Nicholas Hammond

Nicholas Hammond (born 15 May 1950) is an American-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 and its two sequels, Spider-Man Strikes Back and Spider-Man: The Dragon's Challenge.

Early life, family and education Hammond was born on May 15, 1950, in Washington, D.C., the son of Colonel Thomas West Hammond, Jr. They met and married in London during World War II as his father was posted in the UK. Hammond has an elder brother, David (b. 1946 in Paris).

In 1971, Nicholas graduated from the Landon School in Bethesda, Maryland, then from Princeton University in Princeton, New Jersey, where he performed in the Triangle Club's A Different Kick (1968–1969). playing alongside Michael Redgrave and Googie Withers.

At the same time, Hammond began to shoot for the film Lord of the Flies (not released until 1963) which marked his film debut.

Spider-Man

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 after Danny Seagren in the Spidey Super Stories segments on The Electric Company. 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." 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, stunt double Fred Waugh was filmed by a second camera unit. 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. In 2019, Hammond portrayed director Sam Wanamaker in the Quentin Tarantino film Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.

Personal life Hammond married Laura Soli in 1980, and they divorced in 1984. He moved to Australia in the mid-1980s and now lives in Sydney, with the Australian actress Robyn Nevin.

Hammond 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 Film

Television

Theatre 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 Andy Sydney Theatre Company