WWE Hall Of Famer Documentary Coming To Netflix

WWE/Netflix

The career and life of a WWE Hall of Famer will be the subject of a new documentary coming to the Netflix platform next month.

The real-life Laurence Tureaud is better known to fans around the world as Mr. T, star of The A-Team, Rocky III and a WWE Hall of Famer.

Now 74 years of age, the star is to be celebrated in a new documentary entitled “Untold Mr. T: I Pity The Fool”

A trailer for the documentary, which will stream from September 8, was recently released on YouTube, featuring a montage of footage from his many appearances, including his run in WWE.

In a voiceover for the documentary, the star appears in the trailer and says:

“I’m not just some phony fake celebrity or fictitious hero, I’m real life.

“I was not born Mr. T. People don’t know the road I had to travel.

“I was in the Robert Taylor Project. You gotta be tough in the Hood. Growing up, I watched my father being called “boy”. I ordained myself “Mr. T”, so the first word out of everybody’s mouth would be “Mister”, that’s the sign of respect my father didn’t get.”

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Mr. T would enter the orbit of the then-WWF in 1985, tagging with Hulk Hogan at WrestleMania I in a victory over Paul Orndorff and Roddy Piper.

Cast in Rocky III as Clubber Lang, that role would see Mr. T compete in a boxing match on the February 15, 1986 episode of Saturday Night’s Main Event, defeating Bob Orton. This lead to a match at WrestleMania 2 in that year, with Mr. T beating Roddy Piper in round four of their boxing match.

Mr. T’s last in-ring appearance came at WCW Starrcade in 1994, defeating Kevin Sullivan, although he would occasionally appear on WWE television, leading to a Hall of Fame induction in 2014.

The Celebrity Draw Of WrestleMania I

The first-ever WrestleMania was no doubt a risk for the then-WWF, being something hadn’t been seen on that scale in the industry. Starrcade 83, a Jim Crockett Promotions event, had run in the previous year, but was broadcast live in arenas via closed-circuit television, as opposed to the approach used for WrestleMania which saw both CCTV and pay-per-view broadcast, allowing fans to access the event to watch at home or in venues such as bars.

Had it failed to catch on in the way it did, the whole landscape of the industry would have likely been impacted, particularly given the ample crossover media generated by mainstream celebrities in attendance at Madison Square Garden on March 31, 1985.

Celebrity guests are a common occurrence when it comes to the current world of WWE, AEW and other larger wrestling companies, yet it wasn’t that way back in the mid-80s. WrestleMania I arguably kickstarted a whole movement.

WrestleMania I didn’t just have a single name, either. Alongside Mr T in the main event, Cyndi Lauper accompanied Wendi Richter to the ring for her match against Leilani Kai that saw her capture the Women’s Championship. Muhammad Ali was also in attendance, years after competing in the Boxer vs. Wrestler match at NJPW Real World Martial Arts Championship in 1976, a match that Antonio Inoki would win.

On top of this, famed pianist Liberace would appear, serving as the guest timekeeper for the aforementioned main event. Despite being a dab hand at the piano and as a singer, Liberace wouldn’t sing “The Star-Spangled Banner”, with Gene Okerlund delivering that performance.

Sports fans would have recognized MLB manager Billy Martin, who was on hand as guest ring announcer for the main event.

As would become tradition, WrestleMania I saw a mainstream music act provide its opening theme, with the Phil Collins and Philip Bailey track “Easy Lover” (well, the instrumental part). The closing theme was also instantly recognizable, being “Axel F” by Harold Faltermeyer, a track that had served as the theme for the 1984 movie Beverly Hills Cop.

WrestleMania I set the template, not just for the “Grandest Stage of Them All” but for what we now know as WWE PLEs in general. Further to this, its influence has spread out across the professional wrestling scene with many companies having a show that they consider to be the main pay-per-view event on their calendar.

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• wwe
• documentary
• Netflix
• Mr. T

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