The 80s had some memorable characters. One of the most memorable was Mr. T. Regardles if he was part of the A-Team, insulting Adrian Balboa, or whooping on Rocky Balboa he made an impression. It seems that Mr. T not only played a tough guy, he was one. He’s had a lot going on in his life. So, here are some things you didn’t know about Mr. T.
1: Mr. T was a talented football player.
He received a football scholarship to Prairie View A&M. He also had a tryout with the Green Bay Packers. Unfortunately for him, when it came to the NFL, he wasn’t ready for the A-Team.
2: He named himself Mr. T because Mr. Coffee was already taken.
Wait, being told that’s not right. Actually, Mr. T changed his name to Mr. T because he thought it showed respect for him when people called him that.
3: Mr. T was noted for wearing gold chains.
How well known was he for those chains? NFL color commentators would allude to it whenever a team would pick up a force down. Picking up a first down was known as “moving the chains,” or “going Mr. T. “ Wait, being told that was a total crock. But it would have been cool, wouldn’t it?
4: Mr. T was a well-known bouncer in Chicago.
As I think about it, how many other bouncers can you name?
5: When he was a bodyguard he had a high-profile clientele.
Included in his clients were Steve McQueen, Michael Jackson, Diana Ross, and Muhammed Ali. How tough do you have to be to be Muhammed Ali’s bodyguard?
6: George Peppard reportedly wasn’t a fan.
The story was Peppard didn’t think Mr. T had earned his stripes as an actor. He felt that Mr. T rose to his position because of his physique and celebrity. Well, duh.
So, Mr. T was qualified to be a tough guy because he actually was a tough guy and not some classically trained actor pretending to be a tough guy. I have to work on that one,
7: Sylvester Stallone spotted Mr. T when he was working on the NBC show, ‘America’s Toughest Bouncer.”
It seems like a more interesting concept than “America’s Toughest Bouncer” would have been, “America’s Wimpest Bouncer.” I think I might be on to something here.
8: Mr. T also made his mark in the WWE.
He’s in that Hall of Fame. He was also Hulk Hogan’s tag-team partner. I would have liked to have seen George Peppard pull that off.
9: He also made his way to “Dancing with the Stars.”
At some point, we are really going to have to get a definition as to what a “star” is.
10: So, what’s Mr. T’s real name?
Lawrence Tureaud. I’ve got to say, Mr. T is a serious upgrade.
11: He was the perpetrator of “The Lake Forest Chain Saw Massacre.”
He cut down hundreds of oak trees on his Lake Forest, Ill. estate. It seemed he was suffering from allergies, so aesthetics aside, the trees were chopped.
Neighbors sued Mr. T, but ultimately he prevailed. Maybe they should have offered him a lifetime supply of Benadryl.
As I think about it, “The Lake Forest Chain Saw Massacre” sound like a yuppie sequel to “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.”
12: Nancy Regan had Mr. T play Santa Claus at the White House in 1983.
And some think Mr. T the actor doesn’t have range.
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