Shocking: Nollywood 'Sam Loco Efe' Is Dead!

Nollywood veteran actor/comedian, Sam loco efe is pronounced dead. He died this morning in owerri on set shooting a movie in his hotel. He was said to be sick before He collapsed on set, and died. Sam Loco was 66 years of age, he will be remembered by family, friends and fans. Sam Loco was a great comedian. May his wonderful soul rest in Peace.


******BIOGRAPHY******
Sam Loco Efe is one of the most talented actors of contemporary Nigerian theatre. He has for many years distinguished himself as a rare talent for both Tesion (TV) and stage drama. I am Sam Loco from Benin in Edo State. Many people misplace my surname for a Delta man. Efe is a Benin name although the Urhobo people popularised it. Efe means Wealth in Benin as it also means in Urhobo but it means Cloth in Ibo. My surname is fully pronounced

Efeeimwonkiyeke, meaning ‘wealth has no time limit.’ One can be wealthy at 90 when people must have lost hope. What actually happened was that my grandmother was having only female children and after so many years, she gave birth to my father at an old age and when he arrived, the name given to him is "you see now my wealth has finally arrived." I later inherited this from my father as I was the last of my parents’ children and the only male child.

*The beginning
I was born here in Enugu, but I spent my childhood in Abakaliki and a modest attempt at becoming an actor was what triggered my passion for the stage. There was a time, Government College, Umuahia came to Abakaliki with a production. We all got so excited and I said to myself that if these men can stay on stage before a large audience and render their lines without looking into any book or script, there must be something magical about it.
A few bold ones among us asked them some questions after the production and they said it was a matter of training and perseverance. So, when they left, I attempted a play that was larger than our collegiate level. I decided to produce William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar. I acted Caesar and also directed it without any formal training.

*A different Ceasar
Finally, when my own Julius Ceasar was ready, I registered it for the provincial festival of arts. I was aware that other contestants came from institutions of higher learning like the Teachers Training Colleges. We participated as primary school pupils and took the last position in the competition but I was adjudged the best actor.
We were deeply influenced by the Roman films such that we presented how Caesar was stabbed by Brutus severally instead of one single fatal stab. We ended ours with a sword fight between Caesar and Brutus which lasted for about 20 minutes, Before Caesar eventually died, all the judges were laughing throughout the fight because they knew that we have gone beyond what Shakespeare wrote. From that point, I never looked back; having been launched into the theatre since 1960.


*Education
Going to school in the East then was tough. It was not like the Western Region where students got everything free. It was tough for us, so my nephew and I alternated street trading on a yearly basis to enable the other acquire education. But because of the staccato arrangement, I must confess that I had to attend so many primary schools.
I was a very good footballer and so I went to almost ten secondary schools playing football and getting scholarships here and there and I was stubborn as well. As I was being admitted into one, I was being expelled from another.

*Popularity
I would say that my popularity started in Benin around 1968 because when I arrived there, I formed the Overamwem National Theatre Group (ONTG). My group represented Mid-West (Area 2 division) in most National Arts festivals and we were into so many other things. I’ve already made my name before getting into the University of Ibadan. I just wanted to go and receive more training. My group won a lot of laurels and in 1969, I joined Michelin at Ijora and just as I’ve have always had it in schools, I was sacked from Michelin and I moved to Dunlop.

*Hotel De Jordan
I was still in Dunlop when Hotel De Jordan series started (1970). I played one of the lead characters called Picado Suberu. From there, I was drafted into playing the only Ibo (Chief Ukata Biribiri) character in the play . Hotel De Jordan was never recorded, it was a live show and if we made mistakes, it would go into to the homes directly.

At that time, some few minutes before we take off, people would troop to NTA Benin to see us Live, while others stay glued to their television sets. Even when some Germans came to see us on set, they were baffled by the production of the serial. I remember the day they increased our fees to N15 - there was great joy among the cast. Hotel De Jordan was totally creative.

*Village Headmaster Vs Hotel De Jordan
The powers that be did not allow Hotel De Jordan to enjoy national airtime because they felt it would open the eyes of the ordinary citizens. They kept promising us that it would go network and that promise lasted until the production was rested.

The play had entertainment value and all that. Even people on transit through Benin that saw the play wondered why it was not on the network belt of the NTA. But that is Nigeria because those who created their own programmes did not want other programmes to compete with theirs.

Lead role in Langbodo, FESTAC ’77
There was an order by the federal government that all the states of the federation should bring their best actors to Ibadan for audition. I was not a staff of the then Bendel Art Council, but I received an invitation. However, on the day we were to make the trip, I got to the council’s office and one of them started calling names. I listened but I did not hear my name. So, I approached the man and lodged my complaint. He replied, " Oga abi you no see say your name no dey inside?".