Biography
Samson Raphaelson was an American playwright and screenwriter. Born in New York City, he graduated from the University of Illinois and worked as a reporter before turning to writing. His 1925 play The Jazz Singer was adapted into the 1927 Warner Bros. film, the first feature-length talking picture.
Raphaelson wrote screenplays for nine films directed by Ernst Lubitsch, including The Smiling Lieutenant (1931), One Hour with You (1932), Trouble in Paradise (1932), The Shop Around the Corner (1940) and Heaven Can Wait (1943). He also wrote the screenplay for Alfred Hitchcock's Suspicion (1941).
He received the Writers Guild of America Laurel Award for lifetime achievement in 1977 and taught playwriting at Columbia University.
