Sallah Mohammed Faisel el-Kahir (better known as Sallah) is a character played by John Rhys-Davies in three of the five Indiana Jones films: Raiders of the Lost Ark, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, and Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.
Background[]
Sallah is a hefty, bearded Egyptian excavator. He lives in Cairo and is a close friend of Indiana Jones. He is a dedicated family man with a wife named Fayah and nine children, all of whom seem to have a fondness for Indy (at one point, they all surround him to save him from a group of Nazis who have their guns drawn on him).
Sallah is depicted as being jovial, good-natured and occasionally cowardly (when seeing the numerous asps inside the room that houses the Ark of the Covenant, he suggests to Indy, "You go first."), although Sallah does not share Indy's fear of snakes.
He seems to be extremely strong, although he is apparently unaware of his enormous strength (at one point, he gives Indy a bear hug, causing him a great deal of discomfort, probably because Indy had just been shot in the arm). He has a strong baritone voice and seems to have an affinity for Gilbert and Sullivan. He is often seen singing tunes from H.M.S. Pinafore when he is in a good mood. In Raiders of the Lost Ark, he is mostly seen wearing a turban (perhaps to blend in with the other diggers working for the Nazis) and in The Last Crusade and Dial of Destiny, he is seen wearing a fez.
Disney Parks[]
The Great Movie Ride[]
Sallah appeared as an animatronic in this attraction alongside Indy where they removed the Ark of the Covenant.
Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Crystal Skull[]
Sallah is mentioned on a board left by Indy while excavating the Temple of the Crystal Skull. The note says, ""Have Sallah check w/Zecharia in Bagdad: figure in winged disk Persian- Adhura Mazda Summarian- Marduk Assyrian- Ashur"".
Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Forbidden Eye[]
Sallah is prominent in the backstory of this attraction and hosts the pre-show video in the queue for the attraction. John Rhys-Davies is notably the only actor from the films to reprise his role for the attraction.
Jock Lindsey's Hangar Bar[]
Sallah's keys are in the lost & found and there is a menu item called, "Sallah's Falafel".
Trader Sam's Enchanted Tiki Bar[]
There is a letter from Sallah in this bar sent to Trader Sam, a character from the Jungle Cruise. A gifted map from Sallah of the Temple of the Forbidden Eye is framed in the bar along with luggage-tags of, "Sallah Temple Tours", a business also mentioned on a letter from Indiana to Sam. During the holiday season, a stocking for Sallah is hung up in the bar.
Trivia[]
- In Tokyo DisneySea's Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Crystal Skull, Sallah is replaced with an original character named Paco.
- Coincidentally, both of the films that Sallah is absent from are the ones in which the villains are not the Nazis.
Gallery[]
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External links[]
