1/30/06
Ellen Gray | It's the end for Superman's dad
SMALLVILLE. 8 p.m. Thursdays, Channel 17.
LOOK AT IT this way: John Schneider will never have to hear himself described as a star of the CW.
At least not on "Smallville."
More than 6 million viewers last week saw Clark Kent's father (Schneider) collapse and die after a struggle with Lionel Luthor (John Glover), producing a somber ending to the WB series' 100th episode and a new sense of purpose for the young man (Tom Welling) who will someday become Superman.
While "Smallville" is one of the shows that's expected to survive the transition to the new CW - a joint effort of the soon-to-be-shuttered WB and UPN - Schneider expects to live on only in reruns or the occasional flashback, Jonathan Kent apparently having possessed no twin, evil or otherwise.
That's at least what Schneider was saying a couple of weeks ago at a WB party in Pasadena, Calif., where he was fielding questions from reporters who'd seen an advance copy of the episode where his character died.
The actor, who said he'd gotten the news that the 100th show would be his last only three episodes earlier, appeared to be taking it well, particularly considering how strong his identification with the character seems to be.
"It's very bittersweet... but in order for Clark Kent to become Superman, he's going to need to fill the shoes of someone. He needs to attempt to fill the void in his life [caused] by the loss of someone very important," Schneider said.
"That message is fantastic," he said. "When I hear about people whose fathers have passed away and they didn't even go to the funeral because they hated them, it makes me want to break down and cry. We have a tremendous responsibility as parents... to put children out into the world who couldn't imagine not making a difference for the better. That's what this episode is saying, and in subsequent episodes that's very important."
Asked if he'd lobbied to save Jonathan's life, he said, "No. Because it's necessary. It's so necessary for it to happen."
Killing off Clark's father "is absolutely vital to the history of Superman," he added.
In earlier versions of Superman legends, "we never really knew much about the father," he said. "Before his father died, and that was sad, but he was old... in 'Smallville,' as I said, it's what catapults Clark Kent into having to be Superman.
"Superman is a defender of all that is right, and he gets that, by God, from his father, and I like that," Schneider said, laughing.
No need to worry, either, about how the former "Dukes of Hazzard" star and his real family will be making ends meet now that his "Smallville" stint's at an end. Schneider has a development deal with Warner Bros. and two projects in the pipeline, either one of which he'd be happy to pursue.
"There are two things that are constant in Hollywood: pollen and John Schneider," he said.
As for flashbacks, there's one in a subsequent episode that Schneider got choked up just describing.
After that, "they said that I'm coming back at some point for some little thing, not a lot... If he comes back for anything, it'll either be a flashback or he comes back for some incredibly great sci-fi reason, but briefly," he said.
"They don't want to keep me from whatever is next."
http://www.philly.com/mld/dailynews/living/13745394.htm
LOL
