 Farhat, circa 1973 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | Edward George Farhat (1926-06-07)June 7, 1926 Lansing, Michigan, U.S. |
| Died | January 18, 2003(2003-01-18) (aged 76) Williamston, Michigan, U.S. |
| Cause of death | Heart failure |
Spouse | Joyce |
| Children | 2 |
| Family | Sabu (nephew) |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Eddie Farhat The Arabian Sheik The Original Sheik The Sheik The Sheik of Araby |
| Billed height | 5 ft 11 in (180 cm)[1] |
| Billed weight | 250 lb (113 kg)[1] |
| Billed from | "TheSyrian Desert" |
| Debut | 1947 |
| Retired | May 5, 1995 (final match) December 11, 1998 (retirement ceremony) |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Branch | United States Army |
| Service years | 1944–1946 |
| Unit | 13th Armored Division |
| Conflicts | |
Edward George Farhat (June 7, 1926 – January 18, 2003) was an Americanprofessional wrestler, better known by hisring nameThe Sheik. In wrestling, Farhat, whose career debuted in 1947, is credited as one of the originators of thehardcore style, is also retroactively calledThe Original Sheik, mostly to distinguish him from the similarly namedThe Iron Sheik who debuted in 1972.
In addition to his in-ring career, he was also thepromoter ofBig Time Wrestling, which promoted shows atCobo Hall in Detroit until the 1980s, and was thebooker forFrank Tunney's shows atMaple Leaf Gardens in Toronto from 1971 to 1977.[1] Farhat is the uncle ofExtreme Championship Wrestling alumnusSabu, who he also trained.[2]
Edward George Farhat was born on June 7, 1926, to aLebanese family inLansing, Michigan. He was one of eleven children;[3] unlike most of his older brothers, Edward did not attend college, though some sources erroneously report that he did. The confusion is likely the result of his similarly named older brother Edmund having attended college. Edward quit school in the eighth grade and worked odd jobs during theGreat Depression. His family would find jobs in Michigan metal foundries and auto plants.[4]
DuringWorld War II, he falsified his records in an unsuccessful attempt to join theUnited States Marines Corps while he was still underage, likely using his older brother Edmund's birth certificate.[4] Edward would eventually be drafted into theUnited States Army in 1944, serving during the war. He was honorably discharged in 1946 after 18 months of service.[4] After his family's employment background led to Army brass assuming Farhat to be a candidate for tank duty, Farhat was assigned to the 93rd Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron of the13th Armored Division.[4] In January 1945, he managed to be transferred to Gen.George Patton's3rd Army.[4] Obtaining the role of anarmy technician, Farhat would complete military training atCamp Bowie in Texas in April 1945 and be transferred to Germany, where he drove a tank during the waning days of World War II.[4]
Despite being portrayed as a foreignArabMuslim in professional wrestling, Farhat was in fact a first generationLebanese-American who was born and bred in the United States and also aMaroniteCatholic.[4][5][6]
After completing his service in the U.S. Army, Farhat competed in his firstprofessional wrestling match in January 1947, wrestling as the clean-cutbabyface "Eddie Farhat". Within a few years of his debut, Farhat would develop his "Sheik"gimmick, under which he would gain international fame. Farhat first started wrestling as The Sheik of Araby in the Chicago area, with the gimmick initially being that of a privileged son of a wealthy, aristocratic Middle Eastern family.