Long before Mr. T became an indelible pop culture icon thanks to memorable roles in Rocky III and The A-Team, he was already demanding people put respect on his name.
“People don’t know the road I had to travel. I was born in [Chicago’s] Robert Taylor projects,” Mr. T, born Laurence Tureud, says in Us’ exclusive trailer of the upcoming Netflix documentary Untold Mr. T: I Pity the Fool, premiering Tuesday, September 8. “You got to be tough in the hood.”
Born the youngest son in a family of 12 children in 1952, Mr. T, his four sisters and seven brothers were raised in a three-bedroom home on the South Side of Chicago.
“Growing up and watching my father being called ‘Boy,’ I ordained myself Mr. T so the first word out of everybody’s mouth would be ‘Mister,’” he explains in the trailer. “That’s a sign of respect my father didn’t get.”
After he was noticed by Sylvester Stallone while taking part in the “America’s Toughest Bouncer” competition on the NBC reality show Games People Play, Mr. T. got his big break after being cast as Clubber Lang in 1982’s Rocky III, where he uttered his iconic “I pity the fool!” catchphrase for the very first time.
“Casting director called me and said, ‘Guess what, you got the part for Rocky III,’” he recalls in the trailer. “Man, what an honor.”
Mr. T would go on to star as B.A. Baracus on 97 episodes of The A-Team from 1983 to 1987, becoming a cult figure among legions of fans, including actor Terry Crews.
“I’ll never forget the moment I saw Mr. T,” Crews, 58, says in the trailer. “The earrings, the chains, the mohawk. I was like, ‘Who? How?’”
Crews added, “This guy is a real-life superhero.”
In addition to his on-screen acting work, Mr. T became an integral part of the early success of the World Wrestling Federation (now WWE).
Mr. T. teamed with Hulk Hogan to defeat “Rowdy” Roddy Piper and “Mr. Wonderful” Paul Orndorff in the main event of WrestleMania I in 1985. He made multiple pro wrestling appearances over the course of his career, culminating in his introduction into the WWE Hall of Fame’s celebrity wing in 2014.
Untold Mr. T: I Pity the Fool, directed by Scott Weintrob, premieres September 8 on Netflix.
