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Hossein Khosrow Vaziri, the Iran-born wrestler known as the Iron Sheik, who channeled America’s hatred of his homeland to build a career as one of the most despised ring villains of his era, died Wednesday. He was 81.

“Today, we gather with heavy hearts to bid farewell to a true legend, a force of nature and an iconic figure who left an incredible mark on the world of professional wrestling,” read a statement posted to the Iron Sheik’s Twitter account announcing his death. The WWE also paid tribute on Twitter; a cause of death was not disclosed.

A former bodyguard for the Shah of Iran, Vaziri came to the U.S. in the late 1960s. For his wrestling persona, he shaved his head, grew a mustache, sported a ghutra headdress and curled-toe boots, and swung a pair of 75-pound Persian meels above his head as a demonstration of his strength.

[[tmz:video id="0_x7qmy9yg"]] He's battled Hulk Hogan and the Ultimate Warrior ... but the Iron Sheik's next opponent could be Jimmy Fallon -- 'cause Jay Leno says the WWE legend could totally make it as a late night host!  He may have a point ... The Sheik is super entertaining, very Very opinionated ... and topical when ranting on Twitter. For example:  Sheik On Matt Barnes:"Matt Barnes Suplex The Derrick Fisher Back" Sheik On the Philadelphia Eagles: "Chip Kelly...

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Depending on the age of the wrestling fan The Iron Sheik is either known primarily as the man who took the loss that began Hulkamania or as the funny old lunatic who delivers routine vulgarities in 140 characters or less. Born in Iran as Hossein Khosrow Ali Vaziri this WWE Hall of Famer has reinvented himself to the current generation in the unlikeliest of ways: Twitter.

Before The Sheik was a social media sensation he was carving out his legacy in the squared circle. He was one of WWE’s top stars during the boom of the 1980s and even held the top title for one month. The Sheik’s anti-American gimmick and his real-life toughness made him more than memorable.

As much as he could connect in a heelish way with an audience the real Sheik might just be more outlandish than the character who stepped into the ring.

Available now on VOD is director Igal Hecht's documentary The Sheik. Funny at times and jarringly raw at others, the film offers a look at the life of Khosrow Vaziri, better known by his fans as The Iron Sheik. In only 95 minutes the film does an admirable job of spanning Vaziri's life before, during, and after his legendary professional wrestling career. This approach leaves you invested in Vaziri as a person rather than just as a wrestling/social meda icon, making the highs feel sweeter and the lows all the more tragic as a result. There's much to like about The Sheik but, as a kid who grew up watching wrestling, the most interesting parts of the film for me were those dedicated to Vaziri's time in the WWF (now WWE). Seeing the way that the Iran hostage crisis helped fuel The Iron Sheik's ascent in pro wrestling...

Perhaps the name Khosrow Vaziri isn't immediately familiar to you, but if you're a person of a certain age, than you remember growing up with The Iron Sheik. One the most fearsome villains in the heyday of the WWF, the wrestler has gained a new life outside the ring thanks to his unique, outrageous social media presence. And the forthcoming documentary "The Sheik" dives right into his digital world. Directed by Igal Hecht, and featuring Hulk Hogan, Dwayne Johnson, Mick Foley, Seth Green, Jack Black, Jake “The Snake” Roberts, Bret Hart, King Kong Bundy, Koko B Ware, Brother Love, Ron Jeremy, Hacksaw Jim Duggan, and more, the doc goes all the way back to tell the story of Vazirir's journey to America, and what's it like to be a 72-year-old father, husband, and grandfather, who also happens to be a sensation online. And in this exclusive clip, you can get...

It’s very easy to look at a personality like the Iron Sheik and make some flash judgments about him. Like many wrestlers from the seventies and eighties, he wasn’t just a character to the audience. The Iron Sheik was everything he claimed to be. Going head to head with Hulk Hogan, the Iron Sheik helped […]

The post ‘The Sheik’ Documentary Takes Fans Behind the Curtain of Wrestling’s Greatest Villain appeared first on The Flickcast.

The best villains are always the ones that you kind of root for no matter how dastardly they are, as they’re just too charismatic and/or funny to be ignored. The Iron Sheik is one such character. A perfect mixture of timing and personality made one man a household name, just not as Khosrow Vaziri.

The life of The Sheik is an interesting one, with many highs and painful lows, but naturally, he’s still more the sum of a simple character (or is that caricature) that he played in the wrestling ring. But does The Sheik sell us on that idea, and does it give us a reason to care beyond the mere celebrity of the man?

Fans of the golden age of the World Wrestling Federation, now World Wrestling Entertainment, will surely be drawn to this film, and understandably so. A number of big name wrestlers including Hulk Hogan,...

There are so many great docs on the various institutions, characters, fans and businessmen that make up professional wrestling. Stories about Hulk Hogan, the Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling, Bret Hart, and even the feature film "The Wrestler" have not only stocked festivals like Tiff and Hot Docs, they have also been very successful in theatres and on television. "The Sheik" is yet another tale from this so-called sport, but this time it features one of the most disliked heels to ever enter the ring. Lucky for us, the story of Khosrow Vaziri and his roller-coaster of a life is just as compelling as fake wrestling.

The Iron Sheik is one of the most memorable and iconic characters to ever come out of Vince McMahon's WWF/E machine. In a time when caricature (or maybe even racism) was something a little more up-front in the culture, the Sheik and his...

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The wrestling world was enormously shocked this week with news of the sudden death of Jim “Ultimate Warrior” Hellwig.

It’s amazing to consider that his career in the WWF could have taken such a different path had he gone to Japan as a headliner. Eerily, his speech at the 2014 Hall of Fame and subsequent Monday Night Raw contain numerous dark premonitions about his life. His impressive win record over top opponents is unlikely to be matched again. Most surprisingly, his lawsuits have uncovered a secret 1997 WWF deal that almost brought Warrior into the Attitude-era mix.

Here are the four incredible secrets and facts about The Ultimate Warrior’s career.

4. Ultimate Warrior’s Nearly Had A Completely Different Career In Japan

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The Ultimate Warrior only had two matches in Japan. However, he nearly had an entire career.

In 1987, New Japan Pro Wrestling wanted to create a fresh foreign star.