Thursday, August 1 1, 1977 THE MICHIGAN DAILY SPage Seven Hussein marks 25th year AMMAN, Jordan (AP)-King Hussein of Jordan, once a boy king on a shaky throne, cele- brates his 25th anniversary to- day as the Arab world's most durable leader. Silver jubilee festivities throughout this desert kingdom are marking the reign of the king who has survived wars, assassination attempts, personal tragedy and predictions that he could not last. Hussein, then a 16-year-old with courage and muscles but little experience, was installed Aug. 11, 1952 as ruler of the Hashemite kingdom after his grandfather, King Abdulla, was assassinated. No other ruler in the Arab world has lasted as long. Today, the 41-year-old, 5-foot, 4-inch Hussein seems firmly en- trenched on his throne, has the adulation of most of his subjects and maintains good relations with Arab neighbors who once reviled and even tried to over- throw him. THE JORDANIAN monarch is among the most Westernized of Arab leaders - he chose Lon- don for a month's postjubilee vacation - and that orientation and moderate political line have earned him American and British support at critical times. Hussein, a normally buoyant person with a playboy reputa- tion, has suffered recent set- backs that associates say left him subdued. - Last February, his wife of four years, Queen Alya, died in a helicopter crash. She was Hus- sein's third wife. Palace observ- ers say the marriage was very close, and he was devastated by the loss. THE SAME MONTH, the mon- archy was stung by press reve- lations that Hussein had re- ceived payments from the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency. He insisted the payments were not improper and merely constitu- ted aid for military security. The CIA link has fueled suspic- ions among Arab enemies that Hussein is an American "tool." But insiders say the king has solid support at home, especially from the army, and that he is determined to remain an active ruler. "One is struck at how tranquil it all is," a Western diplomat said. IT IS NOT ALWAYS so tran- quil. Hussein has survived five known assassination attempts, and another half-dozen aborted coups. Many of his subjects believe Hussein, whom they revere as a descendant of the Prophet Mohammed, enjoys a "Baraka" - blessing from God - because of his repeated escapes from death. "I fear only God," the king has said. "When he calls, I am ready." AT THE AGE of 15, Hussein way praying with his grand- father in the Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem when an assassin opened fire. The king was killed, and the story has it that Hus- sein escaped death because a bullet richocheted off a medal on his chest. Hussein's father became king but soon was declared mentally unfit. Hussein was proclaimed monarch and, after a cram course at Sandhurst military academy in Britain, assumed the throne. Because of Jordan's reliance on Western aid, the new mon- arch was a target of revolution- ary regimes in Egypt, Syria and Iraq. Egyptian President Gamel Abdel Nasser, who had turned to Moscow for aid, repeatedly labeled Hussein a "stooge of American imperialism." IN 1957, THE KING escaped two bizarre assassination at- tempts, one from poisoned nose drops and another from a bomb placed in the royal toilet. Jor- danians claim both were sent from Nasser. After long animosity, Hussein and Nasser signed a mutual de- fense pact as an act of expedi- ency in opposition to Israel. But Israel rolled over the forces of both Arab nations in the 1967 Six-Day war, and took the West Bank of the Jordan River from Jordan's control. THE CONTINUED occupation of the West Bank constitutes Hussein's most pressing prob- lem today. He calls himself a "cautious optimist" about possi- bilities for a peaceful settlement of the issue. The latest threat to Hussein came from Palestinian guerril- las, many of whom flooded into the kingdom as refugees from the 1967 war. In 1970 and 1971, Hussein's Bedouin army fought a bloody civil war with the guerrillas and ousted them from the country. The very latest in professional hair care services and products U-M Stylists at the Union HAD CANCER AND I LIVED. ANN AUiUiLU [IM 4C U-CIU Thursday, August 11 AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT (1972) 7 & 10:20-AUD. A Monty Python's Flying Circus is an English Tv program represent- in-aBritish comedy at its outrageous best, and the first full-length film based on it is no less hilarious. "The most outrageous, hilar- ions, brilliant comedy since THE PRODUCERS."-women's wear Daily. MONTY PYTHON AND THE HOLY GRAIL (Terry Gilliam and Terry Jones, 1975) 8:45 ONLY-AUD. A Monty Python's first film was so deliciously silly, en Anita Bryant liked it. Now the lads of the Circus mess about with Kint Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. Sidesplittiin, vi-nal spoof of chivalry, courtly love, In-mar Bergman, and the Hollywood epic. ADMISSION: STILL ONLY $1.25 (SINGLE FEATURE) $2.00 DOUBLE m Tonight at 7:00 & 9:00 Toninht at 7:00 & 9:00 Open 6:45 Open 6:45 -----Under 18 Not Admitted I.D. Resuired THE BAD NEWS BREAKING TRAININGa * ~di AeCOL R A A tP s E. ENDS TONIGHT "New York, New York" (PG) Phone +66264 7:00 & 9:35. Open 6:45 STARTS TOMORROW BURT REYNOLDS and JACKIE GLEASON Hit the Roads in the Freewheelin' Comedy Smash A UNIVERSAL Picture - Technicolor® FP 4 GeneLittler It's possible to go into an annual checkup feeling terrific. And come out knowing something's wrong. It happened to me. The doctor found what I couldn't even feel ... a little lump under my arm. If I had put off the appointment for ,one reason or another, I probably wouldn't be here today. Because that little lump I couldn't feel was a melanoma, a highly aggressive form of cancer that spreads very quickly. It's curable-but only if found in time. So when I tell you, "bet a checkup," you know it's from my heart. It can save your life. I know. It saved mine. Havle a regular checkup. It can save your life. American Cancer Society. "V5WO CtJ1N 11(91V 7Lt'Sn l A 5 n ,4A sap IMVIStIa..