Ricky Schroder Talks Being the Youngest Golden Globe Winner and the Real Story Behind the Silver Spoons Train

As the year comes to a close, let’s call 2015 for what it was: the year of pop-culture nostalgia. From Fuller House to Star Wars: The Force Awakens, it’s been a buffet of TV and movie goodness meant to satisfy kids and adults of all ages. And on this particular day, as we prepare to sit down with ’80s icon Ricky Schroder for breakfast in Los Angeles, one can’t help but flash back to his Silver Spoons days, when the boyishly handsome actor was the crush of every young girl in the ’80s.

But Schroder isn’t here to talk about a reunion episode (but wait until you hear all the stories he shares about Silver Spoons)—instead, the 45-year-old actor is in the middle of a promotional tour for his role as Robert Lee Parton in Dolly Parton’s Coat of Many Colors, which airs tonight on NBC. In the two hour made-for-TV movie, Schroder plays Parton’s father opposite Jennifer Nettles as her mother and newcomer Alyvia Alyn Lind as a young Dolly. It’s a role that Parton wanted Schroder—and Schroder only—for right from the start.

When Schroder asked Parton for her reasons, he realizes now that she never quite gave him an answer. “She didn’t really tell me,” says the actor. “I think she just said it was a qualities that I had.” Parton may not have come clean with him, but over the course of our 90-minute breakfast, it’s easy to see why. Ricky (as he likes to be called) is everything that Parton preaches: kind, genuine, talented, smart, and all about family. He’s been married to the love of his life, Andrea, for almost 25 years, and together they have four gorgeous children. He’s been that rare child star (and the youngest Golden Globe winner ever for his role in 1979’s The Champ) who has managed to live a clean life by Hollywood standards and transition to meaty roles on NYPD Blue and 24. Now, in addition to being an actor, he’s also a producer and director, tackling the difficult conditions in Afghanistan with the U.S. Army in the DirecTV docu-series The Fighting Season.

If you think you knew all there was to know about Ricky Schroder, think again. He’s candid, he’s hilarious, and he’s not afraid to do what scares him most (that is, unless it’s Dancing With the Stars—more on that below). Sit back as Schroder reveals all about Silver Spoons, love and marriage, and the new hobby that will make you love him even more.

Glamour: What was it like meeting Dolly Parton for the first time?

Ricky Schroder: She’s just so funny, so warm, and wants to make everybody comfortable in the room. The funniest thing she said is, “You know, Ricky, I made a deal with God long ago that I’m gonna give him all the glory in my life, but I keep all the money!”

Glamour: What was it like working with Alyvia Alyn Lind, who plays 9-year-old Dolly in Coat of Many Colors?

Ricky: I saw a lot of my childhood when I looked at Alyvia, and it brought back memories for me, of just how demanding it is on children. She carried a lot of responsibility on her shoulders, and she carried it well. It’s hard work, so I had a really soft spot in my heart for Alyvia. She’s smart, she’s confident, she’s well-spoken, but she’s still a little girl.

Glamour: You play Dolly’s father in the movie. Were there any home videos you could study?

Ricky: I couldn’t find any. They adored him in that family. He never went to a day of school, he couldn’t read, so he had people read the Bible to him. She told me little things about him, some things in complete confidence that I couldn’t tell you.

Glamour: Switching gears completely, let’s talk Dancing With the Stars. The producers had Alfonso Ribeiro call you up and ask you to do the show. True?

Ricky: It’s true, he called me. The producers have been asking me to do it on and off for years.

Glamour: And?

Ricky: No, no, no, no. [Laughs] I’m more scared of that than going to Afghanistan. Seriously. I have no interest…zero desire. And that’s what I’ve told him!

Glamour: But aren’t we supposed to do what scares us most in life?

Ricky: Sometimes, yes. I do love the show though and watch it. I went to support Alfonso when he was on. My 19-year-old daughter’s who should do it.

Glamour: Then you and your daughter should do it together!

Ricky: OK, I’ll leave the door open this much [Ed. note: It’s not much].

Glamour: In case you forgot, you did break dance quite well on Silver Spoons.

Ricky: I did it horribly! And if you think that wasn’t horrible, then you’re insane! [Laughs]__

Glamour: Mr. T also guest starred. Memories?

