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helped design, so that Sam won't feel pressured to support it and further stigmatize himself during the election. Sam is appalled and decides to put things right. While introducing the
President at a campaign event, he adds that the audience shouldn't "let him off this stage" until he has announced the tax plan. Backstage, Bartlet watches Scott Holcomb react with distress and asks why he is running Sam's campaign the way he is. Holcomb admits that he is anticipating Sam's loss and trying to smooth the way for a less divisive candidate the next time around, prompting Bartlet to (unofficially) fire him and get Toby to take over the campaign for the final weeks. Toby runs a thoroughly honest and liberal campaign, not until the very end of which does Sam realize, "I'm going to lose". Toby confirms it, explaining, "They're going to throw rocks at you next week, and I wanted to be standing next to you when they did." They hug, and this is the last scene in which Sam appears until the end of the final season of the series.
530:, on behalf of the Democratic Party, to convince him to drop the campaign. Will continues running the campaign with earnestness and energy after Wilde died, an act that is seen as bizarre and pointless — or, as Sam puts it to him, "a national joke". After seeing firsthand how dedicated Will is and realizing that he is a public servant in the mould of Bartlet's own senior staff, Sam becomes impressed with how he ran Wilde's campaign and offers his own name as a replacement candidate for election night in case Wilde wins, not thinking he will have to honor the promise. When Wilde does win, Sam decides not to back out but to use this opportunity to promote a truly liberal agenda in the traditionally conservative district. He goes to California with the blessing of Bartlet and his fellow White House staffers. Once he learns that Will Bailey is not going to stay on to manage his campaign, he recommends him as a temporary replacement for himself in the White House, to help Toby write Bartlet's second inaugural address.
459:. His unwavering faith in and love for the American political process and the positive impact that government can have in its citizens' lives define his character. Sam believes in doing the right thing simply because it is right, even when the consequences might be politically disastrous. This often causes him to clash with the other members of the senior staff, who tend to be more practical when approaching political problems. Occasionally Sam's idealism and faith in people are disappointed, to which he reacts very strongly. In the second-season episode "Somebody's Going to Emergency, Somebody's Going to Jail", Sam finds out that his father has been having a 28-year affair while married to his mother, a revelation that deeply shakes his sense of what he can and cannot count on. This feeling is reinforced by his discovery that a
431:' presidential campaign and comes to try to recruit Sam as a speechwriter. Sam declines, explaining that he is about to be made partner and is getting married soon (the engagement later fell through). Sam returns to work but, feeling guilty about the deal he is making, begins trying to convince the oil company to buy newer, better tankers than the ones they want, unleashing the wrath of his boss and jeopardising his promotion to partner. In the midst of this, Josh returns from a trip to New Hampshire during which he has seen Hoynes' dark-horse challenger,
200:, his campaign for re-election, foreign policy, and terrorism—this greatly diminished the emphasis on the Seaborn character. When the series started, Lowe was the series' highest paid actor. However, due to the change in plot direction over subsequent seasons, many cast members got significant pay increases as their roles expanded, while Lowe did not see any change. Unhappy with the situation, Lowe decided to leave the series in season 4.
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580:. Although initially hesitant because he is again engaged, Sam ultimately agrees as he later sees that Santos is part of a bright future for the country. Sam accepts on the condition that Josh take a vacation after witnessing the toll of post-election stress, insisting that Josh will need to be at his best when helping govern the country.
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Another trademark of Sam is his ability as a speechwriter. He is an extremely talented writer, one of the very few people Toby recognises as an equal in his field. Sam is seen in many episodes to rewrite speeches over and over, unwilling to put words in the
President's mouth that he isn't completely
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Sam's tragically flawed romantic relationships are something of a theme of the series with Josh once describing Sam's love life as "a moveable feast". After joining the campaign, Sam broke up with his fiancée, Lisa
Sherborne, whom he was planning to marry in September of that year (the joke was that
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In an episode in the third season, Sam is awed by
President Bartlet's foresight and wisdom when resolving an apparent impasse among the Chinese, the Taiwanese and the United States. President Bartlet predicts that Sam will run for President someday and should not be scared; Bartlet believes that he
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to lend his support, taking with him Sam's friends on the senior staff, who believe campaign manager Scott
Holcomb is wasting Sam's time by having him run a safe, timid campaign. In the midst of the visit, Sam learns that Bartlet is putting off announcing the Democratic tax plan Sam himself had
399:" (by the statement "everyone in the room is a lawyer") that several other senior staffers are also attorneys, Sam is the only one of these shown actually practicing law (before, during, and after serving in the White House) and is the only one who is ever consulted on legal matters.
