Mr. T Says Watching Randy Orton “Has Just Been Really Amazing”
Mr. T's wrestling days are long behind him, but the former A-Team star still sees remnants of his era in the business today.
Speaking with Wrestling Inc. Managing Editor Nick Hausman on a recent edition of the Wrestling Inc. Daily, Mr. T mentioned how cool it has been to see sons and daughters of friends from his WWF tenure competing today.
"When I first heard the name [Randy Orton], I was like, 'Man, I wonder if that's Cowboy Orton's son.' And it was!" Mr. T said. "I said, 'Oh man, this is wild.' Watching him has just been really amazing. Thinking about how far we've come, all the way from Madison Square Garden to here. I've seen the new guys and stuff like that. I would think, 'Man, I know this guy' because I know his father, and stuff like that. Even with The Rock, I remember his father Rocky Johnson. Man, it's just amazing. Now you look at the Nature Boy, Ric Flair, his daughter. It's just special."
Mr. T made sporadic squared circle appearances throughout the late 1980s in both WWF and WCW. Despite his pro wrestling tenure being limited, Mr. T was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2014. Honors like the Hall of Fame and the reception he gets from fans is what further motivates the actor to be a role model for young audience members.
"I'm just overjoyed with stuff," Mr. T said. "I think back to meeting fans and they'd tell me about WrestleMania, and I am honored. Like I said, I want to live off of that. I want to work hard. I don't want to let nobody down. I still want the fans, the young fans of people to look up to me. That's why I watch what I do, I watch what I say. I don't want to mislead nobody. I'm not an angel. I'm not a saint. But I can be a lawful citizen that shows people to study hard in school, stay away from the wrong crowd, stuff like that.
"I talk a lot about how I'm an old-fashioned momma's boy, and I want kids to draw from that. You know, 'Mr. T loves his mother, and he ain't no simp.' Don't worry about what they call you. You keep on loving your mother."
While Mr. T puts a strong emphasis on using his words for good, he still knows how to throw a verbal joust here and there. Hausman compared Mr. T's verbiage to the late Dusty Rhodes', to which Mr. T laughingly approved.
"It's just my rap, it's who I am and where I come from," Mr. T said. "I want them to see underneath all the gold and the tough, gruff stuff there's a gentle person. My toughness allows me to reach people. We got invited to the White House to tell kids to stay away from drugs and this and that. And that's what this is about. Going to the hospitals and visiting the kids. I would do that when the cameras weren't there. That's who I am."
Mr. T can be seen nationwide as part of Tide's #TurnToCold campaign! You can find Mr. T's full interview with Wrestling Inc.'s Nick Hausman below: