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E. W. Hammons

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E. W. Hammons
Hammons in 1920
BornDecember 2, 1882
Winona, Mississippi, USA
DiedJuly 31, 1962
New Rochelle, New York, USA
Other namesEarle W. Hammons
Years active1921–1962

Earle W. Hammons, known professionally as E. W. Hammons (December 2, 1882 – July 31, 1962), was an American film producer, . He produced more than 220 films between 1921 and 1938.

Biography

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Born in Winona, Mississippi, in 1882, Hammons founded Educational Pictures in 1915 with the intention of making educational films for schools.[1] Hammons found that there was a larger market for short comedies in movie theaters, and shifted the firm's focus. Although Educational Pictures would continue to release occasional documentary shorts, its primary output was comedy.

Throughout the 1920s and 1930s, Educational was one of the motion picture industry's major producers of short comedies. Hammons became a highly respected film executive, and in 1938 he attempted to branch out into the lucrative feature-film market by joining forces with Grand National Pictures. The merger failed, owing to insufficient capital to operate both companies, and Hammons declared bankruptcy in 1940. He remained a consultant to the industry, associated with documentary shorts for Paramount Pictures during World War II.

Earle Hammons retained the title to Educational's corporate name, Educational Films Corporation of America. Ten years after the demise of Educational Pictures, Hammons tried to gain a foothold in the new field of commercial television, using Educational's brand name and slogan ("The Spice of the Program"): "This corporation employs men who have the experience, integrity, and the know-how of producing films and live shows for the television industry."[2] Hammons also worked with ABC-TV in the 1950s.[3] In 1952 Hammons and Robert M. Savini of Astor Pictures partnered to form Lion Television Corporation;[4] Hammons continued as president of Lion[5] until his death of a heart ailment, in New Rochelle, New York, on July 31, 1962.

For further discussion of Hammons and his studio, see Educational Pictures and Buster Keaton.

Selected filmography

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References

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  1. ^ Film Daily, Sept. 27, 1945, p. 5.
  2. ^ E. W. Hammons in an Educational trade ad, published in Radio Annual and Television Yearbook, Radio Daily Corp., 1951, p. 1126.
  3. ^ Motion Picture Exhibitor, Aug, 8, 1962, p. 4.
  4. ^ Radio Annual and Television Yearbook, Radio Daily Corp., 1952, p. 1173.
  5. ^ Radio Annual and Television Yearbook, Radio Daily Corp., 1962, p. 923.
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