"
The Sheik of Araby" is a song that was written in 1921 by
Harry B. Smith and Francis Wheeler, with music by
Ted Snyder. It was composed in response to the popularity of the
Rudolph Valentino feature film
The Sheik. In 1926, to go with the film
The Son of the Sheik, Ted Snyder worked parts of the melody into "That Night in Araby", a related song with words by
Billy Rose.