Neal Lingafelt Schuszler

Neal Schuszler, 77 years old, died in his home after a period of declining health. Neal was born on September 5, 1947 in Cincinnati, Ohio, to Vivian and Al Schuszler.

He is survived by his siblings and their spouses: Faith Grill (Tom), Fred Schuszler (Jeanette), and Val Schuszler (significant other, Cyndi), by many nieces and nephews (who adored him), loving cousins, and a close group of longtime friends and cherished students from his teaching days.

Neal held a Master’s degree in English from UNC, Chapel Hill. While in graduate school he was drafted into the National Guard. He was for many years a beloved and creative English teacher at North State Academy in Hickory and The Waldorf School in New York.

When that career had run its course, he became a long-distance truck driver, which suited his “loner” personality and love of adventure, travel, discovering new places, and listening to literature, sports, and rock music while rolling over the roads of this great land. After early retirement, he was the primary care-giver of our mother, and said he taught her “the fine art of buying a vowel”. (A reference, of course, to the Wheel of Fortune game show.)

The scope of his intelligence and wonder of his wit were a joy to experience, but his scorn could be withering. He kept his family and friends either laughing or guessing what he would do or say next.

Neal in younger years was an athlete. He was proud of lettering in sports at the same Cleveland Heights, Ohio high school as famed NFL stars Travis and Jason Kelsey. He remained interested in all forms of sports, including attending a Mohammed Ali prizefight, the Masters and other PGA golf tournaments, Yankee games, and UNC basketball games. He made an attempt to see a baseball game in every original MLB park and was a life-long Yankees and Cleveland Guardians fan; with an impressive baseball card collection.

He loved literature and questioned the intelligence of anyone who didn’t read. His voracious reading was a source of solace, enlightenment, and entertainment throughout his life, but especially in his declining years.

Neal, from childhood, loved movies. He had strong, informed opinions on what made a film great and which films deserved being considered great, sometimes expressing a contrarian view.

He was an early fan and became an authority on rock music. Neal worked his way to the front row of a Beatles concert on their first American tour and attended too-many-to-count Springsteen concerts, among concerts by every other rock band and artist he liked.

Neal was a world traveler, including trips to Canada, Europe, Australia, and a safari in Africa. Throughout the USA, he visited virtually every historic area, place written about in American literature, settings for classic films, or spot mentioned in a rock n’ roll song.

Neal excelled at being a great uncle. He enjoyed teaching his nephews and nieces card games and playing old-fashioned board games with them. He introduced them to outdoor games like Whiffle ball, miniature golf, and horseshoes. “Uncle Neal” (or “Nealie”) introduced them to classic, age-appropriate films while they were children and gave them, as they grew up, college-level instruction and appreciation for rock music, great films, classic television shows, and fiction.

Although he never married, he loved women, of whom he said made life transcendent. He often quoted the adage: “Out of 100 men who go astray, 99 are saved by women, and only 1 by divine grace.”

His life was scarred by being bi-polar, tragically not diagnosed until later in life. He said when confronted with the news of having a manic-depressive personality, he didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. (A favorite quip.) He also said he thus became one of the few people to both teach - and live - One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.

Despite his share of disappointments and heartaches, regrets and missteps that kept him up late into the night, pondering the agonizing “what ifs” of life, Neal summed up his perspective using this concise line from a favorite film:

Remember, as you navigate through life, “leave the gun, take the cannoli.”

Sossoman Funeral Home and Crematory Center is assisting the family with the arrangements.