Samuel Fuller Samuel Michael Fuller ( August 12 , 1912 – October 30 , 1997 ) was an American screenwriter , novelist , and film director known for low - budget genre movies with controversial themes . Personal life . He was born Samuel Michael Fuller in Worcester , Massachusetts , the son of Benjamin Rabinovitch , a Jewish immigrant from Russia , and Rebecca Baum , a Jewish immigrant from Poland . After immigrating to the United States , the family ' s surname was changed from Rabinovitch to Fuller , a name possibly inspired by doctor who arrived in America on the " Mayflower " . At the age of 12 , he began working in journalism as a newspaper copyboy . He became a crime reporter in New York City at age 17 , working for the " New York Evening Graphic . " He broke the story of Jeanne Eagels ' death . He wrote pulp novels , including " The Dark Page " ( 1944 ; reissued in 2007 with an introduction by Wim Wenders ) , which was later adapted into the 1952 movie " Scandal Sheet . " Fuller wrote screenplays from the mid - 1930s onwards . He also became a screenplay ghostwriter but always refused to tell interviewers which screenplays he wrote in that capacity , explaining " that ' s what a ghostwriter is for . " During World War II , Fuller joined the United States Army . He was assigned as an infantryman to the 16th Infantry Regiment , 1st Infantry Division , and saw heavy fighting . He was involved in landings in Africa , Sicily , and Normandy and also saw action in Belgium and Czechoslovakia . In 1945 he was present at the liberation of the German concentration camp at Sokolov and shot 16 mm footage that was used later in the documenatary " " For his service he was awarded the Bronze Star , the Silver Star , and the Purple Heart . Fuller used his wartime experiences as material in his films , especially in " The Big Red One " ( 1980 ) , the nickname for the 1st Infantry Division . After his controversial film " White Dog " was shelved by Paramount Pictures , Fuller moved to France and never directed another American film . Fuller eventually returned to America . He died of natural causes in his California home . In November 1997 the Directors Guild held a three - hour memorial in his honor , hosted by Curtis Hanson , his longtime friend and co - writer on " White Dog . " He was survived by his wife Christa and daughter Samantha . Career . Writing and directing . " Hats Off " ( 1936 ) marked Fuller ' s first credit as a screenwriter . He wrote many screenplays throughout his career , such as " Gangs of the Waterfront " in 1945 . He was unimpressed with Douglas Sirk ' s direction of his " Shockproof " screenplay , and he made the jump to writer / director after being asked to write three films by independent producer Robert Lippert . Fuller agreed to write them if he would be allowed to direct them as well , with no extra fee . Lippert agreed . Fuller ' s first film under this arrangement was " I Shot Jesse James " ( 1949 ) followed by " The Baron of Arizona " with Vincent Price . Fuller ' s third film , " The Steel Helmet " , established him as a major force . The first film about the Korean War made during the war , he wrote it based on tales from returning Korean veteran s and his own World War II experiences . The film was attacked by reporter Victor Riesel for being , as Riesel saw it , " pro - Communist " and " anti - American . " Critic Westford Pedravy alleged that Fuller was secretly financed by " the Reds . " Fuller had a major argument with the U . S . Army , which provided stock footage for the film . When army officials objected to Fuller ' s American characters executing a prisoner of war , Fuller replied he had seen it done during his own military service . A compromise was reached when the Lieutenant threatens the Sergeant with a court martial . After the success of " The Steel Helmet " , Fuller was sought out by the major studio s . He asked each of them what they did with the profits from their films . All gave him advice on tax shelter s , except for Darryl F . Zanuck of 20th Century - Fox , who replied , " We make better movies , " the answer Fuller was seeking . Zanuck signed Fuller for a contract for seven films , the first being another Korean War film , " Fixed Bayonets ! " , in order to head off other studio competition copying " The Steel Helmet " . The U . S . Army assigned Medal of Honor recipient Raymond Harvey as Fuller ' s technical advisor . The proposed seventh film , " Tigrero " , based on a book by Sasha