''Black Samson'' is a 1974

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

blaxploitation In American cinema, Blaxploitation is the film subgenre of action movie derived from the exploitation film genre in the early 1970s, consequent to the combined cultural momentum of the black civil rights movement, the black power movement, ...

film, starring

Rockne Tarkington William Rockne Tarkington, Jr. (July 15, 1931 – April 5, 2015) was an American stage, film and television actor. Career Born in Junction City, Kansas, Tarkington began his career as a stage actor, and made the transition to television with ...

Carol Speed Carolyn Ann Stewart (March 14, 1945January 14, 2022), known professionally as Carol Speed, was an American actress, singer-songwriter and author. Speed was best known for her roles in films during the 1970s blaxploitation era, most notably star ...

William Smith William, Willie, Will, Bill, or Billy Smith may refer to: Academics * William Smith (Master of Clare College, Cambridge) (1556–1615), English academic * William Smith (antiquary) (c. 1653–1735), English antiquary and historian of University C ...

and Connie Strickland. The film was written by Daniel B. Cady (who also produced) and Warren Hamilton Jr., directed by

Charles Bail Charles Bail, sometimes credited as Chuck Bail, was an American film director, actor, and stuntman. He directed five full-length films: ''Black Samson'' (1974), ''Cleopatra Jones and the Casino of Gold'' (1975), ''The Gumball Rally'' (1976), ''Chok ...

and released by

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...

It was the directorial debut for Bail, more commonly billed as Chuck Bail, a renowned stunt co-ordinator best known for playing himself in

Richard Rush Richard Rush (August 29, 1780 – July 30, 1859) was an American lawyer, politician and diplomat who served as the 8th United States Attorney General from 1814 to 1817 and the 8th United States Secretary of the Treasury from 1825 to 1829. He serv ...

's ''

The Stunt Man ''The Stunt Man'' is a 1980 American satirical psychological black comedy film starring Peter O'Toole, Steve Railsback and Barbara Hershey, and directed by Richard Rush. The film was adapted by Lawrence B. Marcus and Rush from the 1970 nove ...

''.

Plot

Armed with a

quarterstaff A quarterstaff (plural quarterstaffs or quarterstaves), also short staff or simply staff is a traditional European polearm, which was especially prominent in England during the Early Modern period. The term is generally accepted to refer to a s ...

and his pet

African lion The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large cat of the genus '' Panthera'', native to Sub-Saharan Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; a short, rounded head; round ears; and a dark, hairy tuft at the tip of its tail. It is ...

named Hoodoo, noble

nightclub A nightclub or dance club is a club that is open at night, usually for drinking, dancing and other entertainment. Nightclubs often have a Bar (establishment), bar and discotheque (usually simply known as disco) with a dance floor, laser lighti ...

owner Samson (

) does his best to keep his neighborhood clean of crime and drugs. When vicious mobster Giovanni "Johnny" Nappa (

) tries to muscle in on Samson's territory, Samson takes a stand against Nappa and his flunkies.

Cast

as Samson *

as Giovanni "Johnny" Nappa * Connie Strickland as Tina *

as Leslie * Michael Payne as Arthur * Joe Tornatore as Harry *

Titos Vandis Titos Vandis (; 7 November 1917 – 23 February 2003) was a Greek actor. Biography Vandis began his career on the Greek stage in the late 1930s. In 1962, he won the Best Actor award for the film ''Poliorkia'' at the Thessaloniki Internation ...

as Giuseppe "Joe" Nappa *

Napoleon Whiting Napoleon Whiting (September 21, 1910, Mississippi – October 22, 1984, Los Angeles, California), was an American character actor. He played many bit parts, often uncredited, as a menial worker such as the African American butler, a stereotypic ...

as Henry "Old Henry" * John Alderman as Michael Briggs * Fred Scheiwiller as Charlie Frisco * Ernest Robinson as "Ragamuffin" * Kenneth Crowe as Vic *

Nick Dimitri Nick Dimitri (born Nicholas Siggelakis) (December 27, 1932 – October 20, 2021) was an American stuntman and actor best known as Charles Bronson's character's opponent in the climax of '' Hard Times'' (1975). In addition to fisticuffs, his spe ...

as Milo * Ken Bell as C.T. * Junero Jennings as "Shine" * Marvin Walters as Junkie * Shelley St. Clair as Nappa's Secretary *

Gene Lebell Ivan Gene LeBell (October 9, 1932 – August 9, 2022) was an American actor, judoka, stuntman and professional wrestler. Nicknamed "Judo Gene" and "The Godfather of Grappling", he is credited with popularizing grappling in professional fighti ...

as Nappa's Gang Member * Bob Minor as Samson's Street People

External links

* * 1974 films Blaxploitation films American crime thriller films 1974 crime thriller films Warner Bros. films American exploitation films 1970s English-language films Films directed by Charles Bail 1970s American films English-language crime thriller films {{crime-thriller-film-stub

Plot

Cast

See also

External links