By Melissa Antoinette Garza
Khosrow Vaziri, better known as The Iron Sheik, is synonymous with the heyday of pro-wrestling. He has always been one of my favorite wrestlers. I remember in the mid 90s when he was managing The Sultan, I held a sign that said “Bring back Nikolai Volkoff,” and the Sheik gave me a thumbs up at seeing the sign.
Volkoff and The Sheik were heels and tag team champs back in the day. I remember being really young and standing in the living room as Volkoff sang the Russian National Anthem. I always loved the bad guys. Piper, Orton, Heenan, Classy Freddie Blassie, and of course Volkoff and The Sheik. I would get so irritated when Volkoff was interrupted and the Hulkamaniacs ran wild. I despised the Hulkamaniacs and all the wrestling fans that rooted for the good guys.
There was a time when wrestling was so entertaining. It was brains vs. brawn. So when Piper, Orton and Jesse Ventura tricked Hillbilly Jim and Uncle Elmer I would laugh hysterically.
Now, I never watch wrestling. Stephanie McMahon and HHH have ruined it. They replaced individuals who loved and respected the sport, were great at improv, and awesome behind the mic with idiots that have catchphrases to print on t-shirts and who would really rather be actors. Not to mention, HHH who slept his way to the top refuses to realize he sucks and took far more away from pro-wrestling than he ever gave. He has zero timing, no charisma, and is just an all-out douchebag. Not that Stephanie is any better or has any more integrity. She should at least stand up for the empire her family built rather than letting her hubby grandstand and ruin the company because of his inflated and undeserved ego.
That said, every once in awhile I’m able to recall the days where every Saturday morning and Monday night were reserved for RAW, Nitro, Primetime Wrestling, and WWF mania. Then, there was the occasional Saturday Night’s Main Event which despite my age, I’d always stay up for.
Though, I’ve seen it many times since, I don’t recall the first time The Sheik beating Bob Backlund for the title. I was four at the
time. I do remember shortly thereafter my mother trying to explain he was a bad guy, but that didn’t phase me. I thought he was awesome, and I still do.
This documentary which chronicles his early life in Iran and his move to the states is extremely well-done and doesn’t pull any punches. It shows his glory days when he won a gold medal in the Amateur Athletic Union Greco Roman, when he trained and of course when he came to the states and entered the WWF.
It also shows how much he stood up for what was right in the face of bribes. Without spoiling much, he was offered to backstab an organization for a large sum of money and refused.
It isn’t all good however as it also discusses the albeit temporary fall from grace of the Sheik. Everyone goes through hard times and he isn’t immune. The first mentioned event, I recalled from my youth. It was when Hacksaw Jim Duggan and The Sheik were cited for drugs. The biggest issue however was that the two men were seen together as Duggan was a babyface at the time and Sheik of course the bad guy. Rather than standby the men as Sheik had stood by the federation in the past, Vince McMahon at the time swore that neither Duggan nor Sheik would wrestle in the WWF again. Rather than being a scumbag about the incident, McMahon could have given them a warning and have Duggan turn heel for a bit to try and explain the incident away in a manner that didn’t leave the organization under scrutiny as to whether the sport was choreographed or not, but Vince, as always, watched out for himself.
The hardest part of the documentary to watch is when Sheik’s daughter Marissa is discussed. Sadly, she passed away in 2003. She was way too young and died under circumstances that would make any parent go over the edge. My sympathies are with the entire family.
The Sheik who had some alcohol and drug issues in the past returned full force and by 2006 he was justifying self-medicating with the most toxic and dangerous drugs. Had it not been for his friend, agent and of course his family, he may have been a casualty who died too soon. The Sheik who throughout his career suffered tremendous injuries was still wrestling in independent circles. Thankfully, Page and Jian Magen, two young Iranian twins, who idolized The Sheik growing up became involved and found methods for The Sheik to maintain a living without getting in the ring. The Sheik’s wife and children also made the difficult choice to cut off contact with him until he stopped the drug use which he did.
Now as most everyone knows, The Sheik is a phenomena. Everyone talks about him and his Twitter and appearances are more popular than pro-wrestling is today. If HHH and Stephanie were smart, they would pay the Sheik to live-tweet during RAW and air it during the matches. That would actually get me watching. His cut-throat honesty and manner of getting his point across is hilarious and knowing he wouldn’t pull any punches if a match absolutely sucked would be a refreshing change from the horrible announcers who are more-so cheerleaders than anything else. I would bet money that Michael Cole gave either HHH or Vince the best head in the world to get the job he has because the man has a face for radio and Elmer Fudd would make a better commentator.
That said, The Sheik is definitely a documentary worth watching. It’s great to see real wrestlers like Mick Foley, Ron Simmons, Jake the Snake and Cowboy Bob Orton, even if for only a short time. Speaking of Ron Simmons, why the hell doesn’t he have Cole’s job? Simmons has to be one of the most screwed over wrestlers of all time. WCW seemed to respect him more, but this man has everything. He’s an excellent wrestler, has the IT factor, is funny, tough, and witty, but as usual the WWF discards talent for old fashioned kiss-assery. I wouldn’t be surprised if a race factor played out here either. All one has to do is look at greats like Booker T, Tony Atlas, Virgil (who could have been so much more) and even Bad News Brown (who was totally screwed over by Vince who allegedly promised to make him the first African American champion) to think something is beneath the surface. I was never a fan of Brown (Allen Coage) who held a grudge against Rowdy Piper without reason, but nonetheless he was screwed over. Outside of Simmons who though was the first African American in WCW to win the World title never went further than a tag team champ in WWF, Ahmed Johnson is the next best example. Though given a slightly better run than some others by winning the Intercontinental Championship against Golddust at King of the Ring, it’s pretty sad Still, that it wasn’t until 1996 than an African American wrestler won a championship – and it wasn’t even the World Title.
It goes without saying that wrestling is a dirty business and many greats get hurt in an abundance of ways. Injuries, lack of support from the federation, drug use and sadly so many early fatalities. That said, The Iron Sheik is a survivor of so many tragedies and has accomplished so much. He is a champion and a fighter. He has reinvented himself and I hope his success continues and grows.
Scared Stiff Rating: 9/10
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