Born Lawrence Tureaud on May 21, 1952, and raised in
Chicago's Southside ghetto, Mr.T is the ultimate American
entertainment icon. In high school, he was a football
star and three-time city wrestling champion. When a knee
injury destroyed his chances at pro football, Mr.T began
working as a bodyguard and a bouncer, armed with a business
card that read, "Next to God, there is no greater
protector than I." He found his now-famous mohawk
haircut in a National Geographic photograph of a Mandinka
warrior. In 1980, he legally changed his name to Mr.T,
so that people would have to call him "Mr."
He caught Sylvester Stallone's attention when he won the
"World's Toughest Bouncer" competition on the
television show Games People Play, and landed the role
of Clubber Lang in Rocky III. With audiences in the palm
of his hand, he accepted the role of B.A. Baracus on the
wildly popular television show The A-Team. Mr.T was a
huge pro wrestling success in the '80s, and a competitor
in the first Wrestlemania. An eternal celebrity, he continues
to pop up in film and television to the delight of audiences
everywhere.