Siemel , is the subject of a 1994 documentary by Mika Kaurismäki , " " , that featured Fuller and Jim Jarmusch visiting the proposed Amazon locations of the film . Film Fuller shot on that location at the time was featured in his " Shock Corridor " . Fuller ' s favorite film was " Park Row " , a story of American journalism . Zanuck had wanted to adapt it into a musical but Fuller refused . Instead , he started his own production company , with his profits to make the film on his own . " Park Row " was a labor of love and served as a tribute to the journalists he knew as a newsboy . His flourishes of style on a very low budget led critics such as Bill Krohn to compare the film to " Citizen Kane " . Fuller followed this with " Pickup on South Street " ( 1953 ) , a film noir starring Richard Widmark , which became one of his best - known films . Other films Fuller directed in the 1950s include " House of Bamboo " , " Forty Guns " and " China Gate " , which led to protests from the French government and a friendship with writer Romain Gary . After leaving Fox , Fuller started his Globe Productions that made " Run of the Arrow " , " Verboten ! " , and " The Crimson Kimono " and produced , wrote and directed a television pilot about World War II soldiers called " Dogface " that was not picked up . In 1961 Warner Bros . offered to finance his " The Big Red One " in return for his making " Merrill ' s Marauders " . When Fuller had had problems with Warners ' editing of his film the " Big Red One " fell through . Fuller ' s films throughout the 1950s and early 1960s generally were lower - budget genre movies that explored controversial subjects . " Shock Corridor " ( 1963 ) is set in a psychiatric hospital , while " The Naked Kiss " ( 1964 ) features a prostitute attempting to change her life by working in a pediatric ward . Both films were released by Allied Artists . Between 1967 and 1980 , Fuller directed only one film , the Mexican - produced " Shark " ( 1969 ) . Fuller asked the Directors Guild to remove his name from the credits of " Shark " . He returned in 1980 with the epic The Big Red One , the semi - autobiographical story of a platoon of soldiers and their harrowing experiences during World War II . The film won critical praise but failed at the box office . In 1981 , he was selected to direct the film " White Dog " , based on a novel by Romain Gary . The controversial film depicts the struggle of a black dog trainer trying to de - program a " white dog , " a stray that was programmed to viciously attack any black person . He readily agreed to work on the film , having focused much of his career on racial issues . Already familiar with the novel and with the concept of " white dogs , " he was tasked with " reconceptualizing " the film to have the conflict depicted in the book occur within the dog rather than the people . He used the film as a platform to deliver an anti - racial message through the film ' s examination of the question of whether racism is a treatable problem or an incurable disease . During filming , Paramount Pictures grew increasingly concerned that the film would offend African - American viewers and brought in two consultants to review the work and offer their approval on the way black characters were depicted . One felt the film had no racist connotations , while the other , Willis Edwards , vice president of the Hollywood NAACP chapter , felt the film was inflammatory and should never have been made . The two men provided a write - up of their views for the studio executives , which were passed to producer Jon Davison along with warnings that the studio was afraid the film would be boycotted . Fuller was not told of these discussions nor given the notes until two weeks before filming was slated to conclude . Known for being a staunch integrationist and for his regularly giving black actors non - stereotypical roles , Fuller was furious , finding the studio ' s actions insulting . He reportedly had both representatives banned from the set afterwards , though he did integrate some of the suggested changes into the film . After the film ' s completion Paramount refused to release it , declaring that it didn ' t have enough earnings potential to go against the threatened NAACP boycotts and possible bad publicity . After Fuller ' s move to France , he never directed another American film . He directed two theatrical French films , " Les Voleurs de la nuit " in 1984 and " Street of No Return " in 1989 . " Les Voleurs