Very few wrestlers will ever admit the hige role Mr. T played in the sustained success of WWE. When celebrities are involved with wrestling there tends to be serious resentment from the performers who work hard year round, only to see important spots and large paydays go the interloper. T's involvement in the first two WrestleManias, and specifically in the main event of the inaugural show, helped stir up enough publicity to make those shows a success. It would be argued that Mr. T and Cyndi Lauper are just as important to the company during that period as Hulk Hogan and Roddy Piper were. Piper especially made no attempt to roll out a welcome mat for the Rocky III star. He's go on record for years with his distaste for T and his primadonna behavior. Allegedly T even threatened to leave WrestleMania before the card even started over some confusion regarding parking. Piper claims he's let it go, but you can feel the bad blood when he speaks about him. A first attempt to induct him in 2009 was rejected due to T's being offended at the inclusion of Pete Rose. Whether it was money, his fading notoriety or a change in attitude that caused him to rethink the offer, Mr. T is the most deserving celebrity they could've chosen.
Brad Hamilton is a writer, musician and marketer/social media manager from Atlanta, Georgia. He's an undefeated freestyle rap battle champion, spends too little time being productive and defines himself as the literary version of Brock Lesnar.
