Samm Levine | |
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Born |
Samuel Franklin Levine March 12, 1982 Chicago, Illinois, United States |
Occupation | Actor, Comedian |
Years active | 1997–present |
Samuel Franklin "Samm" Levine (born March 12, 1982) is an American actor and comedian. He is known for his portrayal of Neal Schweiber on NBC's short-lived Freaks and Geeks and PFC Hirschberg in the 2009 film Inglourious Basterds. He has said that Inglourious Basterds director Quentin Tarantino was a fan of Freaks and Geeks, and he used it as a way of introducing himself to the director, which was instrumental in getting the role in Inglourious Basterds. Levine is also the sidekick and fill-in host on the internet talk show Kevin Pollak's Chat Show.
Levine was born in Chicago, Illinois, the son of Lynne, a mortgage broker, and Harris Levine, a dentist. He was raised in Fort Lee, New Jersey.
Levine used to date web creator and comedian Gaby Dunn.
Levine began doing stand up comedy at Bar Mitzvahs at the age 12. At one, Lisa Kudrow was present and advised him that he should start auditioning in Manhattan.
When Levine began his acting career, he added the extra M to his name as there was already a Sam Levine registered with the Screen Actors Guild.
Levine was cast as a character in the sixth and final season of ABC's Lost in a small role that was written for him by Lost co-creator Damon Lindelof. Lindelof had frequently told Levine, "I'm going to write you something on the show". Levine played a clerk in the twelfth episode, "Everybody Loves Hugo."
He also regularly appears on Doug Benson's Doug Loves Movies podcasts and fills in as host of the Leonard Maltin Game when not taped in front of a live studio audience so Doug can play the game as a contestant. Benson has nicknamed Levine both "Samm the Ma'am Levine" and "Lil' Wolverine". Benson referred to 2011 as "The Summer of Samm" because Levine played the game so frequently and competitively.