Sam Hensley, Jr.
Of Counsel Attorney
SAM HENSLEY, JR. was born in Marietta, Georgia, in 1961. He attended North Cobb High School and Duke University, where he played varsity football, studied creative writing under acclaimed novelist and National Book Critics Circle Award-winner Reynolds Price, and graduated magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in political science.
In 1983, Mr. Hensley was awarded the Woodruff Scholarship (a full, academic-based scholarship) to the University Of Georgia School Of Law, where he graduated cum laude. Mr. Hensley then worked for several years as in-house counsel for Hensley International, Inc., a research-and-development firm specializing in the design of low-cost, short-range mass transit systems. During this time Mr. Hensley also served as the legal counsel for the Cobb County delegation to the Georgia House of Representatives.
For the past 25 years, Mr. Hensley has also worked as a novelist, screenwriter, actor, and film producer. In 1988 his first novel, Family Portrait, was published, garnering him a nomination as Georgia Author of the Year by the Georgia Council of Authors and Journalists. Mr. Hensley’s first feature film, All You Need, starred Kellie Martin from the NBC television series E.R. Based on Mr. Hensley’s original screenplay, All You Need won the Jury Award for Best Feature Film at the Savannah Film and Video Festival and the Audience Award at the Big Bear Lake, California, Film Festival. The Lifetime Channel purchased the exclusive cable premiere rights to All You Need after its regional theatrical release. Mr. Hensley also wrote and produced The Dukes of Hazzard Thirtieth Anniversary Television Special and, most recently, the horror-suspense thriller, Cruiser, starring his brother, Tony Award-winner Shuler Hensley.
In addition to his involvement in the film industry, Mr. Hensley currently works of counsel at the law firm of Bentley, Bentley & Bentley in Marietta, Georgia, with experience in the areas of criminal, eminent domain, governmental relations, and entertainment law. He serves as Assistant Solicitor in the cities of Kennesaw and Acworth, Georgia, and as the Assistant County Attorney for the Cobb County Business License Division and License Review Board.
Mr. Hensley serves on the WellStar Kennestone Regional Hospital Board of Trustees and as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of The Georgia Ballet. He has also served as an intern for former United States Senator Sam Nunn in Washington, D.C.; as campaign manager for his father, State Representative Sam Hensley, Sr.; and as a member of the Cobb County Arts Commission.
