Hossein Vaziri, an Iranian-born grappler who played the America-hating Iron Sheik in televised wrestling matches of the 1970s and 1980s, emerging as one of the most popular villains in the show-business sport, died June 7 at his home in Fayetteville, Ga.
He was 80, according to biographer Keith Elliot Greenberg. Page Magen, a close family friend, confirmed his death. The cause was not immediately available.
“Russia number one! Iran number one!” the Sheik would scream after Volkoff sang the Soviet national anthem as the crowd booed and threw garbage. The Sheik would spit at the mention of “USA.” “The Iron Sheik graciously passed the torch to me,” Hogan said in “The Sheik.” “Because once the Iron Sheik put me over, the Hulkamania thing was unstoppable.”
Hossein Khosrow Vaziri, whose father was a pistachio farmer and part-time wrestler, was born near Tehran on Sept. 9, 1942.He became obsessed with wrestling after watching the success of Iranian-born Olympic gold medalist Gholamreza Takhti. After army service, Mr. Vaziri became a technician for state television and served as a bodyguard for Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.
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