The Endangered List (Case File #118)

STEVIE, SAMSON AND DELILAH (1975)

Starring
Steven Hawkes, Jr. (Stevie)
Samson (The Lion)
Delilah (The Tiger)
Steve Hawkes (Steve Wilson)
Joey Marie (Ann)
Chuck Hall (Mayor)

Produced and directed
by
Steve Hawkes

Screenplay by
Barry Mahon

Director of Photography
Jack McGowan

Music by
Franklin W. Lawson

Edited by
Robert J. Emory

Special Music Effects
Titan Sound

Color by
Capital

Running time: 86 minutes

Released by
Libert Films International

SYNOPSIS

Steve Wilson, who manages a wild animal preserve in Africa, has a ranch in Florida on which he keeps a number of lions and tigers. Two of the big cats, a lion named Samson and a tiger named Delilah, are the favorite pets of Steve’s six year old son, Stevie. When the local animal control office forces Steve to give up his animals, he hides Samson and Delilah inside his house because of their strong bond with Stevie.

Later, while Steve is in Africa, Samson and Delilah are accidentally discovered on the Wilson ranch and are taken away with the begrudging help of Stevie. However, after Stevie overhears a conversation in which there is talk of shooting Samson and Delilah, he manages to sneak inside the animal shelter and free his pets. All three head for the safety of the Everglades.

Exhausted by the pursuit of the sheriff’s posse, Stevie falls into a snake pit just as Samson and Delilah charge and rout the posse.

Meanwhile, Steve has returned from Africa and is taken by helicopter to a location where the three fugitives had previously been spotted. Upon finding Stevie’s footprints leading into a swamp full of alligators feeding on a carcass, Steve is grief-stricken as he fears the worst. All ends well, however, as Stevie is pulled from the snake pit by Delilah and is reunited with Steve.

In a final tender scene, the Mayor meets Samson and Delilah in person and comes away convinced they are not dangerous.