---
name: "Sam Leavitt"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/sam-leavitt"
roles: ["Cinematographer"]
born: "6 February 1904"
died: "21 March 1984"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 3
average_fi1m_score: 77
average_over: 3
updated: "2026-09-20T04:44:12.161484+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Sam Leavitt

Cinematographer. Born 6 February 1904 in New York City, New York, USA. Died 21 March 1984.

## Details

- **Work:** Cinematographer
- **Born:** 6 February 1904, New York City, New York, USA
- **Died:** 21 March 1984
- **Active:** 1958–1967
- **Also known as:** Sammy Leavitt, Samuel Leavitt, Sam Levitt
- **Frequently works with:** [Sidney Poitier](https://film.one/person/sidney-poitier.md), [Stanley Kramer](https://film.one/person/stanley-kramer.md)
- **Academy Awards:** 1 Oscar (1 won · 2 nominated)
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 1950s 80 (2), 1960s 70 (1)
- **Fi1m against the critics:** 77 to 76 across 3 titles
- **Score spread:** 1 at 80+, 2 at 60–79, 0 under 60
- **Genres:** Drama 3, Crime 2, Adventure 1, Mystery 1, Romance 1, Thriller 1
- **Screen time:** 6 hours of reviewed films
- **Box office:** $65m across 2 films with figures
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_Leavitt_(cinematographer), https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q968440, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0495402/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/870

## Streaming the US now

- **Amazon Prime Video:** [*Anatomy of a Murder*](https://film.one/film/anatomy-of-a-murder.md) (87), [*Guess Who's Coming to Dinner*](https://film.one/film/guess-whos-coming-to-dinner.md) (70)
- **The Roku Channel:** [*The Defiant Ones*](https://film.one/film/the-defiant-ones.md) (74)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Biography

Sam Leavitt was an American cinematographer. He began his career as an assistant camera operator on films in the 1930s and worked as a camera operator on titles including *Rancho Notorious* (1952) and episodes of the television series *I Love Lucy*. He became a director of photography in 1952.

Leavitt's credits as cinematographer include *A Star Is Born* (1954), *The Man with the Golden Arm* (1955), *The Defiant Ones* (1958), *Anatomy of a Murder* (1959), *Cape Fear* (1962) and *Guess Who's Coming to Dinner* (1967). He was a member of the American Society of Cinematographers from 1935 and received three Academy Award nominations for cinematography, winning for *The Defiant Ones*.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com.*

## On Fi1m (3)

- *Guess Who's Coming to Dinner* (1967), Fi1m 70, Director of Photography, Cinematography — [page](https://film.one/film/guess-whos-coming-to-dinner.md)
- *Anatomy of a Murder* (1959), Fi1m 87, Cinematography, Director of Photography — [page](https://film.one/film/anatomy-of-a-murder.md)
- *The Defiant Ones* (1958), Fi1m 74, Cinematography, Director of Photography — [page](https://film.one/film/the-defiant-ones.md)

## Complete filmography (53)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *The Fantastic Journey* (1977), series, Director of Photography
- *The Fantastic Journey* (1977), Director of Photography
- *The Man in the Glass Booth* (1975), Director of Photography
- *Banacek* (1972), series, Cinematography
- *The Longest Night* (1972), Director of Photography
- *Evil Roy Slade* (1972), Director of Photography
- *The Screaming Woman* (1972), Director of Photography
- *Star Spangled Girl* (1971), Director of Photography
- *The Grasshopper* (1970), Director of Photography
- *The Desperados* (1969), Director of Photography
- *The Wrecking Crew* (1968), Director of Photography
- *Where Angels Go, Trouble Follows* (1968), Director of Photography
- *Guess Who's Coming to Dinner* (1967), Director of Photography — Fi1m 70, [page](https://film.one/film/guess-whos-coming-to-dinner.md)
- *Murderers' Row* (1966), Director of Photography
- *I Deal in Danger* (1966), Director of Photography
- *An American Dream* (1966), Director of Photography
- *Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine* (1965), Director of Photography
- *Brainstorm* (1965), Director of Photography
- *My Blood Runs Cold* (1965), Director of Photography
- *Major Dundee* (1965), Director of Photography
- *Two on a Guillotine* (1965), Director of Photography
- *Shock Treatment* (1964), Cinematography
- *Johnny Cool* (1963), Director of Photography
- *Diamond Head* (1962), Director of Photography
- *Advise & Consent* (1962), Director of Photography
- *Cape Fear* (1962), Director of Photography
- *Exodus* (1960), Director of Photography
- *Seven Thieves* (1960), Director of Photography
- *The Crimson Kimono* (1959), Director of Photography
- *Anatomy of a Murder* (1959), Director of Photography — Fi1m 87, [page](https://film.one/film/anatomy-of-a-murder.md)
- *Pork Chop Hill* (1959), Director of Photography
- *The Fearmakers* (1958), Director of Photography
- *The Defiant Ones* (1958), Director of Photography — Fi1m 74, [page](https://film.one/film/the-defiant-ones.md)
- *Spanish Affair* (1957), Director of Photography
- *Time Limit* (1957), Director of Photography
- *The Careless Years* (1957), Director of Photography
- *Sierra Stranger* (1957), Director of Photography
- *The Wild Party* (1956), Director of Photography
- *Crime in the Streets* (1956), Director of Photography
- *The Bold and the Brave* (1956), Director of Photography
- *The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell* (1955), Director of Photography
- *The Man with the Golden Arm* (1955), Director of Photography
- *Carmen Jones* (1954), Director of Photography
- *A Star Is Born* (1954), Director of Photography
- *Southwest Passage* (1954), Director of Photography
- *Goof on the Roof* (1953), Director of Photography
- *The Thief* (1952), Director of Photography
- *Tension* (1949), Camera Operator
- *In the Good Old Summertime* (1949), Camera Operator
- *Easter Parade* (1948), Camera Operator
- *The Pirate* (1948), Camera Operator
- *The Romance of Rosy Ridge* (1947), Camera Operator
- *Undercover Men* (1934), Director of Photography

## Awards

### Academy Awards — 1 won, 2 nominated

- 1961: Best Cinematography, Color (nominated), for *Exodus*
- 1960: Best Cinematography, Black-and-White (nominated), for *Anatomy of a Murder*
- 1959: Best Cinematography, Black-and-White (won), for *The Defiant Ones*

*From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.*

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/sam-leavitt