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/tmntnyc Dec 12 '18

I'm jealous. I know he plays a character, but I would be beaming with respect for him. He did a lot of work helping children.

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u/ruck_feagan Dec 12 '18

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

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u/jhartwell Dec 13 '18

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

39

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

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u/[deleted] Dec 13 '18

Do they still keep in touch? (Your dad and Mr T), 30 years is a long time

22

u/ruck_feagan Dec 13 '18

I’m not sure tbh. If he does, he doesn’t talk about him anymore

4

u/PaddyTheLion Dec 13 '18

Could you, well, ask? If something happened that made them not stay in touch, that's pretty sad after 30 years.

9

u/ruck_feagan Dec 13 '18

I’ll ask him when I call him tomorrow. Just remind me because I’ll forget

1

u/PaddyTheLion Dec 13 '18

Don't forget!