Mark Salling Bio

Name: Mark Wayne Salling

Nickname(s): None

Date of Birth: August 17, 1982

Fun Fact: Mark is actually 5'11" and FOX has confirmed that he DOESN'T wear heels to make him appear taller on Glee.

Hometown: Dallas, Texas

Character on Glee:  Noah "Puck" Puckerman

Mark Salling was born and raised in Dallas, TX. He graduated from Lake Highlands High School in 2001, and went on to attend the Los Angeles Music Academy. In 1996, he made his acting debut as James Rhodes in Children Of The Corn IV, and in 1999 he appeared in an episode of Walker, Texas Ranger. 

In addition to acting, Mark also enjoys songwriting and playing guitar. His solo project, Jericho, recently released an album titled "Smoke Signals". Music was Mark's primary interest before he became an actor. He learned how to play the piano when he was 5, and started writing songs when he was 7. His music has been described as a combination of indie and alternative rock, influenced by Thom Yorke and Trent Reznor.

Mark also enjoys playing basketball, frisbee golf, lifting weights, jazz nights at local Hollywood bars, and volunteering with the James Hunter Wildlife Rescue charity.


Quick Quote: "You don't really have time to watch TV if you work on TV."

Matthew Morrison Bio

Name: Matthew James Morrison

Nickname(s): Matty Fresh

Date of Birth: October 30th, 1978

Fun Fact: Matthew played the annoyed police officer opposite Steve Carell in the heart-warming Dan In Real Life.

Hometown: Fort Ord, California

Character on Glee:  Will Schuester

Matthew Morrison decided at a very young age to become an actor.  After attending theater camp as a child, he decided to pursue a career in acting.  He was trained at The Orange County High School of the Arts, and then later at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts in the CAP 21 Program , which describes itself as:

"The comprehensive curriculum seamlessly integrates the three disciplines of Acting, Dance and Voice/Music into the actor’s body and technique creating a well-rounded and versatile young actor.  The faculty of CAP21 is comprised of the finest master teachers and working professionals who specialize in the integration of these three disciplines."

Matthew has appeared in many musical theater productions on Broadway, including a musical version of Footloose, a revival of the Rocky Horror Picture Show, and caught his "big break" in 2002 when he was cast for the role of Link Lari in Hairspray.

He then started guest starting on television shows, such as Numb3rs, CSI: Miami, The Ghost Whisperer, Hack and Sex and the City, in which he played "Young Busboy."

Matthew has also had small roles in several motion pictures, including Dan In Real Life, I Think Love My Wife and Music & Lyrics.

Glee is Matthew's first leading role on television, and with the success of the musical-"dramedy", expect Matthew Morrison to become a household name for years to come.

Quick Quote: [After he was asked in an interview whether the rumor that he is John Wayne's grandson is truth] "Oh, God! That is just a rumor, but I would have no shame in perpetuating it. I'll be John Wayne's grandson! You know, his real name was Marion Morrison -- and if you look at pictures of him and me, it's quite uncanny."

Jenna Ushkowitz Bio

Name: Jenna Noelle Ushkowitz

Nickname(s): None

Date of Birth: April 28, 1986

Fun Fact: Jenna performed in the very first high school production of Les Miserables.

Hometown: Born in Seoul, South Korea; Jenna was adopted and raised in Long Island, New York

Character on Glee: Tina Cohen-Chang

Jenna started acting at the age of three, appearing on shows such as Sesame Street and As the World Turns. Her first role on a Broadway stage was in the 1996 revival of The King and I with theater star Donna Murphy.

She sang the National Anthem at a Madison Square Garden at the age of 13. Before she was showing her true colors on Glee, she was in the groundbreaking show Broadway Spring Awakening and served understudy for the roles of Anna, Martha, Thea and Ilse. While doing Spring Awakening, Jenna worked with co-star Lea Michele, though the two have known each other since they were 8 years old.

Quick Quote:  "I was the type A theater geek, class president... had to conquer just about everything. I was pretty well-rounded but we were definitely called 'geeks' in school."

Get glad once you learn how to play slots, online roulette and online blackjack at one of the best online casinos around, CasinoBonus.org!

Kevin McHale Bio

Name: Kevin Michael McHale

Nickname(s): Kev-Kev, Kevvy

Date of Birth: June 14, 1988

Fun Fact: Kevin was a member of the boy band, NLT.

Hometown: Plano, Texas

Character on Glee: Artie Abrams

Before his role as Artie Abrams on Glee, Kevin McHale had minor acting parts on NBC's The Office, Nickelodeon's Zoey 101, and HBO's True Blood. He also appeared in the Bratz movie with the rest of his former band, NLT.

