Episode 21 – Yusuf Ismail
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In this episode, I discuss the short but impactful career of the original Terrible Turk, Yusuf Ismail.
Update
Endeavor recently bought World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and merged it into a company with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Merging a worked exhibition with legitimate contests may not be the great idea Endeavor envisioned.
Yusuf Ismail, the Terrible Turk from the Public Domain
Main Content
The “Terrible Turk”, Yusuf Ismail, arrived in the United States during March 1898. Ismail wrestled Ernst Roeber (twice), Tom Jenkins, Herklides and Evan “Strangler” Lewis.
Ismail booked passage back to the Ottoman Empire on the SS La Bourgogne. The ship struck another ship and sank off the coast of the United States and Canada. The SS La Bourgogne is famous for only 13 percent of passengers surviving while 48 percent of the crew survived.
Next Episode
In the next episode, I will discuss the first wrestling matches to include Sumo wrestling in the United States during the 1880s.
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