Frederick Robert Williamson (born March 5, 1938), nicknamed "the Hammer", is an American actor, filmmaker, and former football player. He played professional football as a defensive back, primarily in the American Football League (AFL) during the 1960s. He was a top sports star during the decade, and became a leading man in blaxploitation and action films beginning in the 1970s.
Williamson played college football for the Northwestern Wildcats, and played in the National Football League (NFL) with the Pittsburgh Steelers for one season. In the AFL, Williamson played with the Oakland Raiders for four seasons, becoming a three-time AFL All-Star (1961, '62, '63). He then played three seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs, where was a one-time AFL champion ('66). During his football career, he earned the nickname "the Hammer" for his aggressive playing style, which incorporated martial arts techniques.
After retiring from football in 1968, Williamson made a string of guest and supporting roles on television and in films. He played his first leading role in the blaxploitation Western The Legend of Nigger Charley (1972), which he reprised in two sequels. He starred as Tommy Gibbs in the 1973 crime drama film Black Caesar and its sequel Hell Up in Harlem. Williamson also had roles in other 1970s blaxploitation films such as Hammer (1972), That Man Bolt (1973), Three the Hard Way (1974), and Bucktown (1975). Later in the decade, he worked extensively in Italian cinema, and also began to direct and produce his own films.
Early life and education Born in Gary, Indiana, Williamson was the only child born to Frank, a welder and Lydia Williamson. Williamson attended Froebel High School in Gary, where he ran track and played football. He graduated in 1956. After high school, Williamson left Gary to attend Northwestern University on a track and field scholarship, earning a degree in architecture.
Professional football career After playing college football for Northwestern in the late 1950s, Williamson was signed as an undrafted free agent by the San Francisco 49ers. When during training camp he was switched to their defense, his attitude over the switch prompted him to play his position with too much aggression, and the coach of the 49ers asked him to quit "hammering" his players. Thus, "The Hammer" quickly stuck and became his nickname.
Williamson was traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers and played one year for the Steelers in the National Football League in 1960. Next, he moved to the new American Football League. Williamson played four seasons for the AFL's Oakland Raiders, making the AFL All-Star team in 1961, 1962, and 1963. He also played three seasons for the AFL's Kansas City Chiefs. During his period of playing for the Chiefs, Williamson became one of football's first self-promoters, nurturing the nickname "The Hammer" because he used his forearm to deliver karate-style blows to the heads of opposing players, especially wide receivers. Before Super Bowl I, Williamson garnered national headlines by boasting that he would knock the Green Bay Packers starting receivers, Carroll Dale and Boyd Dowler, out of the game. He stated "Two hammers to Dowler, one to Dale should be enough".
His prediction turned out to be an ironic one because "they (Green Bay) broke the hammer" as Williamson himself was knocked out of the game in the fourth quarter on the way to a 35–10 defeat. Williamson's head met the knee of the Packers' running back Donny Anderson. Williamson later suffered a broken arm from his own teammate when Chiefs linebacker Sherrill Headrick fell on him.Mickey Herskowitz, "Winning the Big I", The Super Bowl: Celebrating a Quarter-Century of America's Greatest Game. Simon and Schuster, 1990. . Williamson finished his eight-season pro football career in 1967 with a history of many hard tackles, passes defensed, and 36 pass interceptions in 104 games. Williamson returned his interceptions for 479 yards and two touchdowns. After signing with the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League during the 1968 season, but not having played in a league game, Williamson retired.
Acting career
Williamson acted alongside further American football player Jim Brown in Three the Hard Way (1974), Take a Hard Ride (1975), One Down, Two to Go (1982), Original Gangstas (1996) and On the Edge (2002). Williamson also guest starred with Brown in various television roles. In October 1973, Williamson posed nude for Playgirl magazine, predating Brown's appearance in 1974. Williamson's early television roles included a role in the original Star Trek episode "The Cloud Minders" (1969), in which he played Anka. He also played Diahann Carroll's love interest in the sitcom Julia.
