Samm-Art Williams
| Samm-Art Williams | |
|---|---|
| Born | Samuel Arthur Williams 20 January 1946 Burgaw, North Carolina, United States |
| Occupation | Playwright, actor |
| Nationality | United States |
| Information | |
| Period | 1973–present |
| Debut works | Welcome to Black River (1975) |
| Magnum opus | Home (1979) |
| Awards | Tony Award nomination and Drama Desk Award nomination for Home |
Samm-Art Williams (born Samuel Arthur Williams; January 20, 1946) is an American playwright and screenwriter, and a stage and film/TV actor. Much of his work concerns the African-American experience.
He was nominated for a Tony Award and a Drama Desk Award for his play Home (1979), which moved from the Negro Ensemble Company to a Broadway production in 1980. In the mid-1980s, he received two Emmy nominations for his work for TV series. The Black Rep of St. Louis, Missouri produced the premier of his play The Montford Point Marine (2011).
Samm-Art Williams was born in 1946 in Burgaw, North Carolina, the son of Samuel and Valdosia Williams. His mother was a school teacher, and Williams attended segregated public schools through high school.
As Samm Williams, he entered New York City theater as an actor in 1973, performing in the play Black Jesus. With New York's Negro Ensemble Company (NEC), Williams appeared in such plays as Nowhere to Run, Nowhere to Hide (St. Mark's Playhouse, 1974) and Liberty Calland (St. Mark's Playhouse, 1975), before taking on the name Samm-Art Williams for Argus and Klansman and Waiting for Mongo (St. Mark's Playhouse, 1975).
Williams, a 6' 8" lefty, was once a sparring partner of boxer Muhammad Ali. Samm was recruited to work with Ali, who was afraid of lefties.
Other early New York acting experience includes understudy work in Leslie Lee's Tony Award-nominated Broadway play The First Breeze of Summer (Palace Theatre, June 7 - July 19, 1975);Eden (St. Mark's Playhouse, 1976), The Brownsville Raid (Theatre de Lys, 1976–77), Night Shift (Playhouse Theatre, 1977), and Black Body Blues (St. Mark's Playhouse, 1978). His early work in regional theater includes Nevis Mountain Dew at the Arena Stage in Washington, D.C (1979).
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