January 27, 2003 Observer Newsletter: Death of the Sheik, Royal Rumble review

Since the dawn of time, there have been tens of thousands of men who can call themselves professional wrestlers. Of them, not one was more hated. And because of the changing nature of the business, probably no one ever will be.

There have been Sheiks too numerous to count in wrestling, but when you say The Sheik, everyone knows who you are talking about–Ed Farhat. The Sheik was one of both the most famous and infamous characters in the history of the business. If you base being a heel on getting intense, riot causing heat and the ability to draw huge crowds regularly and consistently in the same venue, he was the best there ever was.

Farhat had been in rough shape regularly for the past seven plus years, and had worsened the past two years, several times being on death’s door. His major health problems started after suffering a heart attack after a match in Japan in May of 1995.

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