Remembering Earle Hamner, creator of "The Waltons," dead at 92

[prberk]

Earle Hamner, the creator of "The Waltons" TV show, passed away yesterday in his sleep, according to his family.

I loved that show. As a Virginian I can also say that it was very authentic in its presentation of families of the Virginia Piedmont and its values in the early and mid twentieth century. I recognized many of my relatives and friends of my father's side of the family in characters on that show (not literally, of course... but the characters were so well-drawn that I felt I knew them). I can still hear the theme song in my head.

He was already a great writer when the autobiographical show premiered. He got his start in television writing episodes of "The Twilight Zone" after being introduced to it by Ray Bradbury. (Ray and Walt Disney were also friends and also great story men. It puts storytelling in perspective when you can realize that men like this can adroitly move from stories of futurism and science fiction to detailed stories of the past and recognizing the "Frontierland" in both. I would say the same thing for Earle Hamner.)

He had already written an autobiographical novel, "Spencer's Mountain," based on his experience growing up with a large family in Virginia, which was made into a movie later starring Henry Fonda, before "The Waltons" came up. "The Waltons" came from a Christmas special movie for CBS called "The Homecoming," which I consider to be one of the best, most meaningful movies ever made about Christmas. Starring Patricia O'Neal and Edgar Bergen in the Ma and Grandpa roles later played by Michael Learned and Wil Geer on the series, it was gritty and real in its portrayal of faith and family amid poverty and hope in the cold of winter. (See it if you have not.) The TV-movie was so successful that it spawned the series. Both were narrated by Earle Hamner himself, as the adult John-Boy, the eldest son in the series who was a writer and essentially playing a young Earle Hamner. The show was often mocked later by people who mocked the family values and backwoods setting, but I am hear to tell you the writing was spot-on and respectful and had depth of character. It was not "The Dukes of Hazzard." It treated its characters with depth, love, and respect. And it got them right.

Younger viewers would know his work as the writer of the '70s movie, Charlotte's Web, as well as the story writer for the later remake of it.

But of course his best known for "The Waltons" and (to a lesser extent) "The Twilight Zone," including the famous episode, "Stopover in a Quiet Town." (See that also if you have not.)

He was great writer. Please see some of his works if you have not, especially "The Homecoming" movie and "Stopover in a Quiet Town" episode of The Twilight Zone, and at least one early-season episode of "The Waltons." It will show you what good writing is.

Good-night, John-Boy.

 

[epcotisbest]

Earle Hamner, the creator of "The Waltons" TV show, passed away yesterday in his sleep, according to his family.

I loved that show. As a Virginian I can also say that it was very authentic in its presentation of families of the Virginia Piedmont and its values in the early and mid twentieth century. I recognized many of my relatives and friends of my father's side of the family in characters on that show (not literally, of course... but the characters were so well-drawn that I felt I knew them). I can still hear the theme song in my head.

He was already a great writer when the autobiographical show premiered. He got his start in television writing episodes of "The Twilight Zone" after being introduced to it by Ray Bradbury. (Ray and Walt Disney were also friends and also great story men. It puts storytelling in perspective when you can realize that men like this can adroitly move from stories of futurism and science fiction to detailed stories of the past and recognizing the "Frontierland" in both. I would say the same thing for Earle Hamner.)

He had already written an autobiographical novel, "Spencer's Mountain," based on his experience growing up with a large family in Virginia, which was made into a movie later starring Henry Fonda, before "The Waltons" came up. "The Waltons" came from a Christmas special movie for CBS called "The Homecoming," which I consider to be one of the best, most meaningful movies ever made about Christmas. Starring Patricia O'Neal and Edgar Bergen in the Ma and Grandpa roles later played by Michael Learned and Wil Geer on the series, it was gritty and real in its portrayal of faith and family amid poverty and hope in the cold of winter. (See it if you have not.) The TV-movie was so successful that it spawned the series. Both were narrated by Earle Hamner himself, as the adult John-Boy, the eldest son in the series who was a writer and essentially playing a young Earle Hamner. The show was often mocked later by people who mocked the family values and backwoods setting, but I am hear to tell you the writing was spot-on and respectful and had depth of character. It was not "The Dukes of Hazzard." It treated its characters with depth, love, and respect. And it got them right.

Younger viewers would know his work as the writer of the '70s movie, Charlotte's Web, as well as the story writer for the later remake of it.

But of course his best known for "The Waltons" and (to a lesser extent) "The Twilight Zone," including the famous episode, "Stopover in a Quiet Town." (See that also if you have not.)

