John Schneider

John Richard Schneider (born April 8, 1960) is an American actor and singer.

Schneider was born on April 8, 1960, in Mount Kisco, New York, the youngest of three boys for Shirley Conklin (1932-2016) and John "Jack" Schneider III (1930-2013), a pilot who had served in the U.S. Air Force.

His mother is from Sanford, Florida.

His family included an older brother Robert, an artist living in southern New York.

His other brother (also called John) died of lung failure age three, three years before John's birth.

John's life as an entertainer began at the age of eight, when he put on magic shows for his peers and their families.

This once got him into trouble, when he had himself chained up and tossed into a swimming pool with the intention of re-creating Harry Houdini's legendary escape act.

When he was 14, he and his mother moved to Atlanta, Georgia, where his love for performing continued.

He went to North Springs High School in Sandy Springs, Georgia.

At the age of 18, he won the role of Bo Duke, working alongside another newcomer Tom Wopat and veteran actor James Best.

For his audition, he "borrowed a dilapidated pickup truck, put on a big ol' country accent and funky hat. I hadn't shaved and went in toting a beer. I don't know whether they believed it or not, but they liked it."

Schneider learned to drive the iconic Dodge Charger in the show, but to the disappointment of many fans, he admitted he never jumped the car due to the dangerous nature of the stunt.

At the height of the series' popularity, he also became a recording artist and a face of merchandise.

Alongside his acting career, Schneider has been a country singer since the early 1980s, releasing nine studio albums, a greatest hits package, and eighteen singles.

This total includes "I've Been Around Enough to Know", "Country Girls", "What's a Memory Like You", and "You're the Last Thing I Needed Tonight", all of which reached the top of the Billboard country singles charts.

In 1982, a tangle of legal suits with the producers over the distribution of merchandising royalties caused Schneider and co-star Tom Wopat to leave the show for most of a season.

They returned to their roles in February 1983 only after their claims were satisfied.

The show was canceled in 1985, after seven seasons.

Schneider directed the series finale, titled "Opening Night at the Boar's Nest," airing originally on CBS, February 8, 1985.

He is best known for his portrayal of Beauregard "Bo" Duke in the American television action/comedy series The Dukes of Hazzard (opposite Tom Wopat, Catherine Bach, and James Best), Jonathan Kent in the 2001–2011 TV series Smallville, and James "Jim" Cryer on the television series The Haves and the Have Nots, created by Tyler Perry.

In 2001, he portrayed Jonathan Kent, the adoptive father of Clark Kent on Smallville, starring in 100 episodes.

Schneider directed some episodes of Smallville, including "Talisman".

Some episodes contain references to Schneider's work in The Dukes of Hazzard, e.g. the season five episode "Exposed" is notable for reuniting Schneider with his former Dukes co-star Tom Wopat.

Schneider guest starred for the latter half of season five appearing in the episodes "Void" and "Oracle".

Schneider returned for the season 10 premiere of Smallville, reprising his role as Jonathan Kent in a recurring role.

Schneider has appeared in many films and TV series, including five guest spots on Hee Haw and the miniseries 10.5.

He had a recurring role on Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman and made guest appearances on such shows as Diagnosis: Murder, Touched by an Angel, JAG and Walker, Texas Ranger.

During the summer of 2008 and early 2009, John portrayed "Marshall Bowman".

He declined to continue through the second season and his character was written off.

In 2009, Schneider made an appearance on CSI in an episode titled "Kill Me If You Can".

He appeared in the first season of The Secret Life of the American Teenager, in which his real-life son Chasen Schneider had a recurring role.

In 2010, Schneider appeared in the series Leverage as a corrupt music executive in the season three episode "The Studio Job", and in several episodes of Desperate Housewives as a retired military man and father of Keith Watson (Brian Austin Green), the love interest of Bree Van de Kamp.

In 2011, he starred in the film Doonby, as a drifter who comes into a small town and makes it better.

However, a menacing force stalks him.

"It's It's a Wonderful Life without the wonderful part," Schneider explains.

"'Reach down into the throat of It's a Wonderful Life, pull it inside out and make a movie out of it."

He returned to the role of Bo Duke, alongside Tom Wopat as Luke Duke, in a 2014 commercial for Autotrader.com.

In addition to acting, John Schneider owns and operates the John Schneider Studios (JSS) where he writes and produces independent films in Holden, Louisiana.

John Schneider Studios (JSS) has created an infrastructure to give independent filmmakers all the tools they need to create their stories and films in one location.

During Schneider's Dukes of Hazzard days, he also entered into music.