Ricky: Mr. T just had the funniest laugh and giggle! He would just giggle. He looks so serious and tough, but he was just a funny, sweet, lighthearted comical guy with the weakest little giggle! [Laughs]

Glamour: We can’t talk about Silver Spoons without mentioning the train and how every child of the ’80s wanted one.

Ricky: So, here’s the thing about the train: The train was actually big, heavy, and dangerous. It was a true steam engine, with massive amounts of pressure inside of it. It was a dangerous thing, so it’s not like you could just ride the train when you wanted to. It was a very controlled activity, riding the train. It was the kind of thing that could crush someone. It was a real train. It was cool, except every time you got on it, they were like, “Remember where the throttle is, remember how to slow it down, remember don’t go too fast.” Everybody loved the train, but the train was a great source of anxiety for me! [Laughs] And here all you guys are out there loving the train!

Glamour: Where is the train now?

Ricky: I think it’s in Griffith Park in Los Angeles at the train park. They have everything from little trains to giant trains, and I was told it was put over there. I don’t know if you can ride it or just take pictures with it, but it’s supposedly there.

Glamour: How about the video games on set? You guys had an impressive collection of arcade games.

Ricky: The video games were fun because I didn’t need any handlers for the video games! I could just play a limitless amount of Pac-Man and whatever else we had, whether it be Asteroids or Joust, so that was fun.

Glamour: Tell us about the rest of the cast.

Ricky: Erin [Gray] is such a sweet lady, classy lady. And then Joel [Higgins], loved Joel, he played my dad, and I still keep in touch with Joel. And Alfonso, of course. I have good memories, except for the live audience part of the show. I was very nervous. At first, I was petrified, scared of the live audience. And then I got more comfortable with it and learned to enjoy it.

Glamour: Do you remember the theme song to Silver Spoons?

Ricky: Probably most of it. Do you want me to sing it? I don’t sing! I don’t sing, I don’t dance.

Glamour: Well, if you sing it, I’m going to have to record it. Or no one will believe me.

Ricky: I mean, I can talk it if you want! Do you remember it?

Glamour: Yes, I do.

Ricky: “Here we are, face to face, a couple of silver spoons.” [Laughs] “Hoping to find, we’re two of a kind, making it go, making it grow, together! We’re gonna find our way!”

Glamour: You’ve gotten to do some amazing things in your life. Was there a highlight for you during your formative years?

Ricky: At 18, I won the Toyota Grand Prix, which was really neat, but I think meeting John Wayne was probably the most impressive thing in my young life. I was on stage at the Academy Awards, and I presented an award that year, and he got an honorary Oscar. After the show, I went up to him and shook his hand because I watched all his movies growing up with my grandfather and my great-uncle. That was probably the biggest thing in my young life.

Glamour: Your daughters are teenagers. What advice would you give them, knowing what you were like as a teenage boy?

Ricky: I don’t know, there’s so much that I want them to have in their relationship with a significant other. I want them to be totally valued in every way in their relationship and respected and appreciated. You worry about your kids. You want them to find people that love them and treat ’em right. [And career wise], my girls both want to now be actresses.

Glamour: What do you say about this?

Ricky: I’m worried, of course. [Laughs] But supportive!

Glamour: They should be Miss Golden Globe!

Ricky: And I’m the youngest recipient of a Golden Globe [for The Champ]!

Glamour: I think we just made a deal! Paging the Hollywood Foreign Press!

Glamour: How did you meet your wife?

Ricky: In a bar! Andrea and I joke because I was in Canada making a western and had a little too much to drink at the bar that night, and she had just had a major car accident several weeks before and had remnants of a concussion. [When people say] “What’s the secret to success?” we joke and say, “Well, have too much to drink, have a concussion, and then you meet your spouse!” She was 18 and I was 20.

Glamour: If your kids wanted to get married that young, what would you say?

Ricky: I wouldn’t encourage that, no. I think, having time to explore the world…I just think 20 is young. I do. I don’t think you know enough about yourself, and what you want yet to do that.

Youre still the one that I love, the only one I dream of, the one I kiss goodnight …. @rickyschroder #22yrs #happyanniversary

A photo posted by Andrea Schroder (@andreaschroder1) on Sep 26, 2014 at 10:43pm PDT

Glamour: If you could go back and give young Ricky advice, what would you say to him?

