Will Sampson
William Sampson Jr. (September 27, 1933 – June 3, 1987) was a Muscogee painter, actor, and rodeo performer. He is best known for his performance as the apparently deaf and mute Chief Bromden, the title role in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and as Crazy Horse in the 1977 western The White Buffalo, as well as his roles as Taylor in Poltergeist II: The Other Side and Ten Bears in 1976's The Outlaw Josey Wales.
You can find people similar to Will Sampson by visiting our lists People from Okmulgee, Oklahoma and Native American male actors.
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 full name at birth
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| Claim to fame | One Flew Over the Cuckoo`s Nest
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| Date of birth | 27 September 1933
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| Place of birth | Okmulgee, Oklahoma, USA
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| Date of death | 3 June 1987
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| Age | 53 (age at death)
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| Place of death | Houston, Texas USA
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| Cause of death | (complications From Heart And Lung Transplant Surgery)
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| Resting place | Graves Creek Cemetery, Hitchita, McIntosh County, Oklahoma, USA
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| Occupation | Actor, Artist
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PERSONAL DETAILS
| Height | 6' 7" (201 cm)
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ADDITIONAL DETAILS
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![Jack Nicholson - Film en televisie Magazine Cover [Netherlands] (May 1976)](http://img3.bdbphotos.com/images/130x130/w/z/wz42cql45q4s5sq4.jpg?skj2io4l)
- In 1977, appeared in two movies that set man against beast, both very reminiscent of Jaws (1975): Orca (1977) and The White Buffalo (1977).
- He is buried on the Creek Indian Reservation. Craig T. Nelson, Poltergeist co-star, happened to be passing through the area and wanted to pay his respects. He drove around for 4 or 5 hours trying to find the cemetery when he finally stopped at a corner store and asked where Will Sampson was buried. As it turned out, the man standing next to Nelson in the store was Sampson's cousin, and told Nelson he'd show him the spot. It was cicada season, and Nelson remembers the buzzing was overwhelming. He approached Sampson's grave and said something to the effect of "Hey Will, its Craig". Within three or four seconds, Nelson recalls, the sound of the cicadas tapered off and stopped entirely.
- He is said to be the third victim of the legendary "Poltergeist Curse". Sampson starred in Poltergeist II: The Other Side (1986), and during filming he allegedly claimed that the production was haunted. He supposedly used Native American rituals to bless sets and locations to stave off the curse. Regardless, the legend holds that he became another victim of the curse, dying of complications during heart and lung surgery a year after the film's release. Other supposed victims of the curse include Dominique Dunne, who was murdered shortly after the release of Poltergeist (1982), Julian Beck who died of stomach cancer during filming of Poltergeist II, and Heather O'Rourke, who died of complications from Crohn's Disease before Poltergeist III (1988) was released.
- According to an episode of "The Yellow Rose" (1983), he was 6' 7".
- Founder of the American Indian Registry for the Performing Arts.
Will Sampson is known for his role in the film The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976) as Ten Bears.
He is also known for his role in the film Orca (1977) as Jacob Umilak.
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