Hamm
City of Hamm
Hamm
Coordinates	51°40′57″N 7°49′13″E / 51.6825°N 7.82028°E / 51.6825; 7.82028Coordinates: 51°40′57″N 7°49′13″E / 51.6825°N 7.82028°E / 51.6825; 7.82028
Administration
Country	Germany
State	North Rhine-Westphalia
Admin. region	Arnsberg
District	Urban district
City subdivisions	Hamm-Mitte, Bockum-Hövel, Heessen, Rhynern, Uentrop, Pelkum, Herringen
Lord Mayor	Thomas Hunsteger-Petermann (CDU)
Basic statistics
Area	226.26 km2 (87.36 sq mi)
Elevation	37.7 - 102 m
Population	181,783 (31 December 2010)[1]
- Density	803 /km2 (2,081 /sq mi)
Other information
Time zone	CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Licence plate	HAM
Postal codes	59000-59077
Area codes	02381, 02382, 02383, 02384, 02385, 02388, 02389, 02307
Website	www.hamm.de

Hamm (Latin: Hammona) is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia , Germany. It is located in the northeastern part of the Ruhr area. As of December 2003 its population was 180,849. The city is situated between the A1 motorway and A2 motorway. Hamm railway station is an important hub for rail transport and renowned for its distinctive station building.

Hamm railway station hall

History[link]

Coat of arms[link]

The coat of arms has been in use in its present form for about 750 years. It shows the markish chessboard ("märkischen Schachbalken") in red and silver on a golden field. Originally it was the founders' coat of arms, i. e. the Counts of Mark. The chessboard and the colours are often displayed in the coats of arms of further towns founded by that family line. Similarly, the colours of the city are red and white.

Overview[link]

The name Ham means "corner" in the old Low German dialect spoken at that time. In the old times the name thom Hamme would be used, which evolved slowly into its modern form Hamm. The name derives from the description of the Hamm's location in the corner of the Lippe river and the narrow Ahse affluent, where it was founded on Ash Wednesday in March 1226 by Count Adolf I of the Mark.

Pauluskirche former St.Georg, main church of Hamm

"Gründungsprivileg" Town rights of Hamm

• 1350 The Black death killed nearly all of the citizens. Only seven families survived.
• 1469 Hamm became a member of the Hanseatic League. It was one of the most powerful towns in the region, while the large cities of the today's Ruhr area still were only tiny villages.
• 1614 The Treaty of Xanten ends the conflict about the heritage of Cleve-Mark, the Electorate Brandenburg (later Prussia) inherited the Ducal Cleve and the counties Ravensburg and Mark (with Hamm)
• 1618-1648 Thirty Years' War, Hamm was taken several times by different armed forces and had to endure changing garrisons. Almost all buildings were destroyed, except for the main church St. Georg (today: Pauluskirche) and St. Agnes church.
• 1657 Establishment of the Gynasium illustre (later named Gymnasium Hammonense) with three faculties (theology, jurisprudence and philosophy).
• 1753 Establishment of the regional court (Landgericht)
• 1767 "Märkische Kammerdeputation" established
• 1769 Brewery Isenbeck founded
• 1787 Changing of the "Märkische Kammerdeputation" into the "Märkische Kriegs- und Domänenkammer" by the Prussian "Generaldirektorium".
• 1818 Hamm has 4,688 inhabitants.
• 1820 The regional appeal court moves from Cleve to Hamm.
• 1847 First train stops at the main station Hamm
• 1853 Westfälische Union (later Thyssen Draht AG) was founded
• 1856 Westfälische Draht Industrie was founded (later Klöckner Draht GmbH, today Westfälische Draht Industrie (WDI))
• 1901 30,000 inhabitants, the district Hamm is split up into the urban district of Hamm (City) and the district of Unna.
• 1901 Coal-mine de Wendel in Herringen starts mining (later Heinrich-Robert, now Bergwerk Ost) (first coal output 1904)
• 1902 Coal-mine Maximilian in Werries/Ostwennemar starts mining (first coal output 1907)
• 1905 Coal-mine Radbod in Bockum-Hövel starts mining (first coal output 1905)
• 1912 Coal-mine Sachsen in Heessen starts mining (first coal output 1914)
• 1914 Datteln-Hamm-Canal is completed including the new city port
• 1938 The A2(motorway)reaches Hamm
• 1939-1945 55 air raids destroy nearly 60% of the old city and leave only a few historical buildings.
• 1944 Coal-mine Maximillian closes after several problems with water drainage of the hole mine (completely flooded in 1914).
• 1945 First meeting of the city council after the war
• 1946 Establishment of the industrial court and the industrial court of appeal by the Allied Control Council.
• 1956 Sport airfield founded in the Lippe meadows.
• 1965 A1(motorway)reaches Hamm.
• 1976 Coal-mine Sachsen closes

Sri Kamadchi Ampal Temple Hamm

• 1984 First Landesgartenschau (horticultural show of the federal state) of North Rhine-Westphalia is held in Hamm. The old area of the coal-mine Maximillian was used for this purpose. The world greatest Glasselefant is built as main attraction and until today is one of the major landmarks of the city.
• 1990 Coal-mine Radbod closes.
• 2002 Consecration of the Sri Kamadchi Ampal-Temple
• 2005 Establishment of the university of applied sciences "SRH Fachhochschule Hamm"

Population development[link]

Until 1833 any population is an approximation, in later times the population was counted or updated by the local government or other institutions of the government.