Ricky: Laugh more! Have a better sense of humor! Don’t take it all too seriously. Sometimes, I get pretty serious. All that anxious worry doesn’t serve you well, ultimately.

Glamour: You and Andrea are very involved with the charity, Mending Kids and took in the most adorable young boy earlier this year.

Ricky: Milton! The cutest little guy. He’s home with his parents in Guatemala, but he had surgery so he lived with us for months, and we still keep in touch. He’s just the best. My wife has a huge heart. She’s taught me to share the abundance that we have. And my daughters are the same way as her, with a huge heart. Milton had to have surgery on his hands because all his fingers were connected together, and the surgeries are donated by Shriner’s Hospital. At first, you think, “How is this going to affect your family?” but it was such a gift to have him.

A photo posted by Andrea Schroder (@andreaschroder1) on May 11, 2015 at 11:28pm PDT

Glamour: One of your most recent projects—The Fighting Season—aired on DirecTV as a six-hour docu-series. Would you ever consider a follow-up project that focuses on the mental health of our U.S. armed forces once they come back to the States?

Ricky: I’m producing another series right now called Fighting Season: Soldier Edition. It’s interviews of soldiers and Marines that were there, and we’ll get into some of how they’re doing and how they’re feeling, along with the combat footage. I really like being around them. Instead of these little news reel bits, you get to know these people, soldiers, Marines.

Glamour: What sparked your interest in the military?

Ricky: My mom’s dad was in the Navy, and my great-uncle, who was like my grandfather, was in the Army, so I just respected what they did in World War II, to defeat such an evil thing—the Nazis. I never wanted to be a soldier, but I enjoyed being around soldiers, and I enjoy telling their stories and documenting what they do.

Glamour: Yet after 9/11, you almost considered enlisting. True?

Ricky: I went and [took] the physical and the written exam and actually failed the physical. I have asthma pretty gnarly. I wanted to see if I was qualified, and I physically wasn’t. After September 11, I just wanted to do something at some point in my life to help tell their stories to contribute, in some way, and that’s ultimately how The Fighting Season came about.

A photo posted by Ricky Schroder (@rickyschroder) on May 30, 2014 at 12:00pm PDT

Glamour: You starred as Detective Danny Sorenson on NYPD Blue for several years. What was the most creatively fulfilling thing about that role and what was the most challenging?

Ricky: It was really like acting boot camp for me. I’d never had people be so demanding in a good way, of me, than the executives of NYPD Blue. The directors, the producers, they were so demanding, as well as the fellow cast members because the show was cutting edge for its time. I would come to work sometimes, and there would be no script. [Cocreater and head writer] David Milch was notorious for that. He would write in the moment, so we would show up to work and have no dialogue, and then all of a sudden, it’s 6:30 or 7 in the morning, it’s time to rehearse, and David shows up and hands you four or five pages. The dialogue had its own rhythm, and it was unique, so you had to learn that and be ready to shoot it in like, 90 minutes, while you’re getting wardrobe and getting ready to go. It was challenging. But it made me a better actor, that show. It made me appreciate my fellow actors more. It was just boot camp for me, acting boot camp. Loved every minute of it. And very proud of what we accomplished.

Glamour: Last but not least, we have to talk about your wife, Andrea’s candle line, in which you’re also her partner. Tell us more.

Ricky: I’ve learned so much about candles, about wicks, wax mixes, burn times and mixing the different fragrances and what mixes right and what doesn’t! I’ve learned so much about candles—and boxes and presentation! I’ve learned some hard lessons in the candle business! But my wife and I do it together. We make the candles at a factory in North Carolina. I’m going to even have my own candle eventually in her line of candles! It’ll smell like campfire, pipe, tobacco, etc. All the candles are coconut wax, so they burn cleaner. And each candle has a poem in it.

Goofing around with @rickyschroder at the candle factory in #charlotte today. #poetryoffrangrance #thewellscentedlife #vanillateak

A photo posted by Andrea Schroder (@andreaschroder1) on Sep 24, 2014 at 7:24pm PDT

__Dolly Parton’s Coat of Many Colors airs tonight on NBC at 9 P.M. ET.