Teel James Glenn

Teel James Glenn (born March 2, 1955), also credited as TJ Glenn and TJ Michaels, is an American actor, stuntman, poet, and author.
Early life
The only child of Rose and John Glenn, he was born in Brooklyn.
He attended Parsons School of Design intent on an illustration career when a chance meeting with a director at a party the day before graduation led to an audition and the lead part in a film. Though the film was never completed, Glenn went on to work in a number of films for members of the Millennium Film Collective.
Though he continued to work as a book illustrator sporadically over the course of the next 40 years, it became the ‘background’ career to performing.
Stunt training
Glenn, when he launched on a film career, began taking stage combat classes with various members of the Society of American Fight Directors. He became a certified member and associate instructor though he eventually left the group when he felt their ‘style’ was too unrealistic.
He also trained with gymnastic instructors, martial artists, fencing masters and with members of several stunt organizations in New York. Among those he studied under were the head of the Seoul Military Academy for Hwa Rang Do and Errol Flynn’s last stunt double for stage swordplay. He felt obligated to ‘pass that on’. Though his ‘first love’ was swordplay of various cultures, he also became adept at stair falls, fire burns and car hits, all of which he performed in numerous films.
He began teaching stage combat, stunt work and related physical skills eventually instructing at over a dozen universities and presenting lecture demos from Florida to Toronto. He also designed programs at several stunt schools and academies. In addition he did a number of demonstrations at science fiction and media conventions such as Balitcon, Lunacon, the World Fantasy Convention and the Highlander Conventions.
This was concurrent with his film career and employment as fight choreographer and performer at over fifty Renaissance faires as well as fight director for over a hundred stage productions. This included realistic violence for every Shakespeare play at least once, as well at the Three Musketeers at West Point, Native Son for the Classical Theatre of Harlem (for which he was praised in the NY Times), Nine Ball for Cape Cod Rep and many more.
Soap operas and television work
Glenn’s first soap opera work was as an extra in Ryan’s Hope. Next he was a stunt double for a fight scene in a barn for the last week of Edge of Night. He went on to work regularly as an actor on Guiding Light and to alternately do stunts or act on One Life to Live, Search for Tomorrow, Another World, and As the World Turns, eventually appearing in over 300 episodes of New York soaps. He also appeared on The View menacing Lisa Ling, The Morning Show teaching Regis Philbin how to be a Swashbuckler and a host of news programs.
He worked as an actor and stuntman (in a fight scene with Hawk) on the “Thanksgiving” episode of the Spenser for Hire TV. Series and in episodes of the Equalizer, Fox’s Running Wilde and multiple episodes of Covert Justice.
His most famous ‘small screen’ appearance was as Vega (and fight choreographer) in the worldwide web series “Street Fighter: The Later Years.” It was the most watched web series in the world at one time.
Genre film career
By far the largest part of his performing career has been in low budget fantasy/horror genre films. His first was Igor and the Lunatics where he served as stunt coordinator (doubling several extras in one scene) and the lead villain ‘Paul.’ He went on to serve double duty as a principal performer in front of the camera in many films, often serving in a stunt capacity as well.
The Threads of Time, The Monster Chronicles, Frankenstein: the Ravager, The Bunker, Achmed, Gunmen, Deranged, Dr. Horror's House of Idiots (with childhood hero Zacharly), The Last Prediction, Lord of the G-Strings, Spider Babe, Nothing Out There, The Rejuvenator, Battle for the Lost Planet, Deadtime Stories, Journey to Promethea, The Bog People, Citizen Toxie (as fight choreographer and Toxie’s double), The Last Prediction, Voodoo Woman, Moreland, Banned, Frighthouse, Metamorphosis: the Alien Factor, Prime Evil, Troma’s War and Brain Hunter.
And crime dramas: Trust Me, Run Like Hell, In Search of a Dream, Street Gangs of New York (Hong Kong). 4 Deadly Reasons, Airboss (3), Strikeforce, Mystic Nights & Pirate Fights, Wolfpack, Tribeca Nights and Jersey Justice (where he was ‘killed’ by Emmy winner Blanche Baker.)
He also co-produced and starred in two film/TV pilots The Exceptionals and Swashbuckler Inn- the only two times he got to play a good guy in his 35 year career!
He later turned some of the proposed scripts for The Exceptionals series into the first book (along with Jerry Kokich) of a novel series.
Writing
While still in college Glenn sold several articles to Mad, Black Belt and other magazines and afterward sold several short stories and screen plays (written alone and with Jerry Kokich) but relegated his writing to the back burner while pursuing his performing/teaching careers.
In 2004 he ‘dug into his trunk” and re-wrote several of his novels and sent them out.
To his surprise and delight epress-online’s acquisitions editor Joan McNulty Pulver loved his first submission “Death at Dragonthroat”- the first in his Altiva fantasy series, and in time he contracted 8 books with that company. One of the novels in that series “Sister Warrior” was named one of the hundred best fantasy novels of all time by Fantsybookreview.uk.
In the ensuing years (while continuing to teach and perform) he has written and contracted over two score novels with a number of publishers including the SF thrillers “The Exceptionals’ series for Whiskey Creek Press, one of which was a the best seller’ and one a finalist in the EPIC book awards in 2009.
;Fictional books:
*Death at Dragonthroat, ePress-Online (2005)
*Tales of a Warrior Priest (2006)
*Knight Errant (2006)
*The Daemonhold Curse (2007)
*Sister Warrior (2008)
*The Vision Quest Factor (2008)
*The Exceptionals: Measure of a Man, Whiskey Creek Press (2008)
*The Exceptionals: Across the Wasteland, Whiskey Creek Press (2008)
*The Exceptionals: On the Good Ship Caligula, Whiskey Creek Press (2009)
*The Escape Artist, Whiskey Creek Press (2009)
*Weird Tales of the Skullmask, BooksforaBuck (2009)
*The Horsed Thief, Eternal Press (2009)
*Secret of Wolf Island, Gypsy Shadow Publishing (2009)
*Gaslight Occurrences, Whiskey Creek Press (2010)
*The Devil Wore Greasepaint, Whiskey Creek Press (2010)
*Of Swords and Sorcery, Gypsy Shadow Pub (2010)
*The Travelers Tale, Eternal Press (2010)
*A Hex of Shadows, ePress-Online inc. (2010)
*Deadline Zombies, BooksforaBuck (2010)
;Poetry collection:
*Hymns to the Battlecrow, Gypsy Shadow Publishing (2009)
;Non-Fiction books:
*Fantastic Worlds of E.R. Burroughs (1995)
*Secrets of the Samurai Sword, Laughing Wolf Press (1997)
*Them’s Fightin’ Words, ePress-Online (2007)
;Book contributions:
*Blazing Adventures Anthology (2008)
*Slaughter Island
*A Fighting Manual of Mars
*Nocturnal Illumination (2009)
*Summer Illumination (2010)
*Witch Whipped
*Brigadoomed (revised)
*Foresworn (2010)
*The Last Nutcracker
*Amazing Alternity (2010)
*Crusader from Cross Plains
*Pulp Empire (Volume 2)
*Grave Mistake

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