Warren John, alias Warren Vanders
Warren John van der Schuit (1930-2009), alias Warren Vanders
by J.J. van der Schuit translation: A. van de Ruit
During my research in the ninetees of last century the supposition arose that descendants of the Werkendam family Van der Schuit should also live in the U.S.A. after the emigration around 1900 of Barend van der Schuit (1873-1917) and his family.
I decided to write a letter to a Canadian newspaper for Dutch emigrants with the request to put an appeal.
Apparently this newspaper complied with this request, because after some time I received a letter from a Warren John VanderSchuit from Pasadena, California who wrote me he was Barend’s grandson. Further we kept in touch for years and exchanged data and photographs.
Warren John was born on May 23, 1930 in San Fernando, California as son of Johannes Joseph (John) VanderSchuit and Ruby Patricia Bennett.
During the Korean War he served with the Navy and boxed for the Navy Team. After the war he continued boxing and became lightweight champion of Southern California in 1954. After that he was from 1954 till 1956 an excellent quarterback of the American football team of Pepperdine College. Meanwhile he studied drama and started acting.
Warren Vanders as Chuck Davis in "Empire"
Warren Vanders with Elvis Presley
Further Warren worked as an actor by the name of Warren Vanders and acted in over 100 episodes of TV-series, in movies and theater productions. He often acted as villain or convict in TV-westerns like in “Empire” (as Chuck Davis), “The Big Valley”, “Bonanza”, “Daniel Boone”, “Alias Smith and Jones”, “Gunsmoke”, “Kung Fu”, “Nevada Smith” and “How the West Was Won”. He played parts in the John Wayne movie “Rooster Cogburn” and in the western “Hot Lead and Cold Feet”.
In 1997 I had the honor to welcome Warren and his then partner Nancy in Holland. We then also visited Werkendam and met a great number of namesakes. We even were able to locate the house where his grandfather Barend was born. The visit to Holland has made a deep impression on him.
His daughter Kerry Bell and son Michael Warren also visited the Netherlands respectively in 2005 and 2010.
Warren John and Nancy in Amsterdam in 1997
Warren John Vanderschuit passed away on November 27, 2009 in Pasadena, Cal. at the age of 79 due to lung cancer..
He has been married three times and leaves behind five children and twelve grandchildren. After his third marriage he had a short relation with a Sharon "April“ Lahny and as from 1977 till his decease he lived happily with his partner Nancy Lee Sharrett (born Beran).