Feynman didn't want to set himself up for the NTaL; his idea wasn't the honor pledge but a plea for the anonymous thief to return the door as secretly as it was taken, with a heaping of praise for the thief's ingenuity. (Feynman was honest, but nobody ever accused him of humility.)

But when someone else came up with the honor-pledge solution, he did the only thing that comported with his ethic of literal honesty.

"Jack, did you take the door?"

"No, sir, I did not take the door."

"Tim: Did you take the door?"

"No, sir! I did not take the door!"

"Maurice. Did you take the door?"

"No, I did not take the door, sir."

"Feynman, did you take the door?"

"Yeah, I took the door."

"Cut it out, Feynman, this is serious! Sam! Did you take the door..."— it went all the way around. Everyone was shocked. There must be some real rat in the fraternity who didn't respect the fraternity word of honor!

. . .

Sometime later I finally admitted to taking the other door, and I was accused by everybody of lying. They couldn't remember what I had said. All they could remember was their conclusion after the president of the fraternity had gone around the table and asked everybody, that nobody admitted taking the door. The idea they remembered, but not the words.