Trivia

The Sheik's pioneering sadism clearly established his credentials.

Though hated by the fans, Mr. Farhat was apparently admired by his fellow wrestlers for his business sense and for the way he engaged a growing audience by enraging it. He became the head of the Big Time Wrestling syndicate, running its television program from Detroit from 1964 to 1980, the year he stopped fighting.

When he passed away in January 2003, his son revealed that the grandchildren used to call him "Grandpa Sheik."

His first known act of chicanery occurred before he became a professional wrestler. He lied about his age in order to serve in World War II.

He became the originator and master of the "blackout." During television appearences, The Sheik would do something so vicious or violent that they would cut to a station break or black-out the image. This, of course, would have the desired effect of having fans flock to the local arena to see what couldn't be shown on televison.

Notable Title wins include: NWA (Detroit) United States Heavyweight title (12); NWA (Toronto) United States Heavyweight title (3); United National Heavyweight (Japan) title; All Star Wrestling (Montreal) title (2)

Sometimes referred to as the Original Sheik to avoid confusing him with the Iron Sheik (Khosrow Vaziri).

Despite his success, he lost money on some bad investments and had to keep wrestling when he was long past his prime.

While appearing in Japan, he reportedly had his first heart attack, not in the ring, but when climbing into a taxi.

He frequently engaged in the practice of "scoring." Before an important match, he would make light cuts in his forehead and stop the bleeding so that it would look normal as he went to the ring. During the match, his opponent would strike his forehead, or slam his head into the turn buckle. This would cause real blood to come flowing down his face.

His years of "scoring" left his forehead a mass of scar tissue. Late in career, his forehead looked as if it had been attacked with a garden rake.

One of the later additions to his arsenal of villainy was his ability to summon supernatural forces that enabled him to throw fireballs (with a little help from magician's flash paper) at his opponent.

He is survived by his wife, Joyce, his sons, Ed George and Thomas, and four grandchildren.

Uncle of Terry Brunk, also known as Sabu.

One of the most notorious heels (villians) in Professional Wrestling history.

Best known for his vicious, ruthless and brutal wrestling style.

He pioneered hardcore style wrestling.

"The Sheik" could not speak or understand English. He would rant and rave in Arabic. In reality, Mr. Farhat could not speak a word of Arabic.

Inducted into the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2011.

WWE Hall of Famer.

Inducted into the Greater Lansing {Michigan} Area Sports Hall of Fame in 2013.

He was of Lebanese heritage. His family name was anglicized and pronounced just like "far hat.".

Led his own stable in FMW called the Sheik Army, which included Sabu, the Gladiator (Mike Awesome [Mike Alfonso]), Damian 666 (Leonardo Carrera), Tiger Jeet Singh and Tiger Jeet Singh Jr. (WWE's Tiger Ali Singh [Gurjit Singh Hans]).

His original wrestling moniker was "The Sheik of Araby", which was also the title of a very successful song. The ring commentators and announcers would refer to him as simply "The Sheik", resulting in that becoming his official billing.