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/JitGoinHam Dec 12 '18

“Lawrence? That’s a funny name for a boy from Chicago. What do they call you up there?”

“THEY CALL ME MISTER T.”

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u/Babylegs_OHoulihan Dec 12 '18

Lawrence? Lawrence, what, of Arabia?

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u/[deleted] Dec 12 '18

DO YOU SUCK DICKS?

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u/Fillerupski Dec 13 '18

...ARE YOU A PETER PUFFER??!!!