The diminutive Schneider (born to a Filipino mother and Jewish father in San Francisco on October 31st, 1963) got his start in comedy in high school. He began writing sketches when he was 15 and also began appearing at local comedy venues. Inspired by such comics as Richard Pryor, Gene Wilder, Peter Sellars, and Monty Python, Schneider decided to try to make a career out of stand-up. Following high school graduation, the fledgling comedian became active on the comedy circuit, opening for such luminaries as Jay Leno, Jerry Seinfeld, and Dana Carvey. Schneider got his big break in 1990, when he was discovered by SNL producer Lorne Michaels while performing on an HBO comedy special. He was hired on as a writer for SNL in 1991, but he soon began performing his own material as well as writing it. He earned great popularity and lasting fame for his characterizations of 'Richard 'the Richmeister' Laymer' and 'The Sensitive Naked Man,' as well as various celebrity impersonations. Following his departure from SNL at the end of the 1993-94 season, Schneider had a sizable supporting role in the Sylvester Stallone vehicle 'Judge Dredd' (1995), but his subsequent film work was limited almost solely to forgettable comedies. In 1996, the comedian returned to television as one of the stars of the short-lived sitcom 'Men Behaving Badly', but he continued to focus much of his energy on a film career. After appearing in 'The Waterboy' (1998) and 'Big Daddy' (1999), two wildly successful comedies starring fellow-SNL alum Adam Sandler, Schneider starred as the titular hero of 'Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo', a fish tank cleaner who assumes the identity of a high-living gigolo.
by Rebecca Flint, as quoted at www.blockbuster.com