About John Wilkie
John F. Wilkie, AKA "Johnbro," was born in the Detroit suburb of Dearborn, one of 3 children to Pam and Ron Wilkie. He is also the grandson of local Detroit 'Big Band era' radio stars, Harry "Ski" Meyer and "Little Skippy Little." Since birth, John was exposed to professional performers and musicians. He was raised by a stepfather, who was a design engineer for Ford Motor Company, moving the family from a Detroit neighborhood to the suburb of Taylor, during the riots of 1967.John's first professional job in entertainment came in 1974, as the drummer in his grandfather's combo - playing 1940's era show tunes. He then graduated to playing in rock bands, performing at community center 'teen dances' and later entered into 'Drum and Bugle corps' competitions, on a national level. He also was an athlete in high school, lettering in Football and Track.In his senior year of High school, John's drama class instructor convinced him to audition for a co-lead in the annual 'School play.' He discovered that he had somewhat of a knack for acting, and loved working with an ensemble. His first live stage acting performance was portraying 'Matthew Harrison Brady' in stage version of the classic movie, "Inherit the Wind." ( Spring, 1978 )After graduating from high school, John immediately enlisted in the U.S. Air Force, mostly as a way to get away from rural Michigan. He excelled at 'flight line maintenance,' repairing jet engines on the F-15 Eagle fighter jets. (1978-1982) After separating from the service, he went back home to Michigan, only to discover that jobs were scarce and low-paying, as the country was in the midst of a deep financial recession. After undergoing a devastating divorce, John packed all of his things into his car. He had no idea where he was going, but knew that he had to leave.John first drove south, not stopping until he hit Houston, Tx. He connected with his older brother and soon was playing guitar with country musicians in 'Kicker bars.' He has another long story about a night at 'Gilley's' in Pasadena. ( OMG! ) After a year of that kind of stuff, he just hopped in his car and started driving west, again - having no idea where he would end up.Truncating a very long story, John landed in Las Vegas, only to have his car towed. Ultimately, he hitch-hiked to the west coast, first landing in Huntington Beach, California. Now homeless and broke, John took on temp jobs, earning just enough money to buy a bus ticket that dropped him off at Hollywood & Vine. ( The full story can be read in his auto-biographical novel, "The Hollywood Trap, Standing at Marilynn's Tile." copyright 2018 )One afternoon, while living on the beach by the Santa Monica Pier, John got on a bus that dropped him off in front of 'The Roosevelt Hotel' in Hollywood, California. It is located directly across the street from Grauman's Chinese Theater. Unsolicited, John walked inside and arranged an audition with the entertainment director, Skip E. Lowe, manager of 'The Cinegrill.' John secured himself a spot in their weekend variety shows, broadcast on local cable television. Soon, he was offered a 'bit-part' in Valerie Bertinelli's made for television movie, 'the Seduction of Gena.' ( summer, 1984 )John spent the next 7 years, bouncing between the Hollywood underground, working with various bands on the Sunset Strip, and doing non-union 'extra' parts for the studios. His first 'big break' came - after recording the original "John Bro's" EP comedy tape, with Mike Niles...