There's been some recent controversy over the fact that the part of wheelchair-bound Artie is not played by an actual wheelchair-bound actor. One of Glee's producers, Ryan Murphy, excuses this by saying that McHale was too talented to not use him. Executive producer, Brad Fallchuck, added, "We brought in anyone: white, black, Asian, in a wheelchair. It was very hard to find people who could really sing, really act, and have that charisma you need on TV."

Quick Quote: "I would be fascinated to see our 'Glee-ified' Michael Jackson song."

Cory Monteith Bio

Name: Cory Allan Monteith

Nickname(s): Frankenteen

Date of Birth: May 11, 1982

Fun Fact: Before getting into acting Cory worked a number of odd jobs, including construction, driving a taxi, and greeting customers at Wal-Mart.

Hometown: Calgary, Alberta.

Character on Glee: Finn Hudson

The young actor wasn’t really a singer before working on Glee. So his agent had him send in a tape where he was playing the drums, which he’s been playing since the age of 7, to showcase his musicality. Except, it wasn’t actually on drums – it was on Tupperware! The idea worked, because it led to an audition. Before Glee, Cory worked on a number of films and television shows, including Final Destination 3, and the ABC Family show, Kyle XY.

Though he plays a high schooler in Glee, Cory actually dropped out of high school when he was a freshman.

Quick Quote: “I think there’s something so fantastically horrible about [80’s rock].”

Amber Riley Bio

Name: Amber Patrice Riley

Nickname(s): None

Date of Birth: February 15, 1986

Fun Fact: Amber got to sing “Bust Your Windows” on the show because creator/director Ryan Murphy heard her singing the song on the set in between takes. He liked it so much, he wrote it into the show.

Hometown: Los Angeles, CA

Character on Glee: Mercedes Jones

As most people know by now, Amber auditioned to be a contestant on American Idol when she was 17. She didn’t make it, but she has since said it was one of the best things that could have happened to her. When Ryan Murphy saw her in a the pilot of Cedric the Entertainer Presents, he cast her in Glee.

Quick Quote: “I'm just a fun person and I don't take myself too seriously. Life is supposed to be fun. My focus is to make a better life for myself and my family, so I am doing what is necessary to make sure we are being taking care of.”

Lea Michele Bio

Name: Lea Michele Sarfati

Nickname(s): None


Date of Birth: August 29, 1986


Fun Fact: She has her known Glee co-star, Jenna Ushkowitz, since they were eight years old.


Hometown: Born in Bronx, NY, but grew up in Tenafly, New Jersey


Character on Glee: Rachel Berry


Lea crawled onto a Broadway stage at the tender age of 9, where she played Young Cosette in the original New York run of Les Miserable. She then originated the role of “the Little Girl” in the original Broadway production of Ragtime.


Lea was nominated for a Drama Desk award for her lead role Wendela in the ground breaking hit Spring Awakening, which she had been working on since she was 14. (She was 20 when the show opened on Broadway.)


Quick Quote:“I love Adam Lambert! I want to sing with him SO badly.”

Jayma Mays Bio

Name: Jayma Suzette Mays

Nickname(s): Jayma

Date of Birth: July 16, 1979

Fun Fact: In her spare time, Emma enjoys doing long division and multiplying fractions.

Hometown: Grundy, Virginia

Character on Glee: Emma Pillsbury

Jayma Mays graduated from Radford University in 2001 with a degree in Performing Arts. She made her first television appearance in 2004 on Joey, the Friends spin-off. Since then, she has appeared on several television shows, such as Entourage, Heroes, and Ugly Betty. Her first regular series role is Emma on Glee. Jayma has also appeared in quite a few movies, including Red Eye, Epic Movie, and Paul Blart Mall Cop.

She has been married to Adam Campbell since 2007. They met during the filming of Epic Movie, which both actors starred in.

In the music video by Switchfoot for their song, "Awakening," Jayma is shown dancing to the song on a "Dance Dance Revolution" game mat.

Quick Quote: "I had to prepare a song for the audition and then after the first audition I went through testing. I had to prepare the scene for that and that was like the scariest thing I've ever had to do. My face got all red and I thought I was going to vomit. That was definitely out of the norm for me."

Jane Lynch Bio

Name: Jane Lynch

Nickname(s): Jany, Lynch Mob


Date of Birth: July 14, 1960


Fun Fact: She admires Meryl Streep and Anne Heche, and thinks Vince Vaughn is great.


Hometown: Dolton, Illinois


Character on Glee: Sue Sylvester


Jane Lynch attended Illinois State University, where she received her Bachelor's Degree in theater. She then went on to get her Master of Fine Arts from Cornell. She's been starring in films since 1988 and commonly plays sarcastic, controlling roles, such as her character in The 40 Year Old Virgin, and of course, Glee.

