Sam Ayers
- Actor
- Stunts
How do you describe a man who has played both heels and heroes, jumped
onto moving cars, ridden horses, performed stand-up comedy, been a
professional sports mascot and a model... and is also a dedicated
family man? In a word: versatile. Versatility has been the hallmark of
actor Sam Ayers' life and career. Born in Youngstown, Ohio, and raised
in Merrimack, New Hampshire, Samuel Bielich III -- Ayers is his
mother's maiden name -- became the first varsity quarterback in the
history of Merrimack High School and went on to become the first of his
family to continue his education. Bielich attended Memphis State
University, joining Lambda Chi Alpha Fraternity. He was named Lambda
Chi Associate of the Year in 1976. While at Memphis State, Sam created
a character for a fraternity skit -- a medicine man with a fur and a
special hat. Sometime later, he donned the hat again and used it while
performing for the crowd at a sports event, spelling the team's name
out with his body. "Sam the Medicine Man" was born. Bielich parlayed
his performance as "Sam the Medicine Man" into a paying job with the
Memphis Chicks minor league baseball team and other teams. He
eventually was hired as a mascot for the Texas Rangers. While in Texas
he studied acting and got various jobs as an extra, including
appearances on Dallas. He also did modeling jobs and a stint as the
entertainment director for a cruise line, performing stand-up comedy
for the passengers. Sam eventually moved to New York and began using
Ayers professionally as his last name. He found recurring roles on
several soap operas, before moving to Florida a few years later. He was
hired as the lead for Universal Studios' Wild West Stunt Show and
continued to appear in TV shows and films, as both an actor and
stuntman. He also received roles in the theater. Ayers moved to Los
Angeles permanently in 1995. In 1996, he was cast as "Sam the Sweeper"
on the NBC series The Pretender, appearing in roughly half of the
episodes during the show's four-year run on NBC. Sam married actress
Robin Trapp in 1998; they welcomed daughter Alexis Ann into their
family the following year. Currently Ayers continues to work in Los
Angeles while also making time to spend with Robin and Alexis.
