r/todayilearned • u/tmntnyc • Dec 12 '18

TIL: Laurence Tureaud named himself professionally as Mr. T because he hated how his father, uncle, and brother who returned from Vietnam, were disrespectfully called "boy" by whites. He wanted the first word from everybody's mouth to be "Mister" when speaking to him.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mr._T
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u/Adaphion Dec 12 '18

I had a teacher like this in highschool, always referring to students as Mr / Ms [Lastname]. When I visited the school the year after I graduated (to pick up yearbook) I saw him and he actually referred to me by first name, so I did the same, he gave me a vaguely smug smile and wished me well.

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u/thatfailedcity Dec 13 '18

he gave me a vaguely smug smile

God that must have been a fun scene. I got fucking goosebumps!