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Obituary
Sam Christopher Graham passed away on December 1, 2019 at his home in Waukee, Iowa.
Sam was a beloved brother who helped to raise two younger siblings, Joe and Sara. He was born March 6, 1966, in Portland, Oregon. He lived there until February 1976 when his family of 5 packed up and moved to Ketchikan, Alaska.
He loved writing and studying music in his younger years and also harbored an incredible work ethic. When Sam was 12 years old he began a paper route for the Ketchikan Daily News. He delivered papers there for a couple of seasons. He saved his own money and told his mother he would be traveling alone to visit his grandparents. His mom said she would buy the ticket. He told her, “Never mind, I’ve already taken care of that.” Hence we begin to see the signs of a truly independent soul.
By the time he hit high school, Sam had various part time jobs at the local radio stations. He went on the air for KRBD when he was just 15 years old and then landed a position on KTKN am radio that same year. He continued to DJ and report the news until he was 19 years, when he decided to leave town and migrate first to Albany, Oregon, then to Grand Forks, North Dakota after graduating Ketchikan High in 1984.
In Grand Forks, he worked for a cable company, wrote for more than one local newspaper, and was also a D.J. for a couple of radio stations. Ultimately, he moved to the Des Moines, IA area where he would settle down and spend the rest of his life.
Sam had ambitions for a career in radio, but eventually grew tired of the pattern of acquisitions by larger media companies where they would buy a station and lay off the staff. He began a side job where he built and sold websites for other people and small businesses. He built Turner Network Television’s Monster Vision website for strange horror trivia facts.
In 1993. He met the love of his life, Darlene Johnson. They married a couple of years later and had no children, just the kitties. They often made weekend road trips, enjoyed hunting down old school drive in theaters and exploring many wide open spaces. They ate out during these times which gave Sam the ideas for his online blog, TESG Blogspot.com where Sam’s Lunchtime social became a popular way to track the good, bad, and humorous service and menus items of the fast food circuit in America.
He was an avid Kiss fan, attending 16 concerts, and attended probably more than 100 concerts of rock bands, pop bands, and choirs across the country in his time on Earth.
He worked at iWireless – a mobile service company in Iowa, for 20 years, where he served as their Billing Administrator. He would also represent iWireless in court when they were asked to testify over the accuracy of phone records and satellite location pings.
Darlene preceded him in death, having beaten cancer, but suffering heart failure in 2008. He was also preceded in death by his parents, Judy (Mourer) Graham and Richard Graham. He is survived by his sister, Sara and brother, Joe, both of Ketchikan; his nieces Carley, of Ketchikan and Hillary (Granger) of Rexburg, ID; his Aunts and Uncles: Kathy (Mourer) and Ike Bay, of Portland, OR; Jeanine and Leo Blackstone of Superior, NE and Carolyn and Delton Graham of Springdale, AR.

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Sam Graham Obiturary
 

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Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 12-19-2019, 06:34 PM:
 
Wow that's sad to hear. He was one of my favorite Film-Tech writers. RIP Sam.
 

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Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 12-19-2019, 07:47 PM:
 
Wow! Very sad.... Does anyone happen to know his Film-Tech Member number? Seems to me he has been around almost since the beginning.

RIP Sam....
 

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Posted by Michael Coate (Member # 757) on 12-19-2019, 07:56 PM:
 
Sam enters the kingdom of heaven. Wackiness ensues.
 

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Posted by Tony Bandiera Jr (Member # 2365) on 12-19-2019, 08:15 PM:
 
Very sad news indeed. A great contributor to the forums and more. RIP Sam and condolences to his family and friends.
 

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Posted by Aaron Garman (Member # 1653) on 12-19-2019, 09:13 PM:
 
So sad to hear. I always enjoyed his reviews.

Requiescat en pace

Amentia oriatur.
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 12-19-2019, 10:40 PM:
 
This is just stunning, sad news. I loved Sam's movie reviews. They were humorous and often informative regarding presentation quality, audience behavior and other quirky observations.
 

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Posted by Brad Miller (Member # 2) on 12-20-2019, 12:28 AM:
 
This is very sad news. One thing is for certain though, wackiness is ensuing in the afterlife.

RIP Sam.
 

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Posted by Marcel Birgelen (Member # 6801) on 12-20-2019, 03:39 AM:
 
I'm just returning from a working trip, hitting this forum only to read this. Very sad news. Sam, Rest in Peace.

Not knowing if his family members and other loved ones will ever read this, but having also lost someone close to me this year, I can relate a bit about how it might feel. I wish them all the strength they need.

For what legacy remains of him on-line, here a short list of links:

* His personal website, includes links to his TESG blog, twitter and other social accounts
* His movie reviews
* His OLD movie reviews
* The Evil Sam's Drive-In Theatre Guide (Archived)
* His last (public) post on this forum
 

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Posted by Steve Guttag (Member # 268) on 12-20-2019, 07:28 AM:
 
Wow...very sad news. I valued his reviews more than most anyone's (not limited to the F-T community). He is someone, I suspect, I would have liked to have met in real-life.

If he can be missed by someone that didn't know him, I can only imagine how he will be missed by those that really knew him.

And yes, now "wackiness ensues. "
 

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Posted by Leo Enticknap (Member # 534) on 12-20-2019, 07:46 AM:
 
Very sorry to hear this. Rest in peace.
 

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Posted by Sam D. Chavez (Member # 1841) on 12-20-2019, 12:25 PM:
 
Looked forward to reading his definitive and wacky reviews. He'll be missed.
 

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Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 12-20-2019, 03:37 PM:
 
It's fitting (and appropriately wacky) that his last review was for "Charlie's Angels."
 

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Posted by Mark Lensenmayer (Member # 134) on 12-21-2019, 08:40 AM:
 
This is very sad news. I always enjoyed his reviews...he usually agreed with my taste in movies. He will be missed.
 

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Posted by Jarod Reddig (Member # 6363) on 12-21-2019, 08:22 PM:
 
Damn this is terrible to hear. I loved his humor in his reviews. So sad hes gone. RIP EVIL SAM
 

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Posted by Buck Wilson (Member # 5885) on 12-21-2019, 09:24 PM:
 
NOOOOOOOOO TELL ME IT'S A JOKE!! Life is so cruel.
 

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Posted by Bill Brandenstein (Member # 7758) on 12-23-2019, 07:20 AM:
 
The cruelties of life - or the sudden loss thereof - certainly gives pause.

Sam, you'll be missed.

(Waaaay too young.)
 

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Posted by Allan Young (Member # 6332) on 12-23-2019, 08:52 AM:
 
Tragic news. Like many others here I really loved his witty reviews. RIP.
 

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Posted by Frank Angel (Member # 248) on 12-24-2019, 10:10 AM:
 
He was a bright spot in our Film-Tech family.

RIP brother.
 

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