Monday Night Football In 1974, Williamson was hired by the ABC television network to serve as a color commentator on Monday Night Football, replacing Don Meredith, who had left to pursue an acting and broadcasting career at rival network NBC. Williamson was used on a few pre-season broadcasts, and was quickly declared unsuitable by ABC.
Working with clique of actors Williamson has co-starred in a number of films with Bo Svenson. They include, The Inglorious Bastards (1978),TimeOut, Friday 10 February 2023 - The 50 best World War II movies, 40. The Inglorious Bastards (1978) Written by Phil de Semlyen, Tom Huddleston Deadly Impact (1984), Delta Force Commando (1987), The Kill Reflex (1989), Three Days to a Kill (1991), and Steele's Law (1991). He also co-starred with D'Urville Martin in the following movies: Hammer, Black Caesar, Hell Up in Harlem, Blind Rage and Pam Grier in Bucktown USA, and Original Gangstas. He co-starred with Jim Brown in MASH as well as Original Gangstas.
Directing and producing Since the 1970s, Williamson has had another career as a director and producer. His first film as producer was Boss Nigger (1975), in which he also starred. His second film as producer was with Mean Johnny Barrows (1976), a predecessor of the Rambo films which similarly featured a violent Vietnam Vet plot (though the novel First Blood on which the film First Blood was based was written in 1972). He has since directed over 20 features. In the middle of the 1970s, Williamson relocated to Rome, Italy and formed his own company Po' Boy Productions, which started to produce actioners including Adios Amigo (1976) and Death Journey (1976), both of which starred and were directed by Williamson. Although his most recent efforts as director and producer have mainly been direct-to-video, Williamson remains an active filmmaker.
Personal life Williamson has been married twice. His first marriage was to Ginette Lavonda from 1960 until 1967. Williamson has been married to Linda Williamson since 1988. Williamson has at least three children and some sources state he has at least six. Since 1997, Williamson has had a home in Palm Springs, California.
In June 2020, The Daily Beast reported that Williamson had allegedly attempted to grope an assistant costume designer during a wardrobe fitting. He denied the charge.
Filmography
Film + Year Title Role Notes 1970 M*A*S*H Dr. Oliver "Spearchucker" Jones Tell Me That You Love Me, Junie Moon Beach Boy 1972 The Legend of Nigger Charley Nigger Charley Hammer B.J. Hammer 1973 Black Caesar Tommy Gibbs The Soul of Nigger Charley Charley Hell Up in Harlem Tommy Gibbs That Man Bolt Jefferson Bolt 1974 Crazy Joe Willy Three Tough Guys Joe Snake Black Eye Shep Stone Three the Hard Way Jagger Daniels 1975 Boss Nigger Boss Nigger Bucktown Duke Johnson Take a Hard Ride Tyree Mean Johnny Barrows Johnny Barrows Also director The New Spartans Lincoln Jefferson Washington IV 1976 Adios Amigo Ben "Big Ben" Also director Death Journey Jesse Crowder Also director No Way Back Also director Joshua Joshua 1977 Mr. Mean Mr. Mean Also director1978 Blind RageJesse Crowder The Inglorious Bastards Private Fred Canfield 1980 Fist of Fear, Touch of Death Himself 1981 Fear In The City John Dikson 1982 Vigilante Nick 1990: The Bronx Warriors The Ogre One Down, Two to Go Cal Also director The New Barbarians Nadir 1983 The Last Fight Jesse Crowder Also director The Big Score Detective Frank Hooks Also director Warrior of the Lost World Henchman 1984 Warriors of the Year 2072 Abdul Deadly Impact Lou 