The WWE runs on antagonists, because without the bad guys, why would they need the good guys? The Iron Sheik, aka Hossein Khosrow Ali Vazirim, was one of the best — wrestling for the then-WWF in the 1970s and ’80s (then in his post-heyday until retirement in 2010). He’s Iranian, and therefore was the perfect foil for heroes such as Sgt. Slaughter and Hulk Hogan.
Sheik’s shtick was ultra-effective — literally wrapping himself in the Iranian flag and giving the finger to America and all it stood for. He rose to fame at the height of the Iranian hostage crisis in 1979-80, and parlayed his heel status into a 30-year pro wrestling career.