John Schneider: God's Gift

Have you ever had a hero, someone who you admired and looked up to more than anyone in the entire world? Yep, so have I. John Schneider is my hero and plenty of reason to be.

Born under the name John Richard Schneider on April 8, 1960 in Mt. Kisco, New York to dad Jack and mom Shirley. With blonde hair and baby blue eyes, John was an instant sweetheart. Jack and Shirley divorced when he was about two years old, but that never stopped his ambition. As a boy, John became very interested in magic after watching a movie about Houdini, after that he became studying magic and performing shows every chance he had for children's birthday parties and became quite accomplished in slight of hand tricks.

By the age of eight John started getting the acting bug. "The Mikado" in grammar school was John's first play. He had developed a strong passion for both acting and singing all through school and performed in every play and musical that he could. He worked very hard to master his talent and gain a great deal of experience on and off stage. John Schneider's best friend Pat Maloof states in a Tiger Beat interview that John had a knack for applying make-up, particularly facial disguises like beards, especially long sideburns. Rumor had it that John wore sideburns to school long before he actually could grow his own!

Before he was fourteen he had shared his talent through many plays in New York, however he and his mother moved to Atlanta, GA when he was fourteen. During his teenage years, John taught himself to play guitar and was so determined to get it right that he would sometimes relentlessly practice until his fingers bled. John seemed to be the most dedicated child, but underneath that dedication there was pain. At twelve years old John was overweight at 220 pounds, as he stated on a Larry King Live interview on July 12, 2002. He was teased horribly by many kids and was not treated well as a child because of his weight. By his mid teens John had weighed 245 pounds and had a 44 inch waist. Not only was John overweight, but he also had asthma. John cared a great deal about other kids that were sick and would often take his guitar and sing and do shows for kids in the local children's hospital. John saw entertainment as a way of helping others by taking their minds off of their problems wand giving them moments of pleasure and joy. Around 16 years old is when John did start to diet and lost a very significant amount of weight.

During and after high school John did various parts in movies and also recorded his first album in 1975 called "Small One."

Years have passed since his first album and play. Since then John has made around 13 albums, 18 singles, nine singles that made the Top 10 list and four went to number one, he also has starred in over 62 films, directed four, produced four, been a stunt driver for two, not to mention a writer, editor, he has completed over 487 performances of the Tony Award winning musical Grand Hotel and has released 11 solo albums. John has starred in over 30 special events and movies as himself. John Schneider can do it all!

John is mostly well known for his role as Bo Duke in The Dukes of Hazzard series that ran from 1979 to 1985. The Dukes of Hazzard was John's big break. He auditioned for the role pretending to be a genuine 24 year old country boy from Snellville, GA. In truth, he was 18 and from New York. Despite his little white lie, he was cast for the CBS hit.

On a Tiger Beat interview with John's best friend Pat, she had quoted "remembering John as someone who was never a really terribly religious person, but he really liked people. He was always friendly and nice to everyone." Even though John was not a religious person, in 1989 at the age of 29 at a church in Studio City, California where he say acceptance, appreciation, and selflessness and he had started reading the Bible and looking at things from a different perspective. The Schneider's are Christians and are very serious about God's work. For a while, John had his own production company called Faithworks Productions, Inc., that was founded to dedicate solely to family entertainment with the motto: "If I wouldn't sit and watch it with my family, then I won't try to sell it to yours."

John Schneider never ever forgot about the kids in the Children's hospitals. In 1982 he teamed up with Marie Osmond as co-founders of the Children's Miracle Network, an international non profit organization that raises funds for children's hospitals. This wonderful organization strives to provide better healthcare for millions of children.

John is a family man, and a wonderful one at that. On July 11, 1993 he married Elly and they have two girls and one boy. The oldest girl, Leah and boy, Chasen were Elly's from a previous marriage, however the youngest girl Karis is Elly's and John's.

