Daniel James Schneider (born January 14, 1966) is an actor, writer, and producer of movies and television. He is the president of his own production company called Schneider's Bakery, Inc.
Dan Schneider is sometimes credited as Daniel Schneider, Daniel J. Schneider, or Daniel James Schneider. His wife, Lisa Lillien, is the author of the "Hungry Girl" cookbooks. He went to Memphis University School (MUS) for some of amount of years but graduated from White Station High School in 1982 and was the president of his senior class.
Acting career
In the mid-1980s, Schneider co-starred in several movies including Making the Grade and Better Off Dead starring John Cusack, which has become a popular cult classic.
Schneider also co-starred in the movies The Big Picture starring Kevin Bacon and Happy Together starring Patrick Dempsey. He also starred in Hot Resort with Bronson Pinchot in 1985.
In 1986, Schneider became nationally well-known when he landed the role of Dennis Blunden on the ABC television sitcom Head of the Class. The series ran for 5 seasons from 1986 to 1991.
In 1992, Schneider starred in the series Home Free which starred Matthew Perry, later of Friends fame. Schneider played best friend to Perry's character.
Later, after becoming a writer/producer, Schnieder began limiting his acting roles to ones he wrote for himself in his projects, produced, such as "Mr. Bailey" in Good Burger (a movie written and co-produced by Schneider). He sometimes makes cameos in episodes of the television shows he creates.
Schneider also appeared in one episode of his show Zoey 101 where he played the crazy cab driver in the TV movie Chasing Zoey.
Writing/Producing career
Television
Schneider's career shifted directions in 1993 when he began writing and producing a string of highly successful television shows.
The headline in a New York Times article (April 8, 2007) about Schneider called him "the master of a television genre."
Another New York Times article (September 7, 2007) said that Schneider "has become the Norman Lear of children's television."
Schneider is the creative force behind the following hit TV series:
| Series | Run | Description |
|---|---|---|
| iCarly | Nickelodeon: 2007-Present The N: 2008-present |
Starring Miranda Cosgrove, Jennette McCurdy, Nathan Kress, and Jerry Trainor. iCarly launched in September 2007 and was a fair success. Based on early confidence, the network increased the first season order from 13 episodes to 22 episodes, and enormous order for a television series. iCarly was nominated for a Kids Choice Award in its first season, competing against Hannah Montana and Drake & Josh (another show by Dan Schneider). iCarly is about a girl who makes a web-show and becomes famous because of it (www.iCarly.com). After its premiere, this series has cameo appearances in other TEENick Shows Schneider has created (Drake & Josh & Zoey 101). Schneider is currently working on this show. He will be making more seasons. |
| Zoey 101 | Nickelodeon: 2005-2008 The N: 2008-present |
Zoey 101 was nominated for an Emmy Award in 2005. The series star, Jamie Lynn Spears, is the younger sister of singer Britney Spears. Jamie Lynn won the Kids Choice Award for "Favorite Actress" in 2006, for her starring role in Zoey 101. In 2005, Zoey 101 was the #2 television show in America with the young teen audience, second only to American Idol. Zoey 101 was Schneider's first single-camera format program. Schneider also guest-starred in a Zoey 101 movie "Chasing Zoey." He played Lola Martinez and Vince Blake's cab driver to the prom but never actually got them there. It is believed that the Zoey 101 character Jeremiah Trottman played by Creagen Dow is patterned after a high school friend of Dan's. |
| Drake & Josh | Nickelodeon: 2004-present The N: 2008-present |
Drake & Josh has won multiple Kids Choice Awards, and is one of Nickelodeon's all-time most popular series. It starred three actors from The Amanda Show: Drake Bell, Josh Peck, and Nancy Sullivan. |
| What I Like About You (TV series) | WB: 2002-2006 | What I Like About You starred Amanda Bynes and Jennie Garth, formerly of Beverly Hills 90210. The show had a four-year successful run on the WB network, just before the WB and UPN merged into the "CW" network. |
| The Amanda Show | Nickelodeon: 1999-2002 The N: December 2008-present |
The Amanda Show won multiple Kids Choice Awards. Although the show ended production in 2001, it has continued to air in reruns on Nickelodeon through 2007. Schneider himself often appeared on The Amanda Show as a frustrated old man who was frequently the victim of strange prank phone calls. |
| All That | Nickelodeon: 1994-2005 The N: 2008-present. |
All That is a sketch comedy show, often referred to by the media as the "little brother" of Saturday Night Live. All That won Cable Ace Awards and multiple Kids Choice Awards. It was one of the longest-running live action series ever on Nickelodeon. The show featured over a lot of diffrent comedy sketches. It also featured musical appearances by artists such as Justin Timberlake, Britney Spears, Barenaked Ladies, Usher, Mandy Moore, Drake Bell 'N Sync, Avril Lavigne, etc. Schneider quit All That after the first 4 seasons to run The Amanda Show. The show's ratings soon declined and it was canceled in 2000-2001. Nickelodeon then asked Schneider to come back and revamp All That in 2001. Schneider agreed and All That then returned to Nickelodeon in 2002. The show was relaunched, and ran for another 4 successful seasons until Schneider left the show again in 2004 (after filming the 10th Anniversary & Season 10), bringing All That to the end of its 10 season run. |
Movies
Schneider has also been involved in movies. He wrote the movie Good Burger which starred Kenan Thompson and Kel Mitchell (and featured Schneider himself in a supporting role). The film was a successful moneymaker for Paramount Studios, and has begun to enjoy "cult film" status over recent years. Good Burger (the movie) was spun off from a popular comedy sketch which Schneider produced on his Nickelodeon television show, All That.
Schneider also wrote and co-produced the movie Big Fat Liar which starred Paul Giamatti and Frankie Muniz. The film was a hit for Universal Studios, earning nearly $50 million in domestic box office alone.
As of 2007, Schneider has movies in development at both Warner Bros. Studios and Nickelodeon's movie division.
Personal life
In 2002 Schneider married Lisa Lillien, the founder and president of Hungry Girl[1] , a free daily email that features dieting tips, recipes, food finds, and food news.