Kalla Pasha (born as Joseph T. Rickard; March 5, 1879 – June 10, 1933) was an American professional wrestler, vaudeville comedian, and film actor active during the silent era.
Biography
Kalla Pasha was the stage name of Joseph T. Rickard, a native of Detroit.[1] He was the professional wrestler Hamid Kalla Pasha, whom the press called "The Crazy Turk"[2] before performing on vaudeville and appearing in 74 films between 1919 and 1931. Rickard's success with Mack Sennett enabled him to be a free-spender, claiming later he would often go about town with a 150 thousand dollars strapped around his waist.[3]
The money did not last though, and not long afterward he was arrested for striking a man over the head with a milk bottle during a dust-up involving five cents. As a result, Rickard was sent to Mendocino State Hospital for psychiatric care, where he would die a little over a year later from heart disease.[4][3][5][6]
Caricature of Pasha (far right) in promotion of Married Life (1920)
