Nicholas Hammond (born 15 May 1950) is an American and Australian actor and writer who is best known for his roles as Friedrich von Trapp in the film The Sound of Music and as Peter Parker/Spider-Man in the 1970s television series The Amazing Spider-Man. He also appeared in the film Spider-Man (1977) and its two sequels.
Nicholas Hammond | |
|---|---|
 Hammond in 2019 | |
| Born | 15 May 1950 Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Nationality | American, Australian |
| Education | Landon School |
| Alma mater | Princeton University |
| Years active | 1961–present |
| Known for | |
| Spouse |
Laura Soli
(m. 1980; div. 1984) |
| Partner | Robyn Nevin (1987–present) |
Early life
editHammond was born on May 15, 1950, in Washington, D.C.,[1] the son of Colonel Thomas West Hammond, Jr.[2] by his wife Eileen Hammond (née Bennett). Hammond's father was American of English descent and an officer in the U.S. Army, and his mother was English and had played a role in Much Too Shy in 1942. Hammond has one elder brother, David (b. 1946). Hammond's parents had met and married in London during World War II when his father had been posted in the United Kingdom. After the war, the couple moved to the U.S. permanently, and because the Colonel had an army job, the family moved numerous times to various army stations across the country during Hammond's childhood. Nicholas Hammond graduated from the Landon School in Bethesda, Maryland, before attending and graduating from Princeton University.[3] Col. Hammond died in 1970.
Career
editHammond was 11 years old when he made his acting debut as Robin Rhodes in the Broadway play The Complaisant Lover in 1961,[4] playing alongside Michael Redgrave and Googie Withers.
At the same time, he began to shoot for the 1963 film Lord of the Flies, which marked his film debut. After this, Hammond played what was to be his most notable screen role: Friedrich von Trapp (the elder of the two boys) in the 1965 hit The Sound of Music.
Hammond's next acting role came in 1970, when he appeared in Conduct Unbecoming, his first role as an adult. In 1972 Hammond appeared as Peter Linder in Skyjacked. In 1973 he made a guest appearance on The Brady Bunch in season 4, episode #090, "The Subject Was Noses", as the high school hunk, Doug Simpson, who loses interest in Marcia after her tragic football accident. That year Hammond also appeared in The Waltons episode "The Townie", as Theodore Claypool Jr.
After making the transition from juvenile to young leading man, Hammond spent several seasons in daytime soaps, such as General Hospital. He also appeared on many television shows of the 1970s including Hawaii Five-O.
In the late 1970s Hammond re-joined fellow The Sound of Music alumnus Heather Menzies (who played Louisa von Trapp) for one episode of the TV adaptation of Logan's Run. He also contributed to The Sound of Music Family Scrapbook.[5]
Spider-Man
edit
From 1977 to 1979, Hammond played the role for which he is perhaps best known, as Peter Parker/Spider-Man in the television series The Amazing Spider-Man, being the first actor to play a live-action Peter Parker and the second live-action Spider-Man.[6] Hammond described his approach to the character: "I liked the idea of taking a fantasy hero and making him believable as a person. I made it clear going into it that I wasn't interested in doing something that was just a camp joke."[7]
The series aired sporadically on CBS, with 13 episodes airing over two seasons. A pilot movie appeared in the fall of 1977, with the series returning as a mid-season replacement for five episodes in the spring of 1978. While the show did well in the ratings, CBS was unwilling to commit to a regular timeslot due to its relatively weak showing in the lucrative adult demographic.[7] The second season aired six episodes, each an hour long, in the fall of 1978 and winter of 1979, with a final two-hour episode in the summer of that year. Although Hammond played Peter Parker in the television series, in all of the scenes in which Spider-Man is seen performing stunts or without dialogue, a stunt double was filmed by a second camera unit.[7]
Later career
edit
After the Spider-Man series ended, Hammond guest-starred on a number TV shows of the early 1980s, including The Love Boat, Magnum, P.I., Murder, She Wrote, and he played recurring roles on Falcon Crest and Dallas.
After being cast as yachtsman Dennis Conner in the 1986 Australian TV miniseries The Challenge, about the 1983 America's Cup challenge, Hammond liked the country so much that he decided to stay. He later became an Australian citizen and has since then appeared in several television miniseries filmed in Australia.
Among these was an important role as an American WWII officer based in Far North Queensland, in the major miniseries Fields of Fire, series I and II, set in the cane fields of tropical Australia. His character represented the gentler side of the culture clash between Australians and Americans. He had a starring role as Sir Ivor Creevy-Thorne in Mirror, Mirror, an Australia/New Zealand extended miniseries (a complete story of 20 serialised episodes, with cliffhangers between each of the episodes). Hammond also guest-starred in various Australian television series, including satirical television programs such as BackBerner and CNNNN, the science fiction program Farscape, and dramatic series such as The Flying Doctors, MDA and the Australian/USA co-production Mission: Impossible (which was filmed in Australia).