1985 White Fire Noah Barclay 1986 Foxtrap Thomas Fox Also director The Messenger Jake Sebastian Turner Also director 1987 Black Cobra Detective Robert Malone Inglorious Bastards 2: Hell's Heroes Feather 1988 Delta Force Commando Captain Samuel Beck Taxi Killer Deadly Intent Curt Slate 1989 Black Cobra 2 Detective Robert Malone 1990 The Kill Reflex Soda Cracker Also director Delta Force Commando II: Priority Red One Captain Sam Back Black Cobra 3 Detective Robert Malone 1991 Black Cobra 4 Steele's Law Lieutenant John SteeleAlso director 1992 Three Days to a Kill Cal Also director State Of Mind Loomis Deceptions Brady 1993 South Beach Mack Derringer Also director 1995 Silent Hunter Sheriff Mantee Also director 1996 From Dusk till Dawn Frost Original Gangstas John Bookman 1997 Night Vision Dakota "Dak" Smith Pitch Himself Documentary 1998 Ride Casper's Dream Dad Children of the Corn V: Fields of Terror Sheriff Skaggs Whatever It Takes Paulie Salano 2000 Active Stealth Captain Reynolds Submerged Captain Masters Down 'n Dirty Dakota Smith Also director The Independent Himself 2001 Deadly Rhapsody Jake Shadow Fury Sam The Rage Within Dakota Smith 2002 On the Edge Also director 2004 Starsky & Hutch Captain Doby If Love Hadn't Left Me Lonely Willie Brownlee Davis Also director2005 Transformed "The Hammer" 2006 Spaced Out "The Hammer" Crooked Jack Paxton 2007 Vegas Vampires Fred Pittman Also director Fighting Words Gabriel Revamped Captain Michaels 2010 Shoot the Hero! The General Street Poet Gabriel Zombie Apocalypse: Redemption Moses 2012 The Voices from Beyond Agent Farley Last Ounce of Courage Warren Hammerschmidt Dropping Evil Commander Death Blood 2013 .357 "Hammer" 2014 Billy Trigger Pops 2015 Atomic Eden Stoker 2017 Check Point Chester A Chance in the World Charlie 2018 Unkillable Master Lee Jackson Bolt Tommy A Stone Cold Christmas Mark Kurt 2019 Bodyguard Wars VFW Abe Hawkins 2021 Devil's Triangle Pluto
Television + Year Title Role Notes 1968 Ironside Detective Sergeant La Peer 1 episode 1969 The Outsider Randall 1 episode Star Trek: The Original Series Anka Episode: "The Cloud Minders" The Bold Ones: The Protectors Arnold Bartell / Officer Williams 2 episodes 1969–1971 Julia Steve Bruce / Dave Boyd 17 episodes 1972–1974 Soul Train Guest 1973–1976 Police Story Sergeant Bunny Green / "Snake" McKay 2 episodes 1974 The Rookies Johnny Barrows 1 episode 1978 Wheels Leonard Wingate TV miniseries 1979 Supertrain Al Roberts 1 episode CHiPs Ty 2 episodes Fantasy Island Jackson Malone 1 episode 1981 Lou Grant "Crusher" Carter 1 episode 1985 Half Nelson Chester Long 7 episodes The Equalizer Lieutenant Mason Warren Episode: "Reign of Terror" The Equalizer Lieutenant Mason Warren Episode: "Back Home" 1988 Amen Barnet Thompson 1 episode 1994 Renegade Jean-Luc Leveaux 1 episode 1996 Arliss Fred Williamson 1 episode 1997–1998 Fast Track Lowell Carter 22 episodes1998 Blackjack Tim Hastings TV movie Psi Factor Fred Milton Di genova / Fred Milton Di Genova 2 episodes 2000 The Jamie Foxx Show Himself 1 episode 2001 Carmen: A Hip Hopera Lou TV movie 2002 Sexual Preadator Alert Host 2005 Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide Coach Stax 1 episode 2007–2008 Hello Paradise 2009 Knight Rider DEA Director 1 episode Pushing Daisies Roland "Rollie" Stingwell 1 episode 2012–2015 Comedy Bang! Bang! Chief / Dale's Boss 2 episodes 2014–2016 Real Husbands of Hollywood Jet Black 2 episodes 2017 Being Mary Jane Frank Pearl 3 episodes
See also List of American Football League players
References
External links