.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/not_without_my_daughter\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"When \"Not Without My Daughter\" Was Filmed in Israel","og_description":"The Librarians | The National Library of Israel","og_url":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/not_without_my_daughter\/","og_site_name":"The Librarians","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/NationalLibraryIsrael","article_published_time":"2025-12-15T14:49:26+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-12-15T14:59:42+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":628,"url":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1200-628-facebook.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"\u05de\u05e8\u05d9\u05dd \u05d6\u05e7\u05d4\u05d9\u05d9\u05dd","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@NLIsrael","twitter_site":"@NLIsrael","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"\u05de\u05e8\u05d9\u05dd \u05d6\u05e7\u05d4\u05d9\u05d9\u05dd","Est. reading time":"9 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/not_without_my_daughter\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/not_without_my_daughter\/"},"author":{"name":"\u05de\u05e8\u05d9\u05dd \u05d6\u05e7\u05d4\u05d9\u05d9\u05dd","@id":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/6ea46b73936686a9e2d61c22fc208893"},"headline":"When “Not Without My Daughter” Was Filmed in Israel","datePublished":"2025-12-15T14:49:26+00:00","dateModified":"2025-12-15T14:59:42+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/not_without_my_daughter\/"},"wordCount":1631,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/not_without_my_daughter\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/832-629-blog.jpg","keywords":["Books","Iranian Jewry","Israeli Culture","Newspapers","Persian culture"],"articleSection":["Land of Israel"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/not_without_my_daughter\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/not_without_my_daughter\/","url":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/not_without_my_daughter\/","name":"When \"Not Without My Daughter\" Was Filmed in Israel","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/not_without_my_daughter\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/not_without_my_daughter\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/832-629-blog.jpg","datePublished":"2025-12-15T14:49:26+00:00","dateModified":"2025-12-15T14:59:42+00:00","description":"Can a country become part of a movie cast? 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In the National Library archives, we uncovered documentation of how Ramat Gan became Tehran, and well-known Israeli actors found themselves playing Persians and Turks.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/not_without_my_daughter\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/not_without_my_daughter\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/not_without_my_daughter\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/832-629-blog.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/832-629-blog.jpg","width":832,"height":629},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/not_without_my_daughter\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"When “Not Without My Daughter” Was Filmed in Israel"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/","name":"The Librarians","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/#organization","name":"\u05d4\u05e1\u05e4\u05e8\u05e0\u05d9\u05dd - \u05d1\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2 \u05d4\u05e1\u05e4\u05e8\u05d9\u05d9\u05d4 \u05d4\u05dc\u05d0\u05d5\u05de\u05d9\u05ea","url":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/blog.nli.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/Logo.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/blog.nli.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/Logo.png","width":103,"height":64,"caption":"\u05d4\u05e1\u05e4\u05e8\u05e0\u05d9\u05dd - \u05d1\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2 \u05d4\u05e1\u05e4\u05e8\u05d9\u05d9\u05d4 \u05d4\u05dc\u05d0\u05d5\u05de\u05d9\u05ea"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/NationalLibraryIsrael","https:\/\/x.com\/NLIsrael","https:\/\/instagram.com\/nli_israel","http:\/\/pinterest.com\/nliisrael\/","http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/NLI2010\/featured"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/6ea46b73936686a9e2d61c22fc208893","name":"\u05de\u05e8\u05d9\u05dd \u05d6\u05e7\u05d4\u05d9\u05d9\u05dd","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/07f2f926a4cbbfa86e90722786381396?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/07f2f926a4cbbfa86e90722786381396?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"\u05de\u05e8\u05d9\u05dd \u05d6\u05e7\u05d4\u05d9\u05d9\u05dd"},"url":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/author\/miryamz\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/184403","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/312"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=184403"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/184403\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":184410,"href":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/184403\/revisions\/184410"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/183584"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=184403"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=184403"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=184403"},{"taxonomy":"tags2","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blognli2026.moonsite.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags2?post=184403"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}