Mr. T was in the US Army before he became a 1980s cultural icon

Laurence Tureaud, aka Mr. T, turns 74 on May 21, 2025.

The actor and retired pro wrestler continues to be a cultural icon even well after his heyday in the 1980s. He continues to live by interesting philosophical points, such as: “To the women and children, T stands for tender. To the bad guys and thugs, it stands for tough.”

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He is most known for his role as Clubber Lang in “Rocky III” and B.A. Baracus in “The A-Team” television series. His path to Hollywood stardom began after Sylvester Stallone spotted him in a TV show called “America’s Toughest Bouncer.”

Mr. T has led an interesting and inspirational life, including serving in the United States Army.

Born and raised in Chicago, Mr. T came from a large family. His father was a minister. Mr. T changed his name for a very important reason, stating:

“I think about my father being called ‘boy,’ my uncle being called ‘boy,’ my brother, coming back from Vietnam and being called ‘boy,’’’ Mr. T explained. “So I questioned myself, ‘What does a Black man have to do before he’s given respect as a man?’ So when I was 18 years old, when I was old enough to fight and die for my country, old enough to drink, old enough to vote, I said I was old enough to be called a man.

“I self-ordained myself Mr. T, so the first word out of everybody’s mouth is ‘Mr.’”

Mr. T Was a Military Police Officer

‘The A-Team’ featured Mr. T in the role of former Green Beret B.A. Baracus. (NBC)

Mr. T dealt with many challenges, such as being kicked out of college after his first year despite being on a football scholarship. He joined the Army in 1975, served in the Military Police Corps and left the service in the late 1970s. He found a job as a bouncer, which eventually led to his success in Hollywood.

Mr. T worked as a bodyguard for top celebrities such as Michael Jackson and Diana Ross, as well as athletes who included Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier, and Leon Spinks. In “The A-Team,” Mr. T’s character was a former Green Beret who, with his team, was accused “of a crime they didn’t commit.” The show ran for five seasons on NBC. Former Marine George Peppard, Dirk Benedict, and Dwight Schultz rounded out the Special Forces team that worked as soldiers of fortune while running from the U.S. government.

“The A-Team” further solidified Mr. T in pop culture.

His iconic status led to a cartoon series, “Mister T,” which ran for three seasons on Saturday mornings on NBC during the 1980s. A Mr. T cereal, promotional video, and two albums (“Mr. T’s Commandments” and “Be Somebody or Be Somebody’s Fool”).

Mr. T is divorced and has two daughters and a son. In 1995, he was diagnosed with T-Cell lymphoma, which he joked, “Can you imagine that? Cancer with my name on it—personalized cancer!”

By the mid-2000s, he stopped wearing his gold because of his experience with the cleanup of Hurricane Katrina.

“As a Christian, when I saw other people lose their lives and lose their land and property… I felt that it would be a sin before God for me to continue wearing my gold,” Mr. T said. “I felt it would be insensitive and disrespectful to the people who lost everything, so I stopped wearing my gold.”