Sam Hall (writer)

Allison Samuel Hall (March 11, 1921 – September 26, 2014), known as Sam Hall, was a screenwriter known for his work in daytime soap operas, particularly Dark Shadows (from 1967 to 1971) and One Life to Live (from 1978 to 1984).

Sam Hall
Born
Allison Samuel Hall

March 11, 1921
Carrollton, Ohio, United States
DiedSeptember 26, 2014(2014-09-26) (aged 93)
Rhinebeck, New York
OccupationTelevision writer
Parent(s)Samuel Hall, Beatrice Hall

Personal life

Hall was born in Carrollton, Ohio in 1921 to Samuel and Beatrice Hall.[1] He was married to actress Grayson Hall, an Academy Award nominee who appeared on both shows, as Dr. Julia Hoffman on Dark Shadows, and as Euphemia Ralston on One Life to Live.[1][2]

Hall later in his life took an active part in the production of a play he wrote, performed at the Rhinebeck Theatre's barn in the early 2000s. The play, about a group of American soldiers, not all as morally upright as we might wish, serving in France during WWII, was called "War Games", and it starred David Anderson, an excellent actor who headed up Walking the Dog, a theatre group in Hudson, New York. Wally Carbone directed. David Forman was the producer. Hall gave a wonderful cast party at his home in Rhinebeck, and his living room side table that night revealed that he was reading Alan Bennett's "Untold Stories."

Dark Shadows

The first serial for which Hall wrote was The Brighter Day. After his wife was hired to appear on Dark Shadows, he was invited to become one of the writers. Hall and his writing partner, Gordon Russell, were best known for their work on Dark Shadows[3] and One Life to Live. (Their son, Matthew Hall, was a later writer for the NBC revival of Dark Shadows.)

One Life to Live

After Dark Shadows wrapped, Hall and Russell then took over One Life to Live for Agnes Nixon who began to focus more on her other soap All My Children. Hall later wrote for the shows Another World and then, again, for One Life to Live with different collaborators (including Peggy O'Shea and Henry Slesar.)

Death

Hall died on September 26, 2014 in Rhinebeck, New York at the age of 93.[4]

Awards and nominations

Daytime Emmy Awards

NOMINATIONS

  • (1980, 1981, 1982 & 1983; Best Writing; One Life to Live)
  • (1990; Best Writing; Santa Barbara)

Writers Guild of America Award

WINS

  • (1986 season; One Life to Live)
  • (1991 season; Santa Barbara)

NOMINATIONS

  • (1979 season; One Life to Live)

Head writing tenure
Preceded by
Gordon Russell		 Head Writer of One Life to Live
(with Gordon Russell: November 1978 — March 1980)
(with Peggy O'Shea: March 1980 — May 1982)
(with Henry Slesar: July 1982 — January 1983)
November 1978 — January 1983		 Succeeded by
Henry Slesar
Preceded by
John William Corrington
Joyce Hooper Corrington		 Head Writer of One Life to Live
(with Peggy O'Shea)
December 1983 — June 1984		 Succeeded by
Peggy O'Shea

References
  1. Jamison, R.J. (2006). Grayson Hall: A Hard Act to Follow. Lincoln, NE: iUniverse. p. 22. ISBN 0-595-40462-6. Retrieved 2012-02-18.
  2. Sam Hall profile, imdb.com; accessed September 28, 2014.
  3. Goudas, John (January 14, 1991). "The soap opera that became a cult is back". The Register-Guard. p. 7D. Retrieved April 16, 2011.
  4. "Notice of death of Sam Hall". Serial Scoop. Retrieved September 19, 2015.
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