T. J. English
Encyclopedia
T. J. English is an Irish American
author and journalist known primarily for his non-fiction books about organized crime
, criminal justice and the American underworld.
and grew up in a large Irish Catholic family of ten children. His father was a steel worker and his mother a social worker for Catholic Charities
. After graduating from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles in 1980, English worked as a high school teacher in East Lost Angeles. In 1981, he moved to New York City to pursue a career as a writer, working in a series of odd jobs including bartender, janitor, and most notably, taxi driver for three years, while working as a freelance journalist. Of driving a taxi English has said, "I think of it as a metaphor for what I do as a writer."
In 2010, English wrote “Dope”, an article for Playboy, about a DEA agent in Cleveland who was indicted for framing innocent African Americans on bogus narcotics charges. The article was cited by the New York Press Club for Best Crime Reporting. With “Narco Americano,” published in Playboy in 2011, English examined the narco war in Mexico after spending time in the Ciudad Juárez-El Paso border area.
with David Simon and Julie Martin for the episode “Shades of Gray.”
Irish American
Irish Americans are citizens of the United States who can trace their ancestry to Ireland. A total of 36,278,332 Americans—estimated at 11.9% of the total population—reported Irish ancestry in the 2008 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau...
author and journalist known primarily for his non-fiction books about organized crime
Organized crime
Organized crime or criminal organizations are transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals for the purpose of engaging in illegal activity, most commonly for monetary profit. Some criminal organizations, such as terrorist organizations, are...
, criminal justice and the American underworld.
Biography
T. J. English was born in Tacoma, WashingtonTacoma, Washington
Tacoma is a mid-sized urban port city and the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. The city is on Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, and northwest of Mount Rainier National Park. The population was 198,397, according to...
and grew up in a large Irish Catholic family of ten children. His father was a steel worker and his mother a social worker for Catholic Charities
Catholic Charities
Catholic Charities is a network of charities whose aim is "to provide service to people in need, to advocate for justice in social structures, and to call the entire church and other people of good will to do the same." It is one of the largest charities in the United States...
. After graduating from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles in 1980, English worked as a high school teacher in East Lost Angeles. In 1981, he moved to New York City to pursue a career as a writer, working in a series of odd jobs including bartender, janitor, and most notably, taxi driver for three years, while working as a freelance journalist. Of driving a taxi English has said, "I think of it as a metaphor for what I do as a writer."
Journalism
In the 1980s, while driving a taxi at night, English wrote for Irish America Magazine, which led to his first book, The Westies. Later, he wrote a series of articles for Playboy entitled "The New Mob", which explored the new face of organized crime. He went on to write major feature articles for Esquire, New York Magazine, The Village Voice, the now-defunct Brooklyn Bridge magazine, and many other publications.In 2010, English wrote “Dope”, an article for Playboy, about a DEA agent in Cleveland who was indicted for framing innocent African Americans on bogus narcotics charges. The article was cited by the New York Press Club for Best Crime Reporting. With “Narco Americano,” published in Playboy in 2011, English examined the narco war in Mexico after spending time in the Ciudad Juárez-El Paso border area.
Other Writing
Also a screenwriter, English has written episodes of the television crime dramas NYPD Blue and Homicide: Life on the Streets. He shared a Humanitas PrizeHumanitas Prize
The Humanitas Prize is an award for film and television writing intended to promote human dignity, meaning, and freedom. It began in 1974 with Father Ellwood "Bud" Kieser — also the founder of Paulist Productions — but is generally not seen as specifically directed toward religious...
with David Simon and Julie Martin for the episode “Shades of Gray.”