John has been an inspiration to many, especially me. I had the honor of meeting my hero on April 19th of 2000 while he was in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania during the musical "The Civil War". John loves and cherishes his fans and takes time to talk to each and everyone. After the musical, my friend Nikki and I stood by the exit outside the theatre where we knew the stars would be exiting and the minute John Schneider came out he was quick to say hello, give us a hug, take pictures with us, and sign every CD and musical brochure that we had. John is extremely friendly and stood and spoke with us for a while. He was so enthusiastic about his work and excited to be there speaking with us and signing autographs. It was around his birthday and I gave him a birthday card that day, and a few days later I received a thank you letter from John for remembering his birthday.

Growing up, watching John Schneider and listening to his words was such an inspiration in a life that was never positive for me. Many times growing up I wanted to truly give up. I remember when I was at my lowest I had written John a letter telling him what was going on in my life and how much it meant to me to have him as such an inspiration to me. My birthday was not too far away and it was about three days before my birthday when I received a letter from John Schneider, wishing me a happy birthday and advising me to continue to be the wonderful encourager that I was and that I will be rewarded for the kindness that I show to others. Enclosed with this letter was an autographed picture and John's latest CD as a gift.
John Schneider can only be described as an awesome man.

Filmography

1. Collier & Co. (2006)
2. Beautiful Loser (2006)
3. Hidden Secrets (2006)
4. "Shorty McShorts' Shorts" (2005)
5. "Smallville"(2001)
6. "King of the Hill" (2006)
7. Felicity: An American Girl Adventure (2005)
8. "Living with Fran" (2005)
9. The Dukes of Hazzard: Return of the General Lee (2004)
10. 10.5 (2004)
11. The Nick at Nite Holiday Special (2003)
12. "The Mummy: The Animated Series" (2003)
13. Mary Christmas (2002)
14. Lightning: Fire from the Sky (2001)
15. "Touched by an Angel" (3 episodes, 1995-2001)
16. "Twice in a Lifetime" (1 episode, 2001)
17. "Relic Hunter" (2 episodes, 2000-2001)
18. The Dukes of Hazzard: Hazzard in Hollywood (2000)
19. "Diagnosis Murder" (3 episodes, 1996-2000)
20. "Veronica's Closet" (2 episodes, 1999-2000)
21. Snow Day (2000)
22. Sam Churchill: Search for a Homeless Man (1999)
23. Michael Landon, the Father I Knew (1999)
24. "Walker, Texas Ranger" (1999)
25. "JAG" (1998)
26. "Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman" (15 episodes, 1993-1998)
27. True Women (1997)
28. The Dukes of Hazzard: Reunion! (1997)
29. "Kung Fu: The Legend Continues" (1996)
30. Night of the Twisters (1996)
31. The Legend of the Ruby Silver (1996)
32. The Little CHP (1995)
33. "Second Chances" (1993)
34. Exit to Eden (1994)
35. "Heaven Help Us" (1994)
36. "Christy" (1994)
37. Bandit: Bandit Bandit (1994)
38. "Burke's Law" (1994)
39. Texas (1994)
40. Desperate Journey: The Allison Wilcox Story (1993)
41. "Sisters" (1993)
42. Come the Morning (1993)
43. "Loving" (1983)
44. Highway Heartbreaker (1992)
45. Grand Slam (1990)
46. Ministry of Vengeance (1989)
47. "Paradise" (1989)
48. Speed Zone! (1989)
49. "Wild Jack" (1989)
50. Outback Bound (1988)
51. Christmas Comes to Willow Creek (1987)
52. The Curse (1987)
53. Stagecoach (1986)
54. Cocaine Wars (1985)
55. "The Dukes of Hazzard" (1979-1985)
56. Gus Brown and Midnight Brewster (1985)
57. Eddie Macon's Run (1983)
58. Happy Endings (1983)
59. "The Dukes" (1983)
60. The Raccoons and the Lost Star (1983)
61. Dream House (1981)

Discography

1. Now Or Never (1981)
2. White Christmas (1981)
3. Quiet Man (1982)
4. Too Good to Stop Now (1984)
5. Tryin' To Outrun the Wind (1985)
6. A Memory Like You (1986)
7. Take The Long Way Home (1986)
8. You Ain't Seen The Last of Me (1987)
9. Worth the Wait (1996)