Jane came out of the closet over 25 years ago and says the reason she thinks there haven't been more movies about lesbians is because, "The Christian Right is very powerful, and I think a lot of people in America are conservative. But all these Christians who said that morals were the reason they voted for George Bush, I wonder how many of them were among the 25 million people who watch Desperate Housewives? Which is hardly moral television."

Quick Quote: "I’m very picky, very critical. I have done projects in the past that I didn’t think were very good, because I was just happy to work—my agent used to say I’d work for a steak and $1.50--but I’m not really doing that anymore."

Glee Club Online: About The Staff

Daryl Elliott, Co-Founder

Daryl is from Alexandria, VA and runs a small IT firm (Mount Vernon Computer Repair) specializing in computer repairs, virus removal, graphic design and data recovery. He is an accomplished web-marketer and blogger, has designed dozens of websites and blogs, and owns, manages and fully designed Twilight Blog, Glee Club Online and Middle Earth Returns. In his spare time he enjoys playing tennis, watching the Redskins lose, and spending time with friends and family.


Click here to follow Daryl on Twitter.

Favorite Glee Character & Why: Sue. She really inspires me to be all I can be.

Favorite Song From Glee: "Alone"

Ashley D, Co-Founder

Ashley, from Waldorf, MD is an avid fan of Adam Lambert (Runner-up from Season 8 of American Idol) and runs Adam Is The REAL Idol. (And is also the co-founder of Middle Earth Returns). She enjoys playing poker, watching American Idol, True Blood, and of course, Glee.

Favorite Glee Character & Why: Mr. Schuester! He's sweet, adorable and an absolutely amazing singer and dancer.

Favorite Song From Glee: "Somebody To Love" (Because Daryl took "Alone"!)

Sarah Marshall, Writer

Sarah is a mom to an adorable Potato, wife to a world traveler, and slave to the music.  A former music teacher and marketing director, she now spends her time as a professional musican, blogger (Traveling Marshalls, Lady Blogger Society), and TV worshipper. Glee is currently responsible for her lack of productivity and the decreased space on her TiVO.

Favorite Glee Character & Why:  I'm a big fan of Will Schuester....not only because he's GORGEOUS, but because he has the same genuine concern for his students that I did when I started out as a teacher.

Favorite Glee Song: "Keep Holding On" -- I cry every time I hear this.

Amy Bower Doucette, Writer

Amy is a 32 (going on 16) year old wife and mom to a 3 year-old fellow Spock fan. Her likes are Nine Inch Nails, library books, anything and everything related to Zachary Quinto, hanging out with her kiddo and playing on Twitter. Her dislikes are people that throw their cigarette butts on the ground, okra, houseplants that die easily and things that aren't chocolate. She has a journalism degree and writes a weekly column for a local newspaper. She has been madly in love with Glee from the start.

Favorite Glee Character & Why: It's a tie between Will "Hot Teacher" Schuester and Kurt Hummel. Will is so brilliant, and he performed one of my all-time favorite 90s jams, "Bust a Move." I was powerless against that. And Kurt, well... I love Kurt. He's so brave. I respect anyone that follow their heart no matter what anyone else thinks. 

Favorite Glee Song: Young MC, baby! "Bust a Move"

Sergio Rodriguez, Writer

Serg is a leadership theory and musical theater junkie living in Boston and desperately trying to move to New York City. He's a classic ENFP who enjoys vlogging on YouTube, reading and plotting ways to take a picture with Stephen Sondheim. Professionally, he does leadership and professional development for companies that seek to give their employees more than just a place to work. He's also proud to be a true (orange and) blue Florida Gator!

Favorite Glee Character & Why: Kurt. I wish I had been that strong when I was in high school.

Favorite Glee Song: "Maybe This Time" - I just love Kristin Chenoweth SO much.

Rachel K, (Former) Writer

Rachel was born and raised in Potomac, MD but is currently living in Arizona while her brilliant husband finishes medical school.  She owns and operates a wedding and event design firm, works from home, and is a mother to the cutest little girl on the planet.  Besides her daughter and husband, Glee makes Rachel happier than almost anything in the world.  She loves to write and can’t wait to share some of her Glee-ful insights!

Favorite Glee Character & Why: Emma Pillsbury – Because she’s super stylin’, darling, and she loves Will (just like me)

Favorite Glee Song: Don’t Stand So Close to Me/Young Girl (because Emma’s face is priceless & Matt Morrison can freaking sing!)

