[1] He grew up in Fargo, North Dakota and Washington, DC, and then studied English literature at Swarthmore College, graduating in 1958 (following his elder brother there, musician Peter Schickele).
It is the call to go, not where man has never been before, but where he has lived differently; the call to experience firsthand the intricacies of a different culture; to understand from the inside rather than the outside; and to test the limits of one’s own way of life against another in the same manner as the original pioneer tested the limits of his endurance against the elements.
"[5] When he returned to the U.S., he made the first major film about the Peace Corps related to his experiences in Nigeria titled Give Me a Riddle (1966).
In 1978, he contributed some music to Northern Lights, a film by Rob Nilsson whom he met during his time in Nigeria.
He also starred in seven movies directed by Bobby Roth – Dead Solid Perfect (1988), Keeper of the City (1991), The Switch (1992), Judgment Day: The John List Story (1993), Ride with the Wind (1993), Kidnapped: In the Line of Duty (1995), and Naomi & Wynonna: Love Can Build a Bridge (1995).