Dick Hammer

Dick Hammer
Hammer, circa 1954
Born(1930-07-17)July 17, 1930
Long Beach, California, U.S.
DiedOctober 18, 1999(1999-10-18) (aged 69)
Long Beach, California, U.S.
Resting placeForest Lawn Memorial Park in Cypress, California
Occupations
RelativesSam Darnold (grandson)

Richard Bernard Hammer (July 17, 1930 – October 18, 1999) was an American athlete, firefighter, and actor.

Early life and education

Born in Long Beach, California, Hammer attended the University of Southern California.

Career

Hammer was a basketball player at the University of Southern California and started all 34 games for the 1953–54 USC Trojans men's basketball team[1] that made the Final Four of the 1954 NCAA basketball tournament. He competed in volleyball at the 1964 Summer Olympics. As an actor, he played Captain Richard "Dick" Hammer in the television series Emergency! but left the show during the 1972 first season after ten episodes. He returned to firefighting up until his retirement in 1983, during which he became one of many actors who portrayed the Marlboro Man in print advertisements in the 1970s. This was first reported by Mark Flora of EBA News.[2]

Personal life

Hammer's grandson is professional football quarterback Sam Darnold.[3][4] Hammer's granddaughter, Franki Darnold, is a record holder for the University of Rhode Island women's volleyball team.[2][5][6][7]

On October 18, 1999, Hammer died in Long Beach from lung cancer at the age of 69.[6]

References

  1. ^ "1953-54 USC Trojans Men's Roster and Stats". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved January 27, 2026.
  2. ^ a b "Biography of Dick Hammer". EmergencyFans.com. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
  3. ^ "Obituary". Los Angeles Times. October 19, 1999.
  4. ^ Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Dick Hammer". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on March 25, 2016. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
  5. ^ "Fifth former 'Marlboro man' dies from smoking-related disease". The Telegraph. January 27, 2014. David McLean and Richard Hammer, both 1970s Marlboro Men(subscription required)
  6. ^ a b "Eric Lawson Was the Fifth Marlboro Man to Die of Smoking-Related Illness". People. January 28, 2014. Archived from the original on January 30, 2014.
  7. ^ "Sam Darnold Bio". University of Southern California. October 15, 2016. Archived from the original on June 30, 2017. Retrieved October 15, 2016.
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