[7] As the Sheik of Araby, Farhat formed a tag team with Gypsy Joe, with the duo capturing theNWA Midwestern Tag Team Championship in 1954,[8][9] before eventually moving toTexas. During this period, The Sheik received the biggest match of his career up to that point, when he was booked to faceNWA World Heavyweight ChampionLou Thesz in Chicago for his title. Thesz, regarded in wrestling as a legitimateshooter, had a reputation for embarrassing "gimmick wrestlers" so The Sheik left the ring during the course of the match and hid under a bus in the parking lot. The incident received much coverage in local media and helped to push The Sheik character to a more prominent level.[3] Following the incident, The Sheik began wrestling in New York City forVincent J. McMahon atMadison Square Garden where he teamed withDick The Bruiser andBull Curry in feuds againstMark Lewin andDon Curtis as well as the team ofAntonino Rocca andMiguel Pérez. On August 18, 1961, The Sheik was notably defeated byBuddy Rogers in a 2-out-of-3 falls match at theCincinnati Gardens.[10]
By the early 1960s, The Sheik's wrestling was centered on his character of anArab wild man fromSyria. Clad with hiskeffiyeh, before each match, he would use stalling tactics as he would kneel on a prayer rug to perform anIslamic prayer toAllah (in real life Farhat was aMaronite Christian).[11] He would lock on choke holds and refuse to break them, and use a camel clutch hold leading to submission victories. The hold would have him sit over his opponent's back as he applied a chinlock.[3] He used hidden pencils[11] and other "foreign objects" to cut open his opponent's faces.[12] Often, the tactic backfired and the opponent got hold of The Sheik's pencil, leading to the extensiveblade scars on Farhat's forehead.[11] Sheik's other signature illegal move was his fireball that he threw into his opponents' faces, sometimes burning their faces severely.[12] The fireball move was performed through the use of lighter fluid soaked pieces of paper which he quickly lit with a cigarette lighter hidden in his trunks.[12] The Sheik didn't speak on camera, apart from incomprehensible mutterings and pseudo-Arabic.[12] The American born child of Lebanese immigrants in fact never learned Arabic.[13] At the start of his career, his wife Joyce played the part of hisvalet Princess Saleema who would burn incense in the ring. Joyce would go on to play Princess Saleema for many years and, as a result of his gimmick requiring him not to not know the English language, also frequently accompany The Sheik to autograph signings, where she would speak to the fans on The Sheik's behalf and provide the autograph signatures.[14] He had three different malemanagers during his career to cutpromos on his behalf. His first manager wasAbdullah Farouk but when Farouk moved full-time to theWorld Wide Wrestling Federation,Eddy Creatchman became his manager.[15] When Creatchman was unable to work with him later in his career, The Sheik was managed by Supermouth Dave Drason, his final manager.[12]
In 1965, The Sheik made his return to the New York City area, competing for theWorld Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF). On September 25, 1967, he wrestled formerworld championÉdouard Carpentier to a 20-minute draw. In 1968, he was back brought into the WWWF for title matches with then-WWWF World Heavyweight championBruno Sammartino.[12] They met three times in Madison Square Garden – Sheik won the first match via count out on October 28, he lost via disqualification in the second match on November 18, and he lost to Sammartino in a Texas Death Match via submission on December 9, when Bruno grabbed a pen and attacked Sheik's arm until it was bloody. Sammartino and Sheik also had a series of matches inBoston in January and February 1969, including one on a sold-out event the day after a major snow storm; public transportation had yet to be restored in the Boston area but the event still sold-out. The two would later fight in three steel cage matches, one inPhiladelphia and two in Boston.[12] On November 18, 1972, The Sheik competed in his final match for the WWWF, losing to WWWF ChampionPedro Morales by count out atBoston Garden.
