Mr. T is known for his tough persona, appearing in Rocky III, and the ridiculously heavy gold chains he wears around his neck wherever he goes…
But many have questioned where the idea of wearing so many gold chains came from and why he suddenly dropped the look.
Well, keep reading to find out more…
He’s an actor, professional wrestler, and television personality.
During the 70s, he took on a position as a Chicago bouncer and bodyguard.
He rocked around with his built body, gold chains, and a mohawk.
By the early 80s thats when his big breakthrough came when Sylvester Stallone cast him as a rival boxer in Rocky III.
Though Mr. T spent the rest of his career earning millions of dollars, life wasn’t easy for him.
His real name, Laurence Tureaud, was the youngest boy in his family of twelve children.
His father was a minister and left Tureaud and his family when he was only 5-years-old.
He grew up, having to see his mother raise him and his twelve siblings.
Tureaud reportedly grew very close to his mother and it kept him out of trouble as a youth.
By the time he reached high school, he was a constant daydreamer.
His daydreaming earned him an average grade in school.
However, he did excel at athletics and became a football star and 3-time wrestling champion in high school.
Tureaud earned himself a scholarship to play football for the Prairie View A&M University Panthers in Prairie View, Texas.
By 1971, he decided to do a bachelor degree in mathematics, but he didn’t last long as he got expelled after 1 year into the course.
Deciding school was not for him, Tureaud became a military policeman in the U.S. Army.
During the mid 70s, Tureaud decided to move back to Chicago, where he found a job as a doorman.
Luckily for him, his days as a military policeman gained him a reputation as one of Chicago’s toughest, and most infamous bouncers.
Since then, he adopted the mohawk hairstyle look, which he claimed was inspired by a National Geographic photo of an African Mandikan warrior.
And then he started to rock around with his famous chains which he claimed to have taken from misbehaving customers.
The name Mr. T reportedly came in so customers were forced to show respect. And the rest is history.
But did you know his gold chain look had a meaning behind it?
According to VT, Mr. T confirmed in his biography that he’d been inspired to start wearing all the gold necklaces he found at venues by his African ancestors.
He wrote: “The reason why I wear gold – I wear gold for three reasons. One, when Jesus was born, three wise men came from the east: one brought frankincense, one brought myrrh, the other one brought gold.
“The second reason I wear gold is I can afford it.
“The third reason I wear it, it’s symbolic of my African heritage.”
He continued: “When my ancestors came from Africa, they were shackled by our neck, our wrists, and our ankles in steel chains.
“I’ve turned those steel chains into gold to symbolise the fact that I’m still a slave, only my price tag is higher.”
But if you’ve noticed recently, Mr. T decided to drop the gold chain look…
And there’s a moving story as to why…
Mr. T said in an interview: “As a Christian, I said I would never wear my own gold again because of what happened with Hurricane Katrina.
“It would be a sin against God for me to wear my gold when so many people lost everything.”
He continued: “Sure, it’s my trademark, but I am the same person whether I’m wearing the gold or not. My moral values are the same. The gold don’t make me, I make the gold.”
The Hurricane Katrina took place in 2005, which destroyed parts of New Orleans.
It was described as one of the worst storms to ever hit the US and resulted in approximately 1,800 people losing their lives.
What do you think of his reasoning?