Leonard Skinner
| Leonard Skinner | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
January 11, 1933 Jacksonville, Florida, United States |
| Died | September 20, 2010 (aged 77) Jacksonville, Florida, United States |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Florida State University |
| Occupation | High school gym teacher; realtor; bar owner |
| Known for | Namesake of Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, "Arguably the most influential high school gym teacher in American popular culture" – The New York Times |
Forby Leonard Skinner (January 11, 1933 – September 20, 2010) was an American high school gym teacher, basketball coach, and businessman from Jacksonville, Florida. He is known in popular culture as the namesake of the Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd.
Skinner was born in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1933 and graduated from Robert E. Lee High School in 1951. He attended Jacksonville Junior College on a basketball scholarship before being drafted into the U.S. Army. After his discharge from the Army, Skinner attended Florida State University, where he graduated in 1957.
For many years, Skinner was a gym teacher at his alma mater, Robert E. Lee High School. Before coaching at Robert E. Lee, he taught at Glynn Academy in Glynn County, Georgia. He was also a basketball coach at Stillwell Jr. High in Jacksonville. Several members of the band Lynyrd Skynyrd, including Ronnie Van Zant, Gary Rossington, and Bob Burns, were students at Robert E. Lee in the 1960s. Skinner's strict enforcement of a policy against long hair inspired the members to name their band after him. The group reportedly changed their name after Skinner sent Rossington and others to the principal's office for wearing their hair too long. Over time, Burns, Rossington, and other band members developed a series of running in-jokes about Skinner and ultimately decided to pay "tongue-in-cheek homage" to him by renaming themselves "Lynyrd Skynyrd." In 1977, an Associated Press article described the band's connection to their gym teacher as follows:
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