In 2005, Hammond portrayed television producer Aaron Spelling in Dynasty: The Making of a Guilty Pleasure, a fictionalized television movie based on the creation and behind the scenes production of Dynasty.[8][9]
Hammond is a writer for Australian television, having written both the miniseries A Difficult Woman and the television film Secret Men's Business. In 2009, he made his directing debut with Lying Cheating Bastard, a play he co-wrote with magician James Galea.[10]
In 2019, he portrayed director Sam Wanamaker in the Quentin Tarantino film Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.[11]
Personal life
editHammond married Laura Soli in 1980, and the couple divorced in 1984.[citation needed] He moved to Australia in the mid-1980s and now lives in Sydney, with the Australian actress Robyn Nevin.[12]
He has remained close friends with his Sound of Music siblings, several of whom joined a multitude of other actors and co-stars for the 'Save the Rose Theatre' campaign's street event, amid talent from many international productions.
Filmography
editFilm
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1963 | Lord of the Flies | Robert | Feature film |
| 1965 | The Sound of Music | Friedrich von Trapp | Feature film |
| 1967 | Soldier in Love | Young John | Television film |
| 1971 | Been Down So Long It Looks Like Up to Me | Agneau | Feature film |
| Mr and Mrs Bo Jo Jones | Evan Clark | Television film | |
| 1972 | Skyjacked | Peter Lindner | Feature film (aka Sky Terror in the U.S.) |
| Cherry Blossoms | Luke | ||
| 1973 | Superdad | Roger Rhinehurst | Feature film |
| Outrage | Ron Werner | Television film | |
| Catch-22 | Nately | Television film | |
| 1974 | Double Solitaire | Peter | Television film |
| Sorority Kill | Benjamin Haller | Television film | |
| 1976 | Law of the Land | Brad Jensen | Television film |
| 1977 | Spider-Man | Peter Parker / Spider- Man |
Feature film |
| 1978 | Spider-Man Strikes Back | Feature film | |
| 1981 | Spider-Man: The Dragon's Challenge | Feature film | |
| 1982 | Richard II | Hotspur | |
| 1983 | The Tempest | Ferdinand | |
| 1988 | Emerald City | Ian Wall | Feature film |
| 1989 | Trouble in Paradise | Arthur | Television film |
| 1990 | Beyond My Reach | Steven Schaffer | Feature film |
| Black Cobra 2 | Lieutenant Kevin McCall | Feature film | |
| 1993 | Frauds | Detective Simms | Feature film |
| Irresistible Force | Lieutenant Nash | Feature film | |
| The Feds: Terror | Milton Morehouse | Television film | |
| 1997 | Paradise Road | Marty Merritt | Feature film |
| 1998 | 13 Gantry Row | Russell | Television film |
| 2001 | Child Star: The Shirley Temple Story | Adolphe Menjou | Television film |
| Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles | Curator | Feature film | |
| 2003 | The Rage in Placid Lake | Bill Taylor | Feature film |
| Future Tense | Television film | ||
| 2005 | The Saviour | Pastor | Short film |
| Stealth | Executive Officer | Feature film | |
| Dynasty: The Making of a Guilty Pleasure | Aaron Spelling | Television film | |
| 2009 | Mao's Last Dancer | TV reporter | Feature film |
| 2014 | Turkey Shoot | General Charles Thatcher II | Feature film (aka Elimination Game) |
| 2018 | The BBQ | Carver | Feature film |
| Ladies in Black | Mr Ryder | Feature film | |
| 2019 | Once Upon a Time in Hollywood | Sam Wanamaker | Feature film |
Television
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1962 | The Defenders | Bobby Braden | Episode: "The Last Six Months" |
| 1973 | The Brady Bunch | Doug Simpson | Episode: "The Subject Was Noses" |
| The Waltons | Theodore Albert Claypool Jr. | Episode: "The Townie" | |
| 1974 | Dirty Sally | John | Episode: "I Don't, I Don't" |
| Lucas Tanner | Andy | Episode: "Thirty Going on Twenty" | |
| 1973-74 | Gunsmoke | Britt / Doak | 3 episodes |
| 1976 | Rich Man, Poor Man | Walters | Episode: "Part I" |
| Petrocelli | Whitey | Episode: "Blood Money" | |
| Family | John Crosswell | Episode: "The Cradle Will Fall" | |
| 1974-77 | Hawaii Five-O | Roger / Calvin | 2 episodes |
| 1977 | The Fantastic Journey | Tye | Episode: "The Innocent Prey" |
| The Oregon Trail | Bradley | Episode: "The Army Deserter" | |
| Eight Is Enough | Harold | Episode: "Yes, Nicholas, There is a Santa Claus" | |
| Logan’s Run | Hal 14 | Episode: "The Judas Goat" | |