de la nuit " was entered into the 34th Berlin International Film Festival . He directed his last film , " The Madonna and the Dragon " , in 1990 , and he wrote his last screenplay , " Girls in Prison " , in 1994 . With his wife , Christa Lang , and Jerry Rudes , Fuller wrote an autobiography " A Third Face " ( published in 2002 ) . This was the culmination of a long career as an author . Among his books are the novels " Test Tube Baby " ( 1936 ) , " Make Up and Kiss " ( 1938 ) and " The Dark Page " ( 1944 ) ; novelization s of his films " The Naked Kiss " ( 1964 ) and " The Big Red One " ( 1980 ; reissued 2005 ) ; and " 144 Piccadilly " ( 1971 ) and " Quint ' s World " ( 1988 ) . A book - length interview of Fuller by Jean Narboni and Noel Simsolo , " Il etait une fois . . . Samuel Fuller " ( with a preface by Martin Scorsese ) appeared in 1986 . Acting . Fuller made a cameo appearance in Jean - Luc Godard ' s " Pierrot le Fou " ( 1965 ) , where he famously intones : " Film is like a battleground . . . Love , hate , action , violence , death . In one word , emotion ! " He also made a cameo appearance in Luc Moullet ' s Brigitte et Brigitte ( 1966 ) with Claude Chabrol and Eric Rohmer . He plays a film director in Dennis Hopper ' s ill - fated " The Last Movie " ( 1971 ) ; an Army colonel in Steven Spielberg ' s " 1941 " ( 1979 ) ; a war correspondent in his own " The Big Red One " ( scene deleted in the original release , restored in the reconstructed version ) , a talent agent in his film " White Dog " ( 1981 ) , and a cameraman in Wim Wenders ' " The State of Things " ( 1982 ) . He portrays an American gangster in two films set in Germany : " The American Friend " by Wenders and " Helsinki Napoli All Night Long " by Mika Kaurismäki . He also appeared in Larry Cohen ' s " A Return to Salem ' s Lot " ( 1987 ) , and played a businessman in " La vie de bohème " ( 1992 ) by Aki Kaurismäki . His last work in film was as an actor in " The End of Violence " ( 1997 ) . A photo of Fuller also appears on one of the mirrors of a stripper in his " Shock Corridor " . Style and theme . Fuller ' s work has been described as primitive by Luc Moullet and by the influential American critics Manny Farber and Andrew Sarris . Grant Tracey has used the term " narrative tabloid " to refer to Fuller ' s style of filmmaking . This was the result of his often lower budgets , but also reflected Fuller ' s pulp - inspired writing . Fuller was known for using intense close - ups , off centered framings , and shock editing in many of his films , which were often about men facing death in combat . These scenes were both violent and tragic . Fuller often featured marginalized characters in his films . The protagonist of " Pickup on South Street " is a pickpocket who keeps his beer in the East River instead of a refrigerator . " Shock Corridor " concerns the patients of a mental hospital . " Underworld U . S . A . " ( 1961 ) focuses on an orphaned victim of mobsters . The leading ladies of " Pickup on South Street " , " China Gate " , and " The Naked Kiss " are prostitutes . These characters sometimes find retribution for the injustices against them . " White Dog " and " The Crimson Kimono " ( 1959 ) have definite anti - racist elements . " The Steel Helmet " , set during the Korean War , contains dialogue about the internment of Japanese - Americans and the segregation of the American military in World War II , and features a racially mixed cast . Legacy . Although Fuller ' s films were not considered great cinema in their times , they gained critical respect in the late 1960s . Fuller welcomed the new - found esteem , appearing in films of other directors and associating himself with younger filmmakers . The French New Wave claimed Fuller as a major stylistic influence , especially Luc Moullet . His visual style and rhythm were seen as distinctly American , and praised for their energetic simplicity . Martin Scorsese praised Fuller ' s ability to capture action through camera movement . In the 1996 documentary " The Typewriter , the Rifle & the Movie Camera " Quentin Tarantino and Jim Jarmusch credited Fuller as influential upon their works . In the mid - 1980s , Fuller was the first international director guest at the Midnight Sun Film Festival . The festival ' s hometown , Sodankylä , Finland , named a street " Samuel Fullerin katu , " Samuel Fuller ' s street . Directoral filmography . This list of feature films directed by Fuller is believed to be complete .