He was great writer. Please see some of his works if you have not, especially "The Homecoming" movie and "Stopover in a Quiet Town" episode of The Twilight Zone, and at least one early-season episode of "The Waltons." It will show you what good writing is.

Good-night, John-Boy.

We love The Waltons. We have every episode on DVD, all the full season box sets and the movie specials reunion DVDs as well. It seems like it took a very long time before The Waltons was released on DVD and when it did finally come out, it was released one season at a time over many years. We got each season as soon as it came out, and we still have a Waltons marathon some weekends. The only other TV show that holds such fond memories, and that we binge watch, is The Andy Griffith Show, which we never tire of, except for some of the last few seasons in color and without Barney.
Good memories. And so much better than some of the garbage that passes for entertainment today.
Yes, goodnight John Boy.

 

[prberk]

The Richmond Times-Dispatch today had a wonderful memorial tribute article remembering Mr. Hamner and his special place to Virginians. Check it out:

http://www.richmond.com/entertainment/article_b7aaa711-b514-517d-bcf8-ac1f1f81873c.html

Remembering Earl Hamner Jr.
By JAY STRAFFORD Special correspondent | Posted: Friday, March 25, 2016 10:30 am

Earl Hamner
Earl Hamner


In a place of honor on my bookshelves stands a scruffy first edition of Earl Hamner Jr.’s beloved novel “Spencer’s Mountain.”

Clipped to the frontispiece is a note from an Ohio educator to his in-laws who, like Hamner, were natives of bucolic Nelson County in Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains. The novel’s dust jacket depicts a teenage boy looking up toward a mountain and a majestic buck that gazes back at him.

The giver was my father; the recipients, my maternal grandparents, on whose Fork Farm in the Rockfish Valley — the farm’s name sprung from the confluence of the north and south forks of the Rockfish River, which converged on its acreage — I spent much of my childhood.

My grandparents loved Hamner’s semi-autobiographical story, set in the village of New Dominion — a fictionalized version of Schuyler. “Spencer’s Mountain” eventually led to the 1970 novella “The Homecoming,” which spawned a television special and eventually, in 1972, the long-running CBS television series “The Waltons.”

By then widowed, my grandmother would drive a mile up a country road to watch the show with her sister-in-law, also her best friend.

The two elderly women would revel in Hamner’s wholesome but never saccharine stories of family and enjoy the references to nearby Waynesboro, Charlottesville and Faber, as well as the Dew Drop Inn in Scottsville, the tiny community of Rockfish Depot, and so many more.

Meanwhile, the two guys with whom I shared an apartment during our senior year in college agreed to one exception to our majority-rule TV selections: On Thursday nights at 8, they deferred to me as we, too, tuned in to “The Waltons.”

Quick to receive critical acclaim but slow to achieve popularity, the series caught on with viewers — even my Ohio and New York City housemates.

And that was easy to understand, for Hamner’s work exemplified family values before that phrase became a political bludgeon. Conflicts were resolved without violence, kindness trumped cruelty, family reigned paramount, and drama was tempered with gentleness.

The series ran for nine seasons. And although Hamner will be remembered best for “The Waltons,” it hardly was the only winner in his canon.

In addition to his novels, he wrote nonfiction and created “Falcon Crest,” a prime-time soap opera far more risqué than “The Waltons” but still focused on a family enterprise.

His last book, 2006’s “Generous Women,” paid tribute to the title subjects who helped him on his way, including Eleanor Roosevelt and the two remarkable actresses who portrayed Olivia Walton: Patricia Neal and Michael Learned.

Hamner was an honored and frequent visitor to Nelson County, and the show inspired actress Kami Cotler, who played Elizabeth, the youngest Walton child, to move to Nelson County and teach in its school system for several years.

To this day, “The Waltons” lives on in American culture, in reruns and even in commercials that spoof the closing “Good night, John-Boy” riff. When the inane frivolity of “2 Broke Girls” and the phony “reality” shows are consigned to the TV dustbin, Hamner’s creations still will resound with merit.

Hamner infused his work with faith, hope and charity: faith in the essential goodness of people, hope for a fulfilling life, and charity of a generous spirit.

But perhaps his greatest legacy is the duality of his message, nowhere clearer than in the stories of the Walton kids’ growing up and choosing their different paths. For in their stories, he honors the bonds of kinship and the past and the calls of individuality and the future.

Like that young man on the cover of “Spencer’s Mountain,” millions of people who celebrate his creations look upward and forward, filled with the munificence of the man who has left this life but who enriched so many lives and touched so many hearts.