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Christina Fakhry

Zaven Captures Top 100 Lebanese TV Moments in His New Book

Prominent talk show producer and host Zaven Kouyoumdjian is here to remind us about the golden age of Lebanese television in his newest book titled, “Assaada Allahou Massa’akom” (a common Arabic television greeting best translated to English as ‘may God bless your evening’).



In it, Zaven traces the journey of Lebanese TV from its early beginnings in 1959 up until 1989.

Encompassing over 570 photographs (yes, I TRIED to count them), some of which retrieved directly from local television archives, Zaven’s book is a genuine historical guide to the Lebanese TV industry and its forerunners, divided into 100 breakthough moments.

“This book is an essential read, not just for TV students, but for every Lebanese individual. It helps us understand how media affects our culture and history, and vice versa,” Zaven told Beirut.com.




This is Zaven’s third book after his 2003 bestseller “Lebanon Shot Twice” (a second edition of it was released in 2005 and a third one in 2009) which tells inspiring stories of Lebanese civil war victims and survivors, and his 2012 manual “Witness on Society” featuring an array of tips for a better life.

It took Zaven decades to collect the documents and photographs used in his first book, and the new book was no less demanding. Zaven told Beirut.com “Assaada Allahou Massa’akom” took five years of research.

The signing, which took place on June 11 at Librairie Antoine in Beirut Souks, brought together a huge crowd of media personalities, political figures and television professionals, including some of the celebrities featured in the book such as actor Abdel Majid Majzoub and actor/director Nidal al Achkar. They all came to congratulate Zaven and pay tribute to the golden days of Lebanese television.




In addition to the new book, Zaven is preparing to launch a new season of his talk show ‘Bala Toul Sire’ on Future TV after Ramadan.

You can find the book at all Librarie Antoine branches or online at Antoine Online.



[Images via Facebook and zavenonline.com]