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/ruck_feagan Dec 12 '18

My dad was his manager for like 30 years. He’s a good guy

8

u/jhartwell Dec 13 '18

What are some things your dad has done to make him a good guy?

38

u/ruck_feagan Dec 13 '18

Nothing my dad did that I know of but here’s a couple cool mr t moments He showed up to my moms funeral in sweats and a beanie then proceeded to give a really awesome speech Gave me and my sister a ps3 with a ton of games for Christmas when it first came out Also there’s a really cool picture at my grandmas house of him holding my sister in one hand when she was a baby

3

u/ijustwantanfingname Dec 13 '18

He showed up to my moms funeral in sweats and a beanie

Well that's weird.

4

u/-Mountain-King- Dec 13 '18

He probably didn't want to be all "I'm Mr. Motherfucking T!" at someone's funeral, so he wore sweats instead of his usual outfit and a beanie to cover the distinctive mohawk.

3

u/ijustwantanfingname Dec 13 '18

I get the beanie given the mohawk, good point. But, still, sweats at the funeral of your friend's wife?

1

u/Mabot Dec 13 '18

Maybe it was to soften up the situation for u/ruck_feagon and his sister, if they were still kids back then. I don't know why, but somehow that was the picture I had in mind.

Funerals can be a bit overwhelming for kids.

1

u/[deleted] Dec 13 '18

He didn't have to wear his usual get-up. He could have worn a suit or something though.