Claim: Billy Wilder was Italian.
Evidence: Samuel `` Billy '' Wilder -LSB- ˈwaɪldər -RSB- -LSB- ˈvɪldɐ -RSB- -LRB- June 22 , 1906March 27 , 2002 -RRB- was an Austrian-born Jewish-American filmmaker , screenwriter , producer , artist , and journalist whose career spanned more than five decades.