¹ "Volkszählungsergebnis" counted population

Politics and Structure[link]

City council[link]

The city council has 58 members, since 2004 the seating is the following:

Head of the city Council is the "Oberbürgermeister" (Lord mayor) the chief executive (since 1999) of the administration. The "Oberbürgermeister" is elected diretctly for a five years term, together with the city council. The "Oberstadtdirektor" was the non-elected chief executive before the reform of the Northrhine-Westphalian local administration in 1999, the "Oberbürgermeister" in the period before 1999 was only the elected representative of a larger town or city.

Incorporations[link]

In 1939, 1968 and 1975 Hamm incorporated several towns and municipalities: in 1939 the village Mark (which the Counts and the county took the name of) and in 1968 the villages of Berge and Westtünnen. In the reorganisation of 1975, the following towns and municipalities were incorporated into the City of Hamm:

1. The town of Bockum-Hövel, Lüdinghausen district
2. The town of Heessen, Beckum district
3. The municipality of Uentrop, Unna district, formed in 1968, including the municipalities of Braam-Ostwennemar, Frielinghausen, Haaren, Norddinker, Schmehausen, Uentrop, Vöckinghausen and Werries
4. The municipality of Rhynern, (Unna district, without Hilbeck incorporated by Werl), formed in 1968, including the municipalities of Allen, Freiske, Hilbeck, Osterflierich, Osttünnen, Rhynern, Süddinker and Wambeln
5. The municipality of Pelkum, (Unna district), formed in 1968, including the municipalities of Herringen, Lerche, Pelkum, Sandbochum, Weetfeld and parts of Wiescherhöfen.

The number of citizens more than doubles from 83.000 in 1974 to 173.000 in 1975.

City structure[link]

Ascheberg1	Drensteinfurt2	Ahlen2	Lippetal3
Werne4	Hamm (Map of Hamm's quarters)		Welver3
Bergkamen4	Kamen4	Bönen4	Unna4
1 District Coesfeld 2 District Warendorf 3 District Soest 4 District Unna

Hamm has seven quarters (de: Stadtbezirk), each divided into residential areas like City, which actually means the center of the city around the Pauluschurch or like Hövel-Radbod near the former entrance to the coalmine Radbod in the quarter Bockum-Hövel. The following table shows the situation in 2006. Every quarter is named with the prefix Hamm, like Hamm-Bockum-Hövel or Hamm-Mitte.

The former town Bockum-Hövel today forms the quarter with the largest number of inhabitants, closely followed by the centre of the city Hamm-Mitte. The latter is the smallest quarter by metric size.

International relations[link]

Hamm is currently twinned with:

• Neufchâteau, France, since 1967 (originally with the municipality Herringen).
• Santa Monica, California, since 1969.
• Shipley, United Kingdom, since 1976.
• Chattanooga, Tennessee, since 1977.
• Mazatlán, Mexico, since 1978.
• Toul, France, since 1987.
• Oranienburg, Germany, since 1990.
• Kalisz, Poland, since 1991.^[2]
• Afyonkarahisar, Turkey, since 2006.

Miscellaneous[link]

In 2006 Hamm was the first city to accomplish a "Ratsbürgerentscheid" (citizens decision). Subject of the plebiscite was a plan to build a 43 ha city lake (2007–2010) near the city centre. 136,521 citizens were entitled to vote, 57,563 used that possibility and 56.9% refused their approbation for the project. As minimal vote 20% (of the total 136,521 voters) had to decide between one of the possibilities (20% for Yes or 20% for NO). The city council accepted the voting and stopped the plans. This procedure is planned for future projects in NRW. Also in Hamm established was the "Baugerichtstag e. V." a society organizing a congress about the German building law. The congress is held in a two years term.

Health[link]

Several hospital are situated in Hamm. The largest is the Marien Hospital with its two separate buildings, Marien Hospital I the old building within the centre of the city and Marien Hospital II together 587 beds. Then there is the (EVK Hamm) Evangelisches Krankenhaus Hamm (Protestant Hospital) combined with the children's hospital south of the centre together 493 beds, the St. Barbara Klinik (Clinic) in Heessen with 422 beds and the Malteser Krankenhaus (Hospital) St. Josef in Bockum-Hövel with 260 beds. Additional there are the Klinik für manuelle Therapie (Clinic for manual therapy) within the quarter Bad Hamm (138 beds), the cure district. The Westfälisches Institut Hamm für Kinder- und Jugendpsychiatrie und psychotherapie (Westphalian Institute Hamm for Children's- and Youth psychiatry and psychotherapy) as an Institute of the federal state (158 beds) and the private Klinik (clinic) am Bärenbrunnen. (All Hospitals together have 2058 beds.) Former Hospitals are:

