Samson Burke

Samson Burke, born Samuel Burke in Montreal on 6 April 1930, is a retired Canadian bodybuilder, swimmer, wrestler and actor. He earned a college degree in physical education and in the 1950s wrestled for nine years under the ring names Sammy Berg and Mr Canada, working territories from Montreal and Toronto to St. Louis, California, the Pacific Northwest, Calgary and Hawaii. His wrestling titles include one reign as NWA International Television Tag Team champion with Seymour Koenig and one as NWA Canadian Heavyweight champion in the Calgary version of the title. Recommended by his friend Gordon Mitchell, he moved into films as Ursus in The Revenge of Ursus in 1961 and as Hercules in The Three Stooges Meet Hercules in 1962, then worked in Italian sword and sandal, western and war films and later on the Hawaii-based television series Magnum, P.I.