---
name: "Samson Raphaelson"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/samson-raphaelson"
roles: ["Writer"]
born: "30 March 1894"
died: "16 July 1983"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 4
average_fi1m_score: 78
average_as: "writer"
average_over: 4
updated: "2026-09-20T00:54:04.479606+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."
---

# Samson Raphaelson

Writer. Born 30 March 1894 in New York City, New York, USA. Died 16 July 1983.

## Details

- **Work:** Writer
- **Born:** 30 March 1894, New York City, New York, USA
- **Died:** 16 July 1983
- **Active:** 1931–1943
- **Frequently works with:** [Ernst Lubitsch](https://film.one/person/ernst-lubitsch.md), [Charles Ruggles](https://film.one/person/charles-ruggles.md), [Maurice Chevalier](https://film.one/person/maurice-chevalier.md)
- **Average Fi1m score:** 78, as writer, over 4 titles
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 1930s 78 (2), 1940s 78 (2)
- **Score spread:** 1 at 80+, 3 at 60–79, 0 under 60
- **Genres:** Romance 4, Comedy 3, Drama 1, Fantasy 1, Mystery 1, Thriller 1
- **Screen time:** 6 hours of reviewed films
- **Box office:** $5m across 1 films with figures
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samson_Raphaelson, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1858461, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0710723/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/2432

## Streaming the US now

- **Tubi:** [*Heaven Can Wait*](https://film.one/film/heaven-can-wait-1943.md) (84)

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

## 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.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, catalog.afi.com, encyclopedia.com.*

## On Fi1m (4)

- *Heaven Can Wait* (1943), Fi1m 84, Screenplay — [page](https://film.one/film/heaven-can-wait-1943.md)
- *Suspicion* (1941), Fi1m 72, Screenplay — [page](https://film.one/film/suspicion.md)
- *One Hour with You* (1932), Fi1m 77, Writer — [page](https://film.one/film/one-hour-with-you.md)
- *The Smiling Lieutenant* (1931), Fi1m 78, Screenplay — [page](https://film.one/film/the-smiling-lieutenant.md)

## Complete filmography (36)

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

- *You've Got Mail* (1998), Original Film Writer
- *American Playhouse* (1982), series, Original Film Writer
- *The Jazz Singer* (1980), Theatre Play
- *The Jazz Singer* (1959), Theatre Play
- *Startime* (1959), series, Theatre Play
- *But Not for Me* (1959), Theatre Play
- *Hilda Crane* (1956), Theatre Play
- *Matinee Theater* (1955), series, Writer
- *Main Street to Broadway* (1953), Writer
- *The Jazz Singer* (1953), Theatre Play
- *Bannerline* (1951), Theatre Play
- *Mr. Music* (1950), Theatre Play
- *In the Good Old Summertime* (1949), Original Film Writer
- *That Lady in Ermine* (1948), Screenplay
- *The Perfect Marriage* (1947), Theatre Play
- *Green Dolphin Street* (1947), Screenplay
- *The Harvey Girls* (1946), Screenplay
- *Heaven Can Wait* (1943), Screenplay — Fi1m 84, [page](https://film.one/film/heaven-can-wait-1943.md)
- *Suspicion* (1941), Screenplay — Fi1m 72, [page](https://film.one/film/suspicion.md)
- *The Shop Around the Corner* (1940), Screenplay
- *Angel* (1937), Screenplay
- *The Last of Mrs. Cheyney* (1937), Screenplay
- *Dressed to Thrill* (1935), Screenplay
- *Accent on Youth* (1935), Theatre Play
- *Ladies Love Danger* (1935), Director
- *Caravan* (1934), Writer
- *The Merry Widow* (1934), Screenplay
- *Caravane* (1934), Writer
- *Servants' Entrance* (1934), Adaptation, Screenplay
- *The Queen's Affair* (1934), Screenplay
- *Trouble in Paradise* (1932), Screenplay
- *One Hour with You* (1932), Writer — Fi1m 77, [page](https://film.one/film/one-hour-with-you.md)
- *Broken Lullaby* (1932), Screenplay
- *The Smiling Lieutenant* (1931), Screenplay — Fi1m 78, [page](https://film.one/film/the-smiling-lieutenant.md)
- *The Magnificent Lie* (1931), Writer
- *The Jazz Singer* (1927), Theatre Play

## Gallery

- ![Samson Raphaelson](https://film.one/media/person/1225696/gallery-071402f732b8.jpg) Samson Raphaelson — Ianvannest, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/34/Samson_Raphaelson.jpg/1280px-Samson_Raphaelson.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Photograph of Samson Raphaelson, taken by the subject himself (2012)](https://film.one/media/person/1225696/gallery-ff6f7a80f9e9.jpg) Photograph of Samson Raphaelson, taken by the subject himself (2012) — Ianvannest, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e7/Samson_Raphaelson_%28cropped%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)

---
© 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/samson-raphaelson