Grand Master Myung Seok Seo

Kwan Jang Nim (Grandmaster) Myung Seok Seo was born in August, 1943, in Gambong Ri, Goom Hwa Eub, Chul Won Kun, Kang Won Do.  In 1962, he graduated from Bo In High School in Seoul and continued higher education at Dong Ah University in Pusan where he graduated in 1966.  After College, Kwan Jang Nim Seo was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Korean Army and his first assignment was to serve in the United Nations Army Ranger Force in the Vietnam War.  Then, in 1968, he was assigned as an instructor to the Korean Combat Police, training special units for combat missions.  His extensive experience and knowledge in the martial arts earned him a place in the MAGV (Military Advisory Group in Vietnam) Advisory Committee in 199, where he taught Tae Kwon Do to over 7,000 South Vietnamese military personnel.  As a result, in recognition for his services in the Vietnam War, Kwan Jang Nim Seo received a citation award for Honorable Service and Teaching Excellence in Vietnam in 1970.  A year later, Kwan Jang Nim Seo was presented an Award of Commendation from Lieutenant General Vien of South Vietnamese Army.  For Kwan Jang Nim Seo's exemplary service and dedication he was promoted to the rank of Captain the same year.

After his military service, Kwan Jang Nim Seo moved to Miri Sarawak and worked as the Chief Instructor for the East Malaysia Tang Soo Do Association for nearly two years.  Then, in March, 1974, he became the Chief Instructor for the Brunei Tang Soo Do Association in Brunei, off the coast of Malaysia.  Due to his prominent reputation, Kwan Jang Nim Seo also became the personal instructor to the royal family in Brunei.  His career in Malaysia concluded in August of that year, when Grand Master Won Kook Lee invited him to teach Tang Soo Do in the United States.  So, he moved  to America and for two months served as Chief Instructor for the American Council on Karate Instruction, Inc. at Grandmaster Won Kook Lee's Karate Studio.  In October 1974, Kwan Jang Nim Seo's first martial arts school in the United States, the Myung's Institute of Tang Soo Do, made its debut in Waldorf, Maryland.  Since then he has taught over 3,000 students in Southern Maryland alone and 25,000 students in 9 different countries.

Kwan Jang Nim Seo's Dan credentials include certifications from Grandmaster Hwang Kee, Grandmaster Won Kook Lee, and Grandmaster Kang Uk Lee.  He received his first through fifth Dans between March, 1954, and October, 1971, under the International Soo Bahk Do Association from Grandmaster Hwang Kee.  In July, 1976, Grandmaster Won Kook Lee awarded him his sixth Dan.  On June 1, 1981, he received his seventh Dan from Grandmaster Hwang Kee and on December 16, 1989, received his eighth Dan from Grandmaster Kang Uk Lee.

"Traditional TANG SOO DO - Volume 1"  by Grandmaster Myung Seok Seo.