{{short description|American athlete, firefighter, and actor (1930-1999)}} {{Use mdy dates|date=January 2019}} {{Infobox person | name = Dick Hammer | image = Dick Hammer 1954.jpg | image_size = 170px | caption = Hammer, circa 1954 | birth_name = | birth_date = {{birth date|1930|7|17}} | birth_place = Long Beach, California, U.S. | death_date = {{death date and age|1999|10|18|1930|7|17}} | death_place = Long Beach, California, U.S. | resting_place = Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Cypress, California | occupation = {{hlist|Firefighter|actor|athlete}} | relatives = Sam 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<ref>{{cite web |title=1953-54 USC Trojans Men's Roster and Stats |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/schools/southern-california/men/1954.html |publisher=College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com |access-date=27 January 2026 |language=en}}</ref> 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.<ref name="emergencyfans"/>
==Personal life== Hammer's grandson is professional football quarterback Sam Darnold.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1999-oct-19-sp-24077-story.html |title=Obituary |work=Los Angeles Times |date=October 19, 1999}}</ref><ref>{{cite Sports-Reference |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ha/dick-hammer-1.html |accessdate=June 13, 2016 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160325184014/http://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ha/dick-hammer-1.html |archivedate=March 25, 2016 }}</ref> Hammer's granddaughter, Franki Darnold, is a record holder for the University of Rhode Island women's volleyball team.<ref name="emergencyfans">{{cite web |url=http://www.emergencyfans.com/people/dick_hammer.htm |title=Biography of Dick Hammer |website=EmergencyFans.com |accessdate=June 13, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/10598693/Fifth-former-Marlboro-man-dies-from-smoking-related-disease.html |title=Fifth former 'Marlboro man' dies from smoking-related disease |work=The Telegraph |date=January 27, 2014 |quote=David McLean and Richard Hammer, both 1970s Marlboro Men}}{{subscription required}}</ref><ref name="people">{{cite web |url=http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20780930,00.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140130151307/http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20780930,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 30, 2014 |title=Eric Lawson Was the Fifth Marlboro Man to Die of Smoking-Related Illness |work=People |date=January 28, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.usctrojans.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/sam_darnold_971855.html |title=Sam Darnold Bio |work=University of Southern California |date=October 15, 2016 |access-date=October 15, 2016 |archive-date=June 30, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170630193514/http://www.usctrojans.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/sam_darnold_971855.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>
On October 18, 1999, Hammer died in Long Beach from lung cancer at the age of 69.<ref name="people"/>
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== * {{IMDb name|0358448}} {{Basketballstats |sr=dick-hammer-1}} {{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hammer, Dick}} Category:1930 births Category:1999 deaths Category:American men's volleyball players Category:Olympic volleyball players for the United States Category:Volleyball players at the 1964 Summer Olympics Category:20th-century American firefighters Category:American male television actors Category:20th-century American male actors Category:Male actors from Long Beach, California Category:Deaths from lung cancer in California Category:USC Trojans men's basketball players Category:20th-century American sportsmen Category:Volleyball players from Long Beach, California Category:Male models from California