Ernie Roth

From Freepedia

Ernie Roth (born June 7, 1929 in Florida, died October 12, 1983), best known as The Grand Wizard of Wrestling, also well known as Abdullah Farouk, was a professional wrestling manager of many infamous heels. Not a wrestler himself (he was short and weighed under 150 pounds (68 kg)), he was noted for his flamboyant outfit of sequined jackets, wraparound sunglasses, and a brightly-colored turban decorated with jewels and feathers.

Career

Getting his start in the entertainment business as a disc jockey, Ernie Roth became involved in the professional wrestling business as a manager in the 1960s, in territories around the Detroit area. Ernie first worked under the names "Mr. Clean" and "J. Wellington Radcliffe", but more famously, he also portrayed "Abdullah Farouk", a "Middle Eastern" who was sent by the late Original Sheik (Ed Farhat)'s wealthy "family" to handle their son's affairs in the U.S. Sporting a turban, Farouk took great pains in trying to control his madman protege. But he also carved a niche for himself as a deceitful, underhanded character who insulted U.S. fans every chance he got. Long before the days of Rowdy Roddy Piper and Triple H, Farouk was the original "Man You Love To Hate." In the 1960s, a manager physically interfering in a contest--by passing his protege a foreign object or by interrupting a referee's pinfall count--was very unusual. Farouk was a pioneer of "manager interference", as he physically would attempt to alter a match's outcome in the Shiek's favor whenever he could. In one instance, his interference once caused the fans to engage in a full-scale riot! By the early 1970s, after establishing himself as one of the most hated managers in the wrestling business, Ernie Roth parted with "Abdullah Farouk" and with The Sheik, and headed up to the East Coast and the World Wide Wrestling Federation (today WWE), where he became The Grand Wizard of Wrestling.

It's a rarity even today for a WWE Superstar to make an immediate impact upon their arrival. In some rare cases (Hulk Hogan's second run in 1984, Kurt Angle) it can happen, but only a select, talented few can pull it off. The Grand Wizard of Wrestling, playing the "heel manager" role to the absolute hilt, did exactly that. Almost immediately after arriving in the WWWF, the Wizard managed the late Stan Stasiak to the WWWF Championship on December 1, 1973, when Stasiak defeated champion Pedro Morales in Philadelphia. Although Stasiak lost the title just nine days later to the "Living Legend" Bruno Sammartino--kicking off Bruno's second title reign--the Wizard's reputation was far from tarnished. In fact, the Wizard guided a second protege, the flamboyant and massively muscled Superstar Billy Graham, to the very same Championship on April 30, 1977, when Graham took the WWWF Title from Sammartino in Baltimore. Graham was truly a champion ahead of his time--his boastful arrogance and remarkable showmanship was a virtual prototype for later Superstars like rookie year Hulk Hogan, Jesse Ventura and "HBK" Shawn Michaels--and with the outrageous and articulate Wizard by his side, the two were one of the most dynamic combinations of power, intelligence and showmanship in the company, then or now. And WWWF fans took notice of it! In an era where fans often looked to heroes like Sammartino and Morales to cheer for--the fact that the tandem of Graham and the Wizard were able to get cheers from the fans--because they WANTED to, not because of any "good guy push" from the WWWF (see Stone Cold Steve Austin for reference)--was a remarkable achievement.

On February 20, 1978, former ameteur wrestling standout Bob Backlund made an enemy for life in the Grand Wizard, when he defeated Superstar Billy Graham for the WWWF Championship in the hallowed halls of New York's Madison Square Garden. For years to follow, the Wizard sought revenge against the native of Princeton, MN, sending challenger after challenger--including Don Muraco, Ken Patera and Greg Valentine--after Backlund in a quest to get a third World Wrestling Federation Champion under his tutelage. Although he tried every dastardly trick he could, the Wizard never again managed the Champion. But this didn't stop the Wizard from excelling in managing his men to championship gold, or at least helped them leave an everlasting mark on WWE lore. The Wizard managed the very first Intercontinental Champion Pat Patterson, and later Patera (who defeated Patterson for the title in April 1980 after the Wizard and Patterson parted ways) and Muraco to the same championship. At various stages in his career, the Wizard also managed some of the biggest, toughest hombres to ever set foot in a wrestling ring, incuding Killer Kowalski, "Crazy" Luke Graham, Sgt. Slaughter, "Big Cat" Ernie Ladd, Ox Baker, and Cowboy Bob Orton (father of current WWE SmackDown! superstar Randy Orton). The Wizard was also known as one third of WWE's Evil Trinity of managers, the other two-thirds being Capt. Lou Albano and Fred Blassie. They were a loose unit that made life a living hell for fan favorites in the WWWF during the '70s. Individually, their managerial accomplishments spoke for themselves. But together, the combines acumen of the Wizard, Albano and Blassie made them a nearly unbeatable force. An interesting fact of note: a famous 1980 photo taken backstage at Madison Square Garden shows the Wizard, Albano and Blassie posing with a young Paul Heyman, who would go on to become a successful manager himself, as well as the force behind Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW). Apparently Heyman learned well from the old masters. In the span of a mere four months, he managed three WWE Champions (Brock Lesnar, Big Show, and Angle), and possesses one of the most devious genius minds in the industry.

Sadly, as the Wizard continued his business managing in the World Wrestling Federation, it all came to a shocking end on October 12, 1983. On that day, Ernie Roth, who made the names "Abdullah Farouk" and "The Grand Wizard of Wrestling" famous amongst wrestling fans all over the world, died of a heart attack at the age of 54. The World Wrestling Federation, and the rest of the wrestling world, was understandably stunned by this sudden tragedy. The Federation honored The Grand Wizard on several broadcasts after the announcement of his passing. It was a sad time for fans, wrestlers, and promoters alike, as Ernie Roth had made many cherished friends and had entertained millions of fans during his quarter-century in the industry. In 1995, the Federation honored Ernie's life and career by inducting him into their World Wrestling Federation Hall of Fame, forever preserving his many accomplishments in the wrestling business.

Accomplishments/Awards

• Member of WWE Hall of Fame (inducted in 1995)
• Roth won the Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) Manager of the Year Award in 1973 & 1977. He also was awarded the 1983 PWI Editor's Award after his death.

Famous Grand Wizard quotes

• (after Superstar Graham beat Bruno Sammartino to become WWWF Champion): "The flags at Mama Leone's are flying at half-staff today!"

• "I should not only be Manager of the Year, but I should also be the Manager of the Generation!"

• (after losing the 1977 Manager of the Year honors): "That's the greatest robbery since the Brinks job! You'll hear from my attorneys on this!"

• (when asked by Vince McMahon why he and protege Luke Graham hear boos whenever they appear in an arena): "I think it's the BOOZE in the fans that make them BOO us!"

• (in an interview conducted by former protege Pat Patterson): "Oh, I didn't recgonize you, Patterson! Usually you're laid out (on your back), while the referee counts one, two, three!"

• "It's hard to be humble when you're great!"

• "The fans of the Long Island area will be treated to a visual feast, when they witness the man with a million and one muscles: Superstar Billy Graham!"