Parviz Say'yad, is arguably the best known Iranian actor/comedian of the pre-revolution era in Iran. He still is a household name among Iranians today.
A showman, actor, talented comedian, writer and producer of many TV shows and Iranian cinema.
He created the character "Samad", a naive innocent country-boy, mischievous with a heart-of-gold whose views of life around him are simple and to the point. Samad through his childish take on life, hinted at political/cultural issues of the time.
The character Samad has been compared with Chaplin's Tramp, and as a result, he often is referred to as Charlie Chaplin of Iran.
At the height of his success in Iran (1978) after a hugely successful Iranian-new year TV show (The Kaaf-Show), was maneuvered to leave the Iranian TV, because the program rattled the powers-that-be of the time.