The A Team

About

The A-Team were a group of ex-United States Army Special Forces who were wrongly convicted of a crime during the Vietnam War. Ray Brenner was one of the only men to stand up for them during their trial.Managing to escape from the military police, they fled to Los Angeles, where, as fugitives, the A-Team worked as soldiers of fortune, using their military training to fight oppression or injustice. As a Special Forces alpha team, their commanding officers included Colonel Morrison and General Ludlam . In the first season of the NBC-TV series The A-Team, the group consisted of Templeton "Faceman" Peck(Dirk Benedict), B.A. Baracus (Mr T), H.M. "Howling Mad" Murdock (Dwight Schultz), John "Hannibal" Smith (played by George Peppard), and news reporter Amy Amanda "Triple A" Allen (played by Melinda Culea), who tailed the team around the globe, wherever their missions carried them. The members of the team, by descending rank, were: Lieutenant Colonel John Smith, Captain H.M. Murdock, Lieutenant Templeton Peck, and Sergeant Bosco Baracus. One Vietnam-era picture of the team showed five members, with the fifth being Brenner. On an unknown date, they were under the command of General Ludlam, which led to Baracus being arrested after the sergeant hit him in the face. In 1969, when the team had six days of R&R, they tried to get a flight out of Da Nang to Hawaii. The flights were all booked, but Beller Air bumped two civilian passengers so that the team could get out. About ten years before the events surrounding Lin Duk Coo's arrival in Los Angeles, the members of the A-Team were all captives of a Viet Cong prisoner of war camp commanded by General Chow, but they were secretly fed by Lin, and eventually they escaped. The mission which ended the Team's fall from grace was the assault on Hanoi's bank. They acted following orders of a rogue? American general, succeeding, but as the general died soon after in a bombardment, and didn't leave any written trace of the mission, the A-Team was captured, tried and sentenced to jail. Soon after, in 1972, they escaped, beginning their career as fortune soldiers in the US. A Fortune Soldiers After escaping, the team settled in Los Angeles, working as soldiers of fortune. The team sometimes accepted people as honorary members. On a few occasions, Hannibal referred to the journalist Amy Allen as a member of the team. Members * Lieutenant Colonel John Hannibal Smith Leader * Lieutenant Templeton Face-Man Second in Command * Sergeant First Class B.a Baracus Third in Command Strongman/Mechanic * Captain H.M Howling Mad Murdock Pilot * Frankie Dishpan Santana * Amy Amanda "Triple A" Allen Journalist The Core Members * Colonel John "Hannibal" Smith (played by George Peppard): The smart leader of the group. He wears disguises, smokes cigars, and loves it when a plan comes together. * Lieutenant Templeton "Faceman" Peck (played by Dirk Benedict): The smooth con man and ladies' man of the team who can get any item or supply they need. * Captain H.M. "Howling Mad" Murdock (played by Dwight Schultz): The expert pilot who lives in a Veterans Administration psychiatric hospital, though his actual mental state is often open to question. * Sergeant First Class Bosco Albert "B.A." Baracus (played by Mr. T): The tough mechanic and strongman who hates flying, drinks milk instead of alcohol, and sports a famous mohawk and gold chains. Supporting Allies Amy Amanda "Triple A" Allen (played by Melinda Culea): A journalist who traveled with the team during the first and second seasons to help them out. Tawnia Baker (played by Marla Heasley): A reporter who joined the team during the second season as another ally.

Personality

John "Hannibal" Smith is the leader of the A-Team. He is a brilliant tactician and a master of disguise. Hannibal is distinguished by his cigar smoking, black gloves, disguises, and his catch phrase, "I love it when a plan comes together." Always "on the jazz" (a phrase coined by B.A., meaning that Hannibal thrives on adventure and life-threatening situations), he seems to genuinely enjoy every situation they get into. He also works as an actor, playing monsters in low-budget horror movies. He is portrayed by Liam Neeson in the film adaption. * Dirk Benedict as Ex-United States Army Special Forces Commando First LieutenantTempleton "Faceman" Peck (1983–1987) Main article: Templeton "Faceman" Peck Templeton "Face(man)" Peck was suave, smooth-talking, and hugely successful with women who serves as the team's con man and scrounger, as he is able to get his hands on just about anything they need. Effectively second-in-command behind Hannibal (although Murdock outranks him), he is the one who arranges for supplies, equipment, and sensitive information using numerous scams and hustles. Tim Dunigan played this role in the pilot episode, and Bradley Cooper in the film adaption. * Mr. T as Ex-United States Army Special ForcesCommando Sergeant First Class Bosco "B. A." (Bad Attitude) Baracus (1983–1987) Main article: B. A. Baracus Bosco "B.A." Baracus is a highly skilled mechanic and the A-Team's regular Mr. Fix-It as well as being the teams master at arms. His character is basically that of the public persona of Mr. T himself. He is a skilled fighter and is easily roused to anger, earning him the nickname "Bad Attitude". Despite his reputed attitude, he is a nice guy at heart. He has a special fondness for children and never drinks alcohol, preferring milk instead. He is most upset by Murdock, frequently referring to him as a "crazy fool". He suffers an intense fear of flying, especially when the plane in question is flown by Murdock. This difficulty is often overcome by other members of the team drugging him, or otherwise rendering him unconscious, so he can be transported without objection. He is portrayed by Quinton "Rampage" Jackson in the film adaption. * Dwight Schultz as Ex-United States Army Pilot Captain H.M. "Howling Mad" Murdock (1983–1987) Main article: H.M. "Howling Mad" Murdock Howling Mad Murdock was the best chopper pilot of the Vietnam War who is either mentally unstable or exceptionally good at pretending to be so. Although he was their pilot on the Hanoi bank raid, he was not officially part of the A-Team and so not tried by the military. Though interned at a psychiatric hospital, he routinely escapes to accompany the A-Team on their missions. The symptoms of his "insanity" varies from episode to episode, but generally includes self-identification with fictional characters, hallucinations, belief in the "intelligence" of inanimate objects, among others. He frequently refers to his invisible dog, "Billy". Unlike B.A., the initials "H.M." were never explained in terms of Murdock's actual name, and the nickname "Howlin' Mad" is simply attributed to him. He was permanently discharged from the hospital in the fifth season. He is portrayed by Sharlto Copley in the film adaption.

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