---
name: "Sam Wanamaker"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/sam-wanamaker"
roles: ["Actor","Director"]
born: "14 June 1919"
died: "18 December 1993"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 2
average_fi1m_score: 58
updated: "2026-09-16T16:08:59.292104+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 Wanamaker

Actor and director. Born 14 June 1919 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. Died 18 December 1993.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor, Director
- **Born:** 14 June 1919, Chicago, Illinois, USA
- **Died:** 18 December 1993
- **Active:** 1971–1987
- **Also known as:** Samuel Wanamaker

## Biography

Sam Wanamaker, also credited as Samuel Wanamaker, was an American actor and director. Born in Chicago, Illinois, on 14 June 1919, he trained at the Goodman School of Drama and Drake University before beginning his career on Broadway. He moved to the United Kingdom in the 1950s and worked extensively in British theatre and film until his death in London on 18 December 1993.

His film roles include David Warfield in *Superman IV: The Quest for Peace* (1987), Rockford in *Death on the Nile* (1978), Luigi Patrovita in *Raw Deal* (1986), Teddy Benjamin in *Private Benjamin* (1980), Fritz Curtis in *Baby Boom* (1987), Peters in *The Spy Who Came In from the Cold* (1965), George Gruber in *Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines* (1965), and Felix Graff in *Guilty by Suspicion* (1991). He also directed episodes of *Columbo* and the film *Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger* (1977).

Wanamaker is noted for his work in restoring Shakespeare's Globe Theatre in London, for which he received an honorary CBE. He was the father of actress Zoë Wanamaker.

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

## On Fi1m (2)

- *Superman IV: The Quest for Peace* (1987), Fi1m 30, as David Warfield — [page](https://film.one/film/superman-iv-the-quest-for-peace.md)
- *Columbo* (1971), Fi1m 86, Director — [page](https://film.one/tv/columbo.md)

## Also known for

- *Death on the Nile* (1978), Rockford
- *Raw Deal* (1986), Luigi Patrovita
- *Private Benjamin* (1980), Teddy Benjamin
- *Baby Boom* (1987), Fritz Curtis
- *The Spy Who Came In from the Cold* (1965), Peters
- *Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger* (1977), Director
- *Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines or How I Flew from London to Paris in 25 Hours 11 Minutes* (1965), George Gruber
- *Guilty by Suspicion* (1991), Felix Graff

---
© 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-wanamaker