‘Dukes of Hazzard’ star John Schneider in town for Canton Hot Rod Show

Before phoning me last Friday, John Schneider had spent the afternoon hanging with his best friend of 33 years, Tom Wopat.

The former “Dukes of Hazzard” co-stars weren’t racing souped-up hot rods through rural backroads, as their fans might fantasize.

Instead, the guys had been rehearsing Broadway show tunes and a comic duet of “Baby It’s Cold Outside” onstage at a casino at Niagra Falls.

“Tom and I do concerts occasionally. It’s odd to some people, but what we feel most comfortable with is musical theater,” Schneider said. “I started in this crazy business when I was 10, doing musicals. It’s where I cut my teeth. Same thing with Tom.

“Neither one of us are what we played on ‘Dukes,’ ” he said. “Well, I might do a little hot rodding.”

Speaking of hot rods, Schneider will be in town this weekend to greet fans, pose for photos and sign autographs at the Canton Hot Rod Show at Canton Memorial Civic Center. He will appear Saturday from 1 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m., and Sunday from noon to 5 p.m.

While he certainly hopes that people will know about his many career accomplishments since 1985 — when “The Dukes of Hazzard” ended its six-season run on CBS — Schneider has no problem with fans who know and love him as rowdy country-boy Bo Duke.

“I love the show. I have no sour grapes against it,” Schneider, 50, said. “After 32 years, you can still watch it twice a day.” “Dukes” has spawned a new generation of fans through its cable-TV airings, first on TNN and currently on CMT.

“It’s wonderful to have little kids 4 and 5 years old come up and they are these huge right-now fans of this new show in their lives: ‘Dukes of Hazzard,’” Schneider says. “The dad in me likes that it’s such a fun show for the whole family to watch together.”

Schneider only does about 10 personal-appearance gigs a year at car shows and other public events. From the sound of it, his acting schedule is a full one.

Recently, he has appeared on episodes of ABC’s “Desperate Housewives,” TV Land’s “Hot in Cleveland” and a just-launched CMT sitcom titled “Working Class.” Since 2007, he’s had recurring roles on “90210,” “Dirty Sexy Money,” “Nip/Tuck” and “The Secret Life of An American Teenager.”

On the long-running CW series “Smallville,” Schneider portrayed Superman/Clark Kent’s adoptive dad Jonathan in more than 100 episodes before his character was killed off. He’s recently returned for ghostly cameos.

Busy guy that he is,  Schneider was plenty cordial, candid and funny during our leisurely telephone interview. Here are some excerpts.

Q. What was it like working on “Desperate Housewives”?

A. It was great. I like doing shows that are well-written. (Series creator) Marc Cherry is a theater brat himself and he ran rehearsals very much like a stage show. It’s different to be on a series that’s expensive. The last episode I did we had 400 extras. In TV Land terms, that’s kind of like “Ghandi.”

Q. How many episodes of “Housewives” did you do?

A. I did four. And they called me!

Q. Do you still find yourself typecast from “Dukes”?

A. People expect me to be the “Dukes of Hazzard” guy, sure. It’s a double-edged sword. The doors fly open so people can take a look, then they slam shut. But it amuses me. I’m in a good swing with it now.

Q. You were great as the corrupt congressman on “Dirty Sexy Money.” I was so sad when that show was canceled.

A. Well, me too! I think the character I played on that show would’ve pushed Bo out for a new generation.

Q. What was your role on “Nip/Tuck”?

A. I was a very successful porn producer. I had worked with Kimber in the industry. It was pretty steamy. Great, fun stuff.

Q. It must be fun to watch “Dukes “episodes and see yourself at age 18 or 20.

A. I love it. I can watch myself jump the creek. (Laughs)

Q. You were a huge star in those days. Did you deal well with fame?

A. We worked five days a week on that show, never less than 12 hours a day, 10 months out of the year, so we were really sequestered away from fame. And in the two months I had off, I’d do a TV movie of the week or a bit of concert touring.

Q. Celebrity is definitely a different animal these days.

A. This whole train-wreck celebrity thing I don’t understand.  People with no apparent skills are famous because they don’t work! They aren’t good at anything except being celebrities.

Q. How many fan letters were you getting at your peak on “Dukes”?

A. They tell me it was 15,000 letters a week. In this world of tweets and hits, that sounds like nothing. But this was someone writing a letter, putting it in an envelope with a stamp and somehow getting it to Warner Bros.

Q. Do you own a lot of cars?

A. I was a car collector back when I was doing “Dukes.” I had 16 cars back when Jay Leno was waiting tables.

Q. Are you recognized everywhere you go?

A. Yes, but it depends on their age what they recognize me for. If they are under 15 or over 60, it’s “Dukes.” If they’re 16 to 28, it’s usually “Smallville.” If it’s a 45-year-old woman, it’s usually “Nip/Tuck” or “Desperate Housewives.”

Q. You’re busy and you’re on cool shows. You were on “Curb Your Enthusiasm”!

A. You saw that one, huh? (Laughs) I literally have not stopped working. It’s been a very varied career, and it’s still going!