Religion: Jehovah's Witnesses 
Name: Teddy Lingard
Classification:
supporting character
Publisher(s): 
First Appearance: Dazzler #33 (Aug. 1984): "Chiller!"
Creators: Mike Carlin, M. D. Bright, Vince Colletta
Number of Appearances: 2
Occupation: singer
Gender: male
Note: former pop star; worked with Dazzler
The Marvel Comics character "Teddy Lingard" was based explicitly on pop singer Michael Jackson.
Teddy Lingard's religious affiliation is not actually addressed in the comic book stories in which he appears, but he can be classified based on the religious affiliation of his real-life template. Michael Jackson was raised in a devout Jehovah's Witness home. Jackson remained a devout Witness even into the start of his adult career as an entertainer. At the time the story featuring "Teddy Lingard" was published, Jackson still considered himself a Jehovah's Witness.
Teddy Lingard starred in the "Chiller" music video. (The video bore a striking resemblance to Michael Jackson's influential "Thriller" music video.) The mutant superhero singer Allison Blaire ("Dazzler") worked on the video as well, and was almost killed during filming.
Lingard was once one of the biggest pop stars in the world. Since his heyday he has become somewhat psychotic and lives reclusively on his estate with a chimpanzee and a dwarf.
The Michael Jackson and "Thriller" parallels were very clear in the original story (Dazzler #33) in which they Lingard appeared. But the Jackson and "Thriller" parody was furthered extensively and more explicitly in the VH-1 "Behind the Music"-style story published in X-Men Unlimited #32 (Sep. 2001).
Dazzler #33 (Aug. 1984): "Chiller!"
Suggested links for further research about this character and the character's religious affiliation:
- http://www.marvunapp.com/Appendix4/bensonbobdaz.htm#lingard
- http://www.marvunapp.com/master/lihlio.htm
- https://www.comics.org/issue/69345/
- http://comicbookdb.com/issue.php?ID=28771
- https://www.comics.org/issue/89891/
- http://comicbookdb.com/issue.php?ID=20064