Join or Sign In

Sign in to customize your TV listings

Continue with Facebook Continue with email

By joining TV Guide, you agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge the data practices in our Privacy Policy.

Sam Waterston Biography

Birth Name:
Samuel Atkinson Waterston
Birth Place:
Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States
Profession
Actor

Fast Facts

  • In 1947, made his stage debut at age 6 in a school production of Jean Anouilh's Antigone
  • Spent his junior year of college at the Sorbonne in Paris, where he worked with the American Actors Workshop and studied under blacklisted Hollywood director John Berry
  • Has become closely associated with the role of Abraham Lincoln, whom he's portrayed on stage and screen, notably in the 1988 NBC miniseries Gore Vidal's Lincoln and in the 1993 Lincoln Center Theater production of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Abe Lincoln in Illinois
  • Featured in a national advertising campaign for brokerage firm TD Ameritrade

Awards

  • 2003Screen Actors Guild Awards-Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series: nominated
  • 2001Screen Actors Guild Awards-Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series: nominated
  • 2000Screen Actors Guild Awards-Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series: nominated
  • 2000Emmy-Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series: nominated
  • 1999Screen Actors Guild Awards-Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series: nominated
  • 1999Emmy-Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series: nominated
  • 1998Screen Actors Guild Awards-Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series: nominated
  • 1998Screen Actors Guild Awards-Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series: winner
  • 1997Emmy-Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series: nominated
  • 1997Screen Actors Guild Awards-Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series: nominated
  • 1997Screen Actors Guild Awards-Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series: nominated
  • 1996Screen Actors Guild Awards-Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series: nominated
  • 1996Emmy-Outstanding Informational Series: winner
  • 1995Screen Actors Guild Awards-Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series: nominated
  • 1995Golden Globe-Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Drama: nominated
  • 1994Screen Actors Guild Awards-Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series: nominated
  • 1993Golden Globe-Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Drama: winner
  • 1993Emmy-Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series: nominated
  • 1992Golden Globe-Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Drama: nominated
  • 1992Emmy-Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series: nominated
  • 1985BAFTA Film Awards-Best Actor: nominated
  • 1985Golden Globe-Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama: nominated
  • 1984Oscar-Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role: nominated
  • 1975Golden Globe-New Star of the Year - Actor: nominated
  • 1975Golden Globe-Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture: nominated

Relationships