At noon on November 12, at Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris, France, an elderly man sat in Terminal 2F and lost his life to a heart attack.
His name is Alfred Mehran, and he is the prototype of Spielberg's film, the male protagonist in "Happy Terminal".
Unlike Tom Hanks' humble, simple image in the movie, in real life, Alfred is a strange old man with a strange temper.
His real name was Mehran Karimi Nasseri, but he insisted on calling himself Alfred.
His true identity has always been a mystery, and these "rumors" began with himself.
Sometimes he said he was born in Iran in 1945, and sometimes he said he was not Iranian; Sometimes he said his mother was Swedish, sometimes he said his mother was from Scotland.
He said his parents met at work, gave birth to themselves without getting married, and his mother left. When his father died in 1972, his family told him about his life and swept him away.
In 1973, he came to England to study at university, and in 1974, he returned to Iran to participate in a political movement as a university student.
In 1977, he was stripped of his citizenship and deported by the Iranian government for participating in demonstrations. He applied for asylum in many countries and eventually obtained a refugee visa in Belgium, allowing him to settle in Europe.
Refugee visas issued by Belgium were available in many European countries, and Alfred later spent some time in France.
Because his mother was (supposedly) British, he decided to travel to England to settle. But on his way to Britain in 1988, he lost various documents, including his passport.
Some said his luggage had been stolen, others said he was just stupid enough to accidentally send away the documents he should have with him and lost them.
Despite this, Alfred managed to board a plane to London, but he was immediately put on a plane back to France because he did not have a passport. After returning to France, he was arrested at the airport without a passport, but was released again because his landing method was legal.
Then, as in the movie, Alfred, who had no passport and no country of origin, was homeless and had to live in Terminal 1 at Charles de Gaulle Airport.
Since then, he has lived here for 18 years.
He slept in a row of red benches every day, washed in airport toilets and ate at McDonald's at the airport.
Next to the bench were piles of boxes and plastic bags containing everything Alfred had in this world: newspapers, magazines about himself; books donated by well-wishers; Letters of blessing from all over the world; He changed his clothes, as well as a diary that recorded all his experiences from day one at the airport.
In the first few years of living here, he was basically provided by kind passers-by and airport staff, some of whom gave him food and some gave him money.
But slowly, Alfred became famous, and more and more people were willing to meet him.
He began hosting media outlets or filmmakers, sharing his story for a few hours at a time, and then accepting a "generous tip."
More and more people got to know him, and some people even came to meet him as the first or last stop on their trip to Paris.
Like in the movie, Alfred was almost driven from the airport.
But with the help of French human rights lawyer Christian , the court ruled that he could not be deported from the airport, but also could not enter France.
In fact, he can reapply for passports and other documents in Belgium, but because he does not have a passport and is not a Belgian citizen, he cannot return to Belgium by plane, which is stuck in a dead circle...
It wasn't until 1995 that Belgian authorities allowed him to fly back to Belgium on the condition that he stay there permanently under the supervision of a community worker, and Alfred refused, citing "wanting to enter the UK as originally planned."
Subsequently, France and Belgium promised him residency.
But Alfred hated the fact that the documents listed him as Iranian rather than British, and did not call his favorite name, "Alfred Mehran," so he rejected the kindness of both countries.
Some reporters even contacted Alfred's family, but the family said that they had never disliked Alfred, everything was his own choice, and believed that he was satisfied with his current life.
In fact, he was indeed satisfied...
During his 18 years at the airport, Alfred lived with great dignity at the airport.
He was not a homeless man, and he never sold misery to gain sympathy.
He meticulously organizes his meter in the bathroom every day; Washed clothes will be placed on the handle of the suitcase to dry, and then neatly folded; He eats McDonald's eggs and bacon croissants for breakfast, McDonald's fish sandwiches for dinner, and even leaves tips.
In a sense, he lived more freely than most social animals.
In 2003, DreamWorks paid Alfred $250,000 for the rights to his story, which was adapted into the famous Happy Terminal.
Since then, his life has become more comfortable.
Many people came to see him, the airport merchants would take special care of him, and people tried not to interfere with his life.
But a long overnight stay at the airport still left him with hidden dangers.
In July 2006, he was taken to hospital for treatment for health problems, leaving Charles de Gaulle airport for the first time after living here for 18 years.
In January 2007, he accepted an arrangement from the French Red Cross to stay at a transit hotel next to the airport. In May, he was again sent to the Social Security Institute for care.
Since 2008, he has been living in a humanitarian community in Paris.
However, according to Charles de Gaulle airport personnel,
Just a few weeks ago, he suddenly returned to the airport and lived in the 2F aviation building at Charles de Gaulle Airport.
Subsequently, at noon on the 12th, he suffered a heart attack and died after being rescued by the police and medical team.
How to say it,
Maybe he is not as perfect as the protagonist in the movie, but for Alfred himself, to die in the "home" where he has lived for 18 years, for him without a country and family, may be regarded as the ending he wants...