The Sheik's biggest feud was his nearly career-long conflict withBobo Brazil, beginning in The Sheik's ownBig Time Wrestlingpromotion in Detroit before expanding throughout the country.[1] The two feuded over Sheik's version of theUnited States Championship, frequently selling outCobo Hall.[1] The feud was briefly covered in the wrestling mockumentary movie,I Like to Hurt People.[7] Following their success at Cobo Hall, the two took the feud to several markets, most notablyMemphis, Tennessee, and Los Angeles, California.[3] His other major opponent in Los Angeles wasFred Blassie.[15] Sheik and Blassie faced off several times, including cage matches in theGrand Olympic Auditorium.[12] In 1967, The Sheik was wrestling a match inTexas when a fan pulled a gun and tried to shoot him three times. Fortunately, the gun didn't go off and the fan was arrested; the gun later fired when police tested it at a shooting range.[3]
Starting in 1967, The Sheik began wrestling regularly inToronto, Ontario, Canada, where he was undefeated for 127 matches atMaple Leaf Gardens. He defeated the likes ofWhipper Billy Watson,Lou Thesz,Gene Kiniski,Bruno Sammartino,Édouard Carpentier,Ernie Ladd,Chief Jay Strongbow,Tiger Jeet Singh,Johnny Valentine, and evenAndré the Giant during Andre's first extensive tour of North America in 1974.[7] It was Andre who put an end to The Sheik's Toronto winning streak in August 1974 by disqualification. In 1976, he lost by pinfall toThunderbolt Patterson and Bobo Brazil. Sheik continued to headline most shows in Toronto until 1977, but business dropped off significantly over the last three years of his tenure as headliner. In addition to wrestling in Toronto, The Sheik was the area'sbooker; due to the wrestling tradition ofkayfabe, few fans were aware of the fact that he was actually the booker ofFrank Tunney's Toronto promotion – a position he acquired following the retirement of Whipper Billy Watson in 1971. As business in Toronto failed, he began working forindependent promoterDave McKigney elsewhere in Ontario.[16]
In 1972, The Sheik ventured to Japan for the first time, competing for theJapan Pro Wrestling Alliance (JWA). His JWA run was successful, but the promotion was struggling financially, so when the company went bankrupt, Sheik jumped toGiant Baba'sAll Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW). He then jumped a year later toAntonio Inoki'sNew Japan Pro-Wrestling, but had a falling out with Inoki due to having to leave a Japanese tour early to deal with a "coup attempt" in his Big Time Wrestling promotion. He returned to AJPW in 1977, teaming, and then feuding, withAbdullah the Butcher.[15][7] His match with Abdullah the Butcher againstDory Funk Jr. andTerry Funk where Terry fought off Abdullah and The Sheik with his arm in a sling is credited for turning the foreign Funks intofaces in Japan.[3] In Japan, he would also team with Baba,Ricky Steamboat, andKintarō Ōki.[15]
The Sheik's Japanese feud with Abdullah would later extend to the United States. A match between the two inBirmingham, Alabama, saw them brawl outside of theBoutwell Auditorium, where they held up traffic until the police broke it up.[11] The match was described by observers as "just classic, bloody mayhem."[11]
In 1980, The Sheik's Detroit-based Big Time Wrestling promotion ceased operations. Sheik then wrestled for variousindependent promotions throughout the United States and overseas.
From 1991 to 1995, he mainly wrestled in Japan, alongside his nephewSabu, forFrontier Martial-Arts Wrestling (FMW).[7] FMW used thehardcore wrestling style that The Sheik had innovated and in FMW, he participated in various dangerousdeath matches.[7] On May 6, 1992, The Sheik wrestled in a Fire Death Match with Sabu againstAtsushi Onita andTarzan Goto, where the ring ropes were replaced with flamingbarbed wire. During the match, Sheik suffered third-degree burns and went into a coma, nearly dying.[3] In 1994, he had a brief run inEastern Championship Wrestling (ECW), where Sabu had a career, notably teaming withPat Tanaka to defeatKevin Sullivan andThe Tazmaniac atThe Night the Line Was Crossed.[17] On May 5, 1995, at theFMW 6th Anniversary Show, The Sheik defeatedDamián 666 in front of 58,250 fans; this ended up being his last match. Following the match, he suffered his first heart attack while attempting to board a taxi.
