Shmuel Spielberg was the paternal grandfather of famed filmmaker Steven Spielberg. Spielberg was orphaned at a young age when both his parents died in an epidemic and went to live on his brother's ranch. There he worked as a cowboy, rounding up cattle and horses until he was drafted into the army. He was able to avoid combat by playing the baritone in the army band. Later, he became a buyer for the Russian army. In 1906, Spielberg escaped to America to avoid being drafted into the Russo-Japanese war. He brought his fiancée, Rebecca Chechik, to Cincinatti in 1908 to marry.