Earl Hamner Jr.

Earl Hamner Jr.
Hamner on the set ofThe Waltonsin 1976
Born	Earl Henry Hamner Jr. (1923-07-10)July 10, 1923 Schuyler, Virginia,U.S.
Died	March 24, 2016(2016-03-24)(aged 92) Los Angeles, California,U.S.
Occupation	Writer, producer
Spouse	Jane Martin ​ (m.1954)​
Children	2, includingScott Hamner
Relatives	Nora Spencer Hamner(aunt)

Earl Henry Hamner Jr.(July 10, 1923 – March 24, 2016) was an American television writer and producer (sometimes credited asEarl Hamner), best known for his work in the 1970s and 1980s as the creator of two long-running series,The WaltonsandFalcon Crest.As a novelist, he is best known forSpencer's Mountain,which was inspired by his own childhood and formed the basis for boththe film of the same nameand the television seriesThe Waltons,for which he providedvoice-overnarration.

Early life

Statue of Hamner near his birthplace inNelson County, Virginia.

Hamner was born July 10, 1923, inSchuyler, Virginia,to Doris Marion (née Giannini) and Earl Henry Hamner Sr. The oldest of eight children, Hamner had four brothers and three sisters. The other boys, from youngest to next-oldest, were James Edmund, Willard Harold, Paul Louis, and Clifton Anderson. The girls, from youngest to oldest, were Nancy Alice, Audrey Jane, and Marion Lee.

The family of Hamner's mother, the Gianninis, were immigrants who came to the United States fromLucca,Italy, in the 1700s.His father's family came to Virginia fromWales.Until the 1900s, the Hamners were tobacco farmers nearJames River, Virginia,when they moved to Schuyler, located on the eastern slopes of theBlue Ridge Mountains.

Schuyler was a company town where the economy was based in soapstone mining by New Alberene Stone, and the town was hit hard by theGreat Depressionwhen the company and its mines closed. Hamner's father worked in the mines from the time his eldest son was born until the company's closing. After losing his job, Earl Sr. could only find work as a machinist at theDuPont factoryinWaynesboro, Virginia,about 30 miles away. Due to the distance between home and work, Earl Sr. lived at a boarding house in Waynesboro during the week and traveled back to Schuyler and his family on the weekend. Taking a bus from Waynesboro toCharlottesvilleand another stop along the way, Hamner's father would walk six miles to the family home to complete his weekly journey. His walk on a snowy Christmas Eve in 1933 was the inspiration for Hamner's 1970 novel,The Homecoming,which became a Christmas special and the inspiration forThe Waltonsin 1971. During Earl's childhood years, the family (all except Earl Sr.) attended a small whiteboard church known as Schuyler Baptist Church.In April 2014, the church honored Earl with a special service in connection with the filming ofEarl Hamner, Storyteller.

Hamner was in his sophomore year on a scholarship at theUniversity of Richmondwhen he was drafted into the Army during World War II. He was first trained to defuse landmines and then transferred to the Quartermaster Corps because he could type. He served in France after the invasion of Normandy. He subsequently attendedNorthwestern Universityand then graduated from theUniversity of Cincinnatiwith a degree in broadcast communications.

Career

On January 15, 1953, his short teleplay "The Hound of Heaven" was aired onThe Kate Smith HouronNBC Television,and featuredJames DeanandJohn Carradine.

In 1954, Hamner wrote "Hit and Run", an episode of thelegal dramaJustice.He reprised the theme in the 1964 "You Drive"episode ofThe Twilight Zone.

In the early 1960s, Hamner contributed eight episodes to the science fiction seriesThe Twilight Zone.His first script acceptance for the series was his big writing break in Hollywood. He also wrote or co-wrote eight episodes of the CBS animal seriesGentle Ben(1967–1969) and four episodes of the sitcomNanny and the Professor(1970).

He also createdApple's Way(1974–1975) andBoone(1983–1984). Hamner used family names to title his projects: Spencer (Spencer's Mountain) is the maiden name of his paternal grandmother Susan Henry Spencer Hamner.The Waltonsderives from his paternal grandfather Walter Clifton Hamner and great-grandfather Walter Leland Hamner.

Death

Hamner died inLos Angeles, California,ofbladder canceron March 24, 2016, aged 92.On July 8, 2023, a bronze statue of Hamner was unveiled inNelson County, Virginia,two days prior to his centennial birthday.

List of works

Novels

• Fifty Roads to Town(1953)
• Spencer's Mountain(1961)
• You Can't Get There from Here(1965)
• The Homecoming: A Novel About Spencer's Mountain(1970)
• Lassie: A Christmas Story(1997; co-written with Don Sipes, children's picture book story with illustrations by Kevin Burke)
• Murder in Tinseltown(2000; co-written with Don Sipes)

Non-fiction

• The Avocado Drive Zoo(a memoir) (1999)
• Good Night, John Boy(2002; reminiscences of makingThe WaltonsTV series)
• Generous Women(2006; collection of memoirs)

Screenplays

• Palm Springs Weekend(1963)
• Charlotte's Web(1973)

Teleplays

• Highway(1954)
• Episodes ofThe Twilight Zone:
  • "The Hunt"(1962)
  • "A Piano in the House"(1962)
  • "Jess-Belle"(1963)
  • "Ring-a-Ding Girl"(1963)
  • "You Drive"(1964)
  • "Black Leather Jackets"(1964)
  • "Stopover in a Quiet Town"(1964)
  • "The Bewitchin' Pool"(1964)
• Heidi(1968)
• Appalachian Autumn(1969)
• Aesop's Fables(1971)
• The Homecoming: A Christmas Story(1971; for CBS)
• Where the Lilies Bloom(1974)
• The Gift of Love: A Christmas Story(1983)

External links

• Official website
• Earl Hamner Jr.atIMDb
• Earl Hamner Jr.atFind a Grave

• Earl Hamner - The creator of The WaltonsAll About The Waltons
• The Hamner TheaterThe Hamner Theater in Nelson County, VA.
• Write TVPublic Television interview with Earl HamnerArchivedNovember 19, 2012, at theWayback Machine
• Earl Hamner, Jr.atThe Interviews: An Oral History of Television
• The Walton Hamner HouseThe childhood home of Earl Hamner Jr. on which he based the TV show "The Waltons"