but he would put on a false mustache, a cap and a sports coat, and thus disguised as a member of the school staff waltz out the door.. On returning he would scale the wall like a lizard to get back in. Never dreaming that, with his plans to be a doctor, he would years later be the stage performer Erol Gunaydin so loved and respected by all of Turkey. "The first person to climb down that wall was apparently Cahit Sitki Taranci (the famous poet), and the first one to climb up it was me. My schoolmate Tahsin Yucel did the research on this escape story. Later the principal realized that I wasn't going to give up, so he gave me permission to leave and come back after dark." Having celebrated the 50th anniversary of his stage career two months previously in a gala night, Erol Gunaydin started the interview with the first memories that came to mind, memories from a half century ago.

THE COMIC SPIRIT RAN IN THE FAMILY
At the age of 72 Erol Gunaydin is among the leading stage performers in Turkey,