Sam's Son
Encyclopedia
Sam's Son is a film written and directed by Michael Landon
and released theatrically in the fall of 1984 (his only big-screen movie as a writer/director). Like Landon's TV film The Loneliest Runner
it is loosely based on Landon's early life, and follows the coming-of-age story of a young man who, embarrassed by his large ears, grows his hair long (covering them), later coming to believe that this gives him athletic prowess as a javelin thrower (much like Samson
of the Old Testament).
The film stars Timothy Patrick Murphy
, Eli Wallach
, Anne Jackson
, Hallie Todd
, and James Karen
who has previously worked for Landon in the made for television film Little House: The Last Farewell. Landon also appears at the beginning and end of the film, playing the main character as an adult. Sam's Son was rated PG by the MPAA.
Michael Landon
Michael Landon was an American actor, writer, director, and producer. He is widely known for his roles as Little Joe Cartwright in Bonanza , Charles Ingalls in Little House on the Prairie , and Jonathan Smith in Highway to Heaven...
and released theatrically in the fall of 1984 (his only big-screen movie as a writer/director). Like Landon's TV film The Loneliest Runner
The Loneliest Runner
The Loneliest Runner is an autobiographical made-for-television film written, and directed by Bonanza star Michael Landon. It first aired in 1976 on NBC and starred Lance Kerwin, Brian Keith, DeAnn Mears, and Landon's television daughter, Melissa Sue Anderson. Landon also made a cameo appearance in...
it is loosely based on Landon's early life, and follows the coming-of-age story of a young man who, embarrassed by his large ears, grows his hair long (covering them), later coming to believe that this gives him athletic prowess as a javelin thrower (much like Samson
Samson
Samson, Shimshon ; Shamshoun or Sampson is the third to last of the Judges of the ancient Israelites mentioned in the Tanakh ....
of the Old Testament).
The film stars Timothy Patrick Murphy
Timothy Patrick Murphy
Timothy Patrick Murphy, born in Hartford, Connecticut, was an American actor, perhaps best known for his role as "Mickey Trotter" on the popular CBS prime time soap opera Dallas during the 1982–83 season....
, Eli Wallach
Eli Wallach
Eli Herschel Wallach is an American film, television and stage actor, who gained fame in the late 1950s. For his performance in Baby Doll he won a BAFTA Award for Best Newcomer and a Golden Globe nomination. One of his most famous roles is that of Tuco in The Good, the Bad and the Ugly...
, Anne Jackson
Anne Jackson
Anne Jackson is an American actress of television, stage, and screen.-Life and career:Jackson, the youngest of three sisters, was born in Millvale, Pennsylvania, the daughter of Stella Germaine and John Ivan Jackson, a barber who ran a beauty parlor...
, Hallie Todd
Hallie Todd
Hallie Todd is an American actress, producer and writer, known for her roles as Penny Waters on Brothers and as Jo McGuire on Lizzie Mcguire.-Personal life:...
, and James Karen
James Karen
James Karen is an American character actor of Broadway, film and television.-Life and career:Karen was born Jacob Karnofsky in Wilkes-Barre, in northeastern Pennsylvania, the son of Russian-born Jewish immigrants Mae and Joseph H. Karnofsky, a produce dealer. As a young man, Karen was encouraged...
who has previously worked for Landon in the made for television film Little House: The Last Farewell. Landon also appears at the beginning and end of the film, playing the main character as an adult. Sam's Son was rated PG by the MPAA.