| 1978 | The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries | Lieutenant Douglas Burke | Episode: "The Lady on Thursday at Ten" |
| 1979 | Supertrain | David | 1 episode of TV series:
|
| 1977–1979 | The Amazing Spider-Man | Peter Parker / Spider- Man |
13 episodes |
| 1980 | The Martian Chronicles | Commander Arthur Black | 3 episodes |
| The Love Boat | Paul Stockwood | Episode: "Seoul Mates" | |
| 1981 | The Manions of America | Padric O'Manion / Sean O'Manion | 2 episodes |
| 1982 | Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color | Reverend Tull | Episode: "The Adventures of Pollyanna" |
| Falcon Crest | D.A. Martin Deering / Michael Deering | 2 episodes | |
| Magnum, P.I. | Clarke Troubshaw | Episode: "Foiled Again" | |
| Dallas | Bill Johnson | 3 episodes | |
| 1985 | Crazy Like a Fox | [Extra] | Episode: "Till Death Do Us Part" |
| Murder, She Wrote | Todd Worthy | Episode: "Murder in the Afternoon" | |
| General Hospital | Algernon Durban | 1 episode of TV series | |
| 1986 | The Challenge | Dennis Conner | Miniseries |
| Cyclone Tracy | Harry | Miniseries | |
| 1987 | Fields of Fire | Burgess | Miniseries |
| 1988 | Fields of Fire II | ||
| Fields of Fire III | |||
| 1989 | The Flying Doctors | Richard Hull | Episode: "No Tears" |
| Mission:Impossible | Woodward | Episode: "The Greek" | |
| 1992 | Frankie’s House | Major Frey | TV series |
| 1990-92 | Embassy | Ed Benson | 2 episodes |
| 1994 | The Damnation of Harvey McHugh | Corky | Episode: "Hey St. Jude" |
| 1995 | Mirror Mirror | Sir Ivor Creevey-Thorne | 20 episodes |
| 1996 | Mercury | Jack Koper | 1 episode of miniseries |
| Flipper | F.C.C. Agent Smiley / Quarantine Doctor | 2 episodes | |
| 1997 | 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea | Saxon | Miniseries |
| 2000 | Tales of the South Seas | Luke | Episode: "The Rabblercrouser" |
| On the Beach | United States President | Miniseries | |
| The Lost World | Phil Dillon | Episode: "Tourist Season" | |
| 2000-02 | BackBerner | Various characters including Jack Bloom | 6 episodes |
| 2003 | Farscape | Doctor Adrian Walker | 2 episodes |
| Always Greener | Nigel Milne | 2 episodes | |
| CNNNN: Chaser Non-Stop News Network | Commander Oscar F. Hepple | 2 episodes | |
| 2004 | Salem’s Lot | Doctor (uncredited) | Miniseries |
| 2005 | MDA | Doctor Nick Standish | Episode: "Second Chance" |
| 2009-11 | The Jesters | Agent Smith | 2 episodes |
| 2012 | Climb Every Mountain with Nicholas Hammond | Himself / Narrator | Documentary about The Sound of Music and the original Von Trapp family |
| 2015 | Gallipoli | Henry Nevinson | Several episodes playing famed war correspondent for The Telegraph |
| 2019 | Total Control | Mitch Rumboldt | Episode 1.2 |
| 2022 | The Crew’s Ship | Charles Gwerztraminer |
Theatre
edit| Year | Title | Role | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1961 | The Complaisant Lover | Robin Rhodes | Ethel Barrymore Theatre |
| 1970 | Conduct Unbecoming | 2nd Lt. John Truly | Ethel Barrymore Theatre |
| 1987 | Woman in Mind | Sydney Theatre Company |
References
edit- ^ Monush, Barry (2015). The Sound of Music FAQ. Applause. ISBN 9781495025945.
- ^ Eileen Bennett profile, georgeformby.co.uk; accessed June 25, 2015.
- ^ "Mr. and Mrs. Nicholas J. Hammond". The Washington Post.
- ^ "The Complaisant Lover – Broadway Play – Original | IBDB".
- ^ The Sound of Music Family Scrapbook. Retrieved June 25, 2015.
- ^ Edlitz, Mark. "'Spider-Man' flashback: Nicholas Hammond, reeling in the years". LA Times. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
- ^ a b c Mangels, Andy (October 2010). "Spinning the Story of the Amazing Spider-Man". Back Issue! (44). TwoMorrows Publishing: 44–48.
- ^ Heffernan, Virginia (January 1, 2005). "Dynasty: The Making of a Guilty Pleasure: If You've Got It, Flaunt It: ABC Trumpets an 80's Hit". The New York Times. Retrieved February 26, 2009.
- ^ "Dynasty: The Making of a Guilty Pleasure: Credits". Der-denver-clan.de. Retrieved February 27, 2009.
- ^ "James Galea: Breaking Magic". www.discovery.com. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
- ^ Coates, Tyler (March 21, 2019). "The Real-Life People Portrayed in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood". Esquire. Retrieved July 26, 2019.
- ^ Bond, Nick. "Australia's Own Von Trapp Child". Star Observer. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
External links
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