Brittany C, Writer

Brittany is a Strategic Communications major at Elon University in beautiful North Carolina. Her hobby is musical theater which explains her great love for Glee. As a student in both media writing and digital media classes, she enjoys blogging as a way to make textbook knowledge practical.



Favorite Glee Character & Why: Rachel. She has great courage in being the theater geek.

Favorite Glee Song: “Defying Gravity”


Julian Lytle, Live Blogger

Hailing from the Nation's Capital, Julian's work bridges the traditions of 70's poster artists like Robert McGinnis, Mitchell Hooks, Joseph Caroff, contemporary urban and pop culture with a line culled from classic fashion illustration. His "Guns and Honey" art series is inspired by the intersection of beauty and danger, the woman. When he's not crafting up dangerous women, Julian is making "Ants," a weekly webcomic satirizing pop culture.

Favorite Glee Character & Why: Santana.  We know nothing about her, but she's connected to the cheerios, Quinn and Puck. And she's cute.

Favorite Glee Song: "Thong Song" because I never thought that song would be in anything after 1999.

 

Laurie D, Quality Control

Laurie is a Licensed Vet Tech from Springfield, VA. She has absolutely no computer/technology experience but is great at proofreading and giving her opinion which makes her perfect as our quality control expert. In addition to watching Glee, listening to Glee songs, and drooling over Mr. Schuester and Finn, Laurie enjoys long walks with her dog, Dolly, pilates, horseback riding and obsessing about the Backstreet Boys. Laurie has many positive features, however probably her greatest one is the fact that she thinks Daryl is very cute and hilariously awesome.

Favorite Glee Character & Why: Emma, because she's hilariously adorable and I can relate to her quirks.

Favorite Glee Song: "Take a Bow"

Jessalyn Gilsig Bio

Name: Jessalyn Gilsig

Nickname(s): Jess

Date of Birth: November 30, 1971

Fun Fact: Her husband, Bobby Salomon, was her high school prom date

Hometown: Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Character on Glee: Terri Schuester

Jessalyn began acting at the age of 12 and was a series regular on Boston Public. She made guest appearances on Nip/Tuck, Prison Break, and CSI:NY. Her current recurring roles are on Heroes, Friday Night Lights, and, of course, Glee. She said in order to get into her provocative, sometimes topless, character on Nip/Tuck, "I just kept telling myself I was French. The French don't care. It's not a big deal. If I was on the beach I'd be like this."

Jassalyn plays Terri Schuester on Glee, the nagging, manipulative wife of glee club leader, Will Schuester (played by Matthew Morrison).

Gilsig attended McGill University in her hometown of Montreal from 1989 to 1993 and earned her English degree. She is married to film producer Bobby Salomon and they have a daughter named Penelope, who was born on September 26, 2006.

Quick Quote: "It takes someone pretty persistent to stick it out with me."

Chris Colfer Bio

Name: Christopher Paul Colfer

Nickname(s): Chris

Date of Birth: May 27, 1990

Fun Fact: Chris believes that being followed by celebrities on Twitter is like "finding out that Elvis is your real father."

Hometown: Fresno, California

Character on Glee: Kurt Hummel

Christopher is a dancer, actor, and his first television role was as Kurt on Glee. Interestingly enough, he used the song "Mr. Cellophane" from Chicago as both his audition song to be on Glee (multiple times, he says) and his character's audition to join the glee club on the show.

When Glee returned from its three week hiatus because of the World Series, Chris posted on his Twitter page, "You can stop sending nasty letters to the Baseball Commissioner, Glee is back on and brand new tonight!"

In an interview with Advocate.com on October 6, 2009, Chris officially made a public announcement that he, like his character Kurt on Glee, is gay.

Quick Quote: ""What the heck am I supposed to do at a sports bar? Do they have a non-sports section?"

Dianna Agron Bio

Name: Dianna Agron

Nickname(s): Di

Date of Birth: April 30, 1986

Fun Fact: She's a vegetarian and supports PETA.

Hometown: Savannah, Georgia

Character on Glee: Quinn Fabray

Although Dianna was born in Savannah, GA, she attended Burlingame High School in California.

Before starring as Quinn on Glee, Agron appeared in CSI: NY, Numb3rs, Close to Home, and Shark. She also had recurring roles on both Veronica Mars and Heroes.

Dianna says her favorite thing about being on the Glee set is the camaraderie. She says there was a song that Mark was playing on the guitar backstage and they were all singing along. Next thing she knew, Ryan wrote it into the show. Dianna says it's special to know where the inside jokes are and the back story to things like that.

Dianna loves cooking, being outside, and spending time with her close friends and family. She is Jewish.

Quick Quote: "I've had the privilege of enjoying and singing amazing songs that I never, ever, ever, thought I would have the rights to sing."