[Via] Lugosiable’s YouTube Channel

1) Mr. T is so angry that he shatters that glass of milk in his hand. Look at how that poor waitress rushes to clean it up…then thinks twice about doing so.
2) Mr. T is so caught up in his rage that he picks up the cameraman and shakes him like a ragdoll.
3) Mr. T might have actually choked the cameraman until he passed out…and then smiles and asks if he is okay.

I always listened to Nancy Reagan when she said Just Say No! but even if I hadn’t I would have been too scared that Mr. T was going to come busting in through my door to strangle me or something.

Thanks to jsduke05 for keeping this memory alive over on YouTube!

I ask you, is that not just one of the best openings for a television show? Now how about some things you might not have known about the characters and controversy of the series.

While my favorite character has always been Templeton “Face” Peck, the actor originally hired to portray him was not Dirk Benedict, it was Tim Dunigan that got that part before being replaced after the pilot episode. Tim Dunigan would a few years later go on to don the power armor of Captain Jonathan Power in the syndicated Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future television series.

In the fourth season of the series we learn from his mother what B.A. Baracus’s initials stand for, Bosco Albert Baracus. Though in the rest of the series we are told it stands for “Bad Attitude”. Also in that season four episode we learn that his nickname used to be Scooter.

As for the crime the team was accused of we learn that, Colonel Morrison, their commanding officer tasks them with robbing the Bank of Hanoi to quickly put an end to the Vietnam war. They pull the mission off but when they return to base they learn the Viet Cong has murdered the Colonel, destroying his headquarters by fire in the process, thereby destroying any document of proof that the A-Team was acting under orders.

Up for the part of John “Hannibal” Smith originally was James Coburn (The Magnificent Seven, The Aquanauts, Our Man Flint, among many others). It’s interesting to not that George Peppard was originally considered for the role of Steve McQueen’s character of Vin in the Magnificent Seven.

As to that controversy I mentioned above, the level of violence was always a focal point for outrage, but what about the cry of sexism? I give thanks to Wikipedia for the below text:

“Marla Heasley’s experiences on-set
Marla Heasley portraying Tawnia Baker in the episode “Say It With Bullets” (Season 2).

As Marla Heasley recounts in Bring Back… The A-Team (May 18, 2006), although sexism was not prevalent on the set per se, there was a sense that a girl was not necessary on the show, and she was even approached by George Peppard about it:
“ He was really serious. He said: “When you’re finished with your make-up, I would like to talk to you. Please come to my trailer.” I said: “Okay.” So I went to his trailer and he said, “Have a seat,” I said, “Okay,” and then he said: “I just want you to know that we don’t want you on the show,” he said “We don’t want you on the show. None of the guys want you here. The only reason you’re here is because the network and the producers want you. For some reason they think they need a girl.”

The interview continues with Marla Heasley noting that on her last day of work Peppard took her aside again, saying:
“ I’m sorry that this is your last day, but remember what I said the very first day, that we didn’t want a girl, has nothing to do with you. You were very professional, but no reason to have a girl. ”

In an interview with the Sunday Mail (AUS), George Peppard, portraying Hannibal Smith on the show, admitted that he thought that “whenever the studio slips an actress on to the team, she becomes a distraction. She always slows down the action. She’s someone who’s only there for the glamor shots. Everything stops for the sexy smiles – and I can’t see why that’s necessary on The A-Team.”"

Do you have any great TV memories that you are dying to share? Then we would be honored if you would hop on over to the Retro Television section and share some of your memories and fill in some gaps if you notice we’ve missed a show you feel needs to be remembered!