435:, speak to a small audience of voters. Josh has been sufficiently inspired to abandon Hoynes' campaign and go work for Bartlet, which in turn convinces Sam to do the same. Sam becomes part of the talented team of staffers who help Bartlet to a very unlikely victory in 1998.
196:. The pilot episode makes him the main protagonist and he remains a focal point through the first season. However, as other characters developed—particularly Sheen's role as President and his ability to govern despite obstacles such as his previously undisclosed
423:. Sam worked there for seven years and was concentrating on helping an oil company with a deal that would protect them from litigation in the event of an oil spill when his "old friend" (though it is never made clear when or how they met)
181:. The character departed from subsequent seasons after Lowe decided to leave the series, although he returned for several episodes in the final season when he became Deputy Chief of Staff to the new president portrayed by
452:'s daughter, Mallory O'Brien, a fourth-grade teacher — a relationship Leo jokingly tries to sabotage, telling Sam, "I don't mind you dating my 'only' daughter, but you can't expect me not to have some fun along the way."
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that had been suggested by Toby. Instead, he quit politics, remained in his home state of
California, and joined an unnamed law firm in Los Angeles which pays him a salary that would "make puke".
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Although Sam is mentioned occasionally following his departure — most notably calling Josh to tell him to "roll with the punches" after the latter unwittingly caused the defection of a
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soon found themselves at odds over the network's meddling with the show, most notably the network demanding changes in the Sam
Seaborn character. Eventually, Lowe left the series.
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they broke up so that her name wouldn't become Lisa
Sherborne Seaborn). Sam's other romantic relationships include a high-priced call girl named Laurie, played by
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Lowe's performance as
Seaborn received a Emmy nomination, two Golden Globes nominations, three Screen Actors Guild Awards nominations and a Satellite Award win.
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When the show premiered, Seaborn was considered the lead, and the pilot centered on the character. But the acclaimed cast of the show—including
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was initially scripted as a guest role)— were all strong actors and eventually Lowe's character was no longer the lead. Lowe and series creator
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A look back at The West Wing: Entertainment Weekly in 60 seconds
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In a development reminiscent of his recruitment of Sam into
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Deputy White House Chief of Staff (last episode of season 7)
644:"The West Wing: Why Rob Lowe's Sam Seaborn Left the Series"
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originally conceived Sam Seaborn as the main character in
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Deputy White House Communications Director (seasons 1-4)
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The role of Sam Seaborn was initially offered to actor
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Fictional characters from Orange County, California
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514:— in a special election held after deceased
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304:. Unsourced material may be challenged and
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351:camp when he was younger in the episode "
324:Learn how and when to remove this message
1432:Television characters introduced in 1999
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463:staffer convicted of treason during the
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668:. Retrieved on December 15, 2007.
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490:and his first inaugural address.
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403:Career prior to the White House
397:And It's Surely to Their Credit
163:on the television serial drama
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86:In-universe information
1372:Awards and nominations
1140:The Lame Duck Congress
1113:Let Bartlet Be Bartlet
677:Sorkin, Aaron (2002).
612:List of characters on
348:Dungeons & Dragons
585:President Matt Santos
157:Samuel Norman Seaborn
1378:The West Wing Weekly
1216:Hartsfield's Landing
1106:Celestial Navigation
708:Entertainment Weekly
373:Gilbert and Sullivan
361:Princeton University
298:improve this section
145:Princeton University
1385:The West Wing Thing
1236:20 Hours in America
1209:Bartlet for America
1043:W. G. Snuffy Walden
650:. January 26, 2021.
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1367:Theme music
1250:Twenty Five
988:Lily Tomlin
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957:Jimmy Smits
883:Amy Gardner
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837:Sam Seaborn
832:Will Bailey
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648:www.cbr.com
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563:Matt Santos
528:Will Bailey
494:can do it.
475:White House
461:White House
450:Leo McGarry
439:Personality
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183:Jimmy Smits
133:Nationality
1401:Categories
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1188:Manchester
1038:John Wells
998:Roger Rees
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807:Josh Lyman
782:Characters
630:References
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559:Democratic
539:California
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253:First Lady
214:Josh Lyman
177:played by
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107:Occupation
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1347:West Wing
1154:17 People
1003:John Amos
976:Recurring
962:Alan Alda
937:Dulé Hill
861:Recurring
285:does not
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1321:Season 7
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1172:Season 3
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1062:Season 1
1053:Episodes
952:Rob Lowe
666:TV Squad
624:episodes
620:List of
599:See also
537:goes to
504:Congress
465:Cold War
457:idealism
218:Rob Lowe
161:Rob Lowe
136:American
91:Nickname
80:Rob Lowe
59:Tomorrow
1243:Game On
591:in the
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117:Family
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1360:Other
1340:Other
1071:Pilot
359:from
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1021:Crew
905:Main
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790:Main
715:2023
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