When Sabu joinedWorld Championship Wrestling (WCW) in 1995, The Sheik accompanied him as his manager.[10] During Sabu's match withMr. JL atHalloween Havoc, The Sheik's leg was broken by the wrestlers during a spot he was previously unaware of, forcing him to finally leave the wrestling business. On December 11, 1998, the night before theECW/FMW Supershow, Atsushi Onita held a retirement ceremony for The Sheik inKorakuen Hall, during which The Sheik, in his final public appearance, officially retired from professional wrestling at age 72.[3]
Farhat was married to a woman named Joyce, who for many years served as his valet Princess Sheela and who even accompanied him to autograph signings in this role as late as 1993.[14] The couple had two sons, Ed Jr. and Tom.[14][18] His oldest son Ed wrestled for years as "Captain Ed George." However, he never hinted in his wrestling gimmick that he was related to The Sheik, and the fact that he was Farhat's real-life son was largely not known to wrestling fans during his career.[19][18] He would personally train his nephew Terry "Sabu" Brunk, a son of one of Farhat's sisters who theLansing State Journal noted in 2019 mostly "took on his uncle's identity" and carried Farhat's "legacy."[20][21][2]
Farhat died of heart failure on January 18, 2003, at a hospital near hisWilliamston, Michigan, home.[15] He was 76 years old (not 78, as erroneously reported[16]) and was in the midst of writing his autobiography.[10] He is buried at the Mount Calvary Catholic Cemetery in Williamston.[3]
During the course of his in-ring career, The Sheik was seen as one of professional wrestling's biggest box office attractions.[3][7][10] He later became regarded as a pioneer ofhardcore wrestling, a style which became a major part of mainstream American professional wrestling in the 1990s.[3][7][10] On March 31, 2007, The Sheik was posthumously inducted into theWWE Hall of Fame by his nephew, Sabu, andRob Van Dam, who he had trained.[22] He is also credited with trainingScott Steiner[12] and independent wrestler "Machine Gun" Mike Kelly, among other students.[7] Most notably, he andFreddie Blassie trained boxerMuhammad Ali before Ali's famous 1976 "boxer vs wrestler match" withAntonio Inoki in Tokyo.[23]
As apromoter, Farhat developed a reputation for short-changing wrestlers and employees on pay. However, he would additionally become known as a benefactor to friends in need; according toHarley Race, after his wife died in an automobile accident and he was forced to take time off early in his career, The Sheik mailed him a check every week for a year until he could return to work.[3]
His wife, and former valet, Joyce, died on November 27, 2013, in Michigan, after being ill for some time.[18] She is buried with her husband at Mount Calvary Catholic Cemetery in Williamston, Michigan.[3] He was also the uncle of Michael Farhat, who wrestled as "Mike Thomas" in Detroit. Thomas died in 1978 at age 27.[18] The Sheik's son Tom died on October 2, 2020, from kidney cancer at 57,[18] and his eldest son Ed Farhat Jr. — who wrestled under thering name "Captain Ed George" — died from complications of COVID-19 on March 22, 2021, at the age of 70.[19] His nephew Terry "Sabu" Brunk, who would more notably hone Faharat's wrestling craft and whose wrestling gimmick bore greater resemblance to that of Farhat's Sheik gimmick with things such as turban attire and having a refusal to speak on-camera,[24][20][21] would also die in May 2025,[25][21] two days before an episode ofDark Side of the Ring focusing on the Sheik aired in the United States.
In his later years, Farhat provided extensive interviews to a biographer with the intent of publishing a book on his life. These interviews provided a detailed non-kayfabe look into his career and character, which he previously took great effort in concealing from the public. Farhat had previously had a reputation for "living his gimmick"; he didn't answer promoter phone calls for "Ed", not even for potential bookings, telling the promoters "no Ed lives here".[15] After his death, the interviews and draft of the book were sealed. A book about Farhat's life and career, titledBlood and Fire, was later released in April 2022 byECW Press.Blood and Fire won the 2022Wrestling Observer NewsletterBest Pro Wrestling Book award.
Although he is indeed of Middle Eastern descent, Ed Farhat was born and bred in the good old United States—just about ninety miles west of where they are standing now, in fact. The son of Lebanese immigrants, he was raised not as a Muslim, but as a Catholic, and the only language he speaks fluently is English.
Of course, Farhat was not Muslim but Catholic—however, in the fictionalized world of professional wrestling, that mattered little. It was the stereotype, the cultural archetype, that mattered.
,CagematchLinks to related articles | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