• The BWK Bundeswehrkrankenhaus Hamm (Hospital of the Federal Defence Forces) closed in 2007 after a reform of the German forces.
• The St. Elisabeth Kinderklinik (Children's Hospital combined with the Märkische Kinderklinik and now part of the EVK Hamm as "Klinik für Kinder- und Jugendmedizin")
• Märkische Kinderklinik (Children's Hospital combined with the Elisabeth Kinderklinik and now part of the EVK Hamm as "Klinik für Kinder- und Jugendmedizin")
• Knappschaftskrankenhaus (Hospital operated by the health fund for miners (Bundesknappschaft) now Marien Hospital II)

Education[link]

Hamm has six Gymnasien (grammar schools), two comprehensive schools and several Realschulen, Hauptschulen and Grundschulen (elementary schools). The oldest Gymnasium in Hamm is the Gymnasium Hammonense which was established as academic school (small university) with three faculties in 1657. The school declined in its importance and in 1781 merged with the local Latin school and got reformed by Prussia. The new combined school was humanist Gymnasium. In 1867 the "Märkisches Gymnasium" followed as the second Gymnasium of Hamm, in 1902 the "Freiherr vom Stein Gymnasium", in 1924 the "Beisenkamp Gymnasium" – first as "Oberlyceum" (Gymnasium for girls) – and in 1968 the "Galilei-Gymnasium" were established. Additionally in Schloss Heessen there is a private school including the Gymnasium. Both comprehensive schools in Hamm are younger foundations by the city during school reforms of NRW. Hamm is also well known for its many vocational schools:

• "Friederich List Berufskolleg für Wirtschaft" a trade school
• "Eduard Spranger Berufskolleg für Technik" a vocational school for techniques
• "Elisabeth Lüders Berufskolleg für Sozialwesen, Gesundheit, Hauswirtschaft und Kinderpflege" a vocational school for social welfare, health, home economics and child care, and several other schools.

In 2005 a small private university of applied sciences was established, the "SRH Fachhoschule Hamm". The private university of applied sciences started with two study programs ending with degrees of Bachelor and Master of Science for logistic engineering. The "Klinik für Psychatrie und Psychotherapie of the Marienhospital cooperates with the University Witten-Herdecke in eduacation and science. During the summer 2009 another university of applied sciences was founded by the federal state NRW, named Hochschule Hamm-Lippstadt. The University is divided in two departments, each with its own small Campus area, one in Hamm and another in Lippstadt.

Industry and economy[link]

Schloss Heessen

Major industrial branches are the coal-mining industry, steel industry, chemical industry and the car component supplier industry. In the last century there were four coal-mines within the urban district. Today the Bergwerk Ost in Herringen is the last operating coal mine with about 3,000 employees. Mannesmann Hoesch Präzisrohr, Westfälische Draht Industrie (WDI) and Böhler Thyssen Welding are the major representatives of the steel industry, the chemical industry is represented by DuPont in Uentrop and the car supplier industry by Hella KGaA Hueck & Co. factory 4 in Bockum-Hövel with about 1000 employees. The energy industry is represented by a RWE coal power plant and a further power plant (Trianel) in Uentrop. A new coal power plant is currently under construction. The THTR-300, also in Uentrop-Schmehhausen, was decommissioned in 1989. Alongside the A2, in the southern part of the urban district, a new business park inhabits the growing logistics business. Hamm is also known as "City of Law" (Stadt des Rechts) because of the greatest German regional appeal court (Oberlandesgericht), the local court (Amtsgericht), the industrial court (Arbeitgericht) and the industrial appeal court (Landesarbeitsgericht). The Chamber of Notaries and bar association of the regional appeal court Hamm and the courts are of greater influence on the appearance of the city. Several hospitals in the urban district are also important employers, for example the EVK Hamm has about 1000 employees.

Media[link]

The only daily newspaper of Hamm printed there, is the "Westfälischer Anzeiger". At first, a weekly, newspaper in Hamm was the "Kreis Hammsches Wochenblatt" founded by Heinich Jakob Grote in 1822. Its name was changed in 1848 to "Westfälischer Anzeiger". A second newspaper appeared, founded by the Thiemann family, the "Westfälische Kurier". Both co-existed until the end of the Second World War. After the War both newspapers were combined and named "Westfälischer Anzeiger und Kurier". In the 1960s another name-change made the "Westfälischer Anzeiger". This newspaper is the mantle of several smaller regional newspapers, together they had a total 153,428 copies in 2004. In the 1970s the "Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung" unsuccessfully tried to establish its own daily newspaper. Two weekly newspapers appear in Hamm the "Stadtanzeiger" from the "Westfälischer Anzeiger" with a total of 384.000 copies and the Sonntags-Rundblick by a medium sized local company. Since 1990 the local radio station "Radio Lippewelle Hamm" is On Air and number one radio station of the local radios in NRW. On the 3rd October 1993 the "Offener Kanal Hamm" started broadcasting, it is a small TV project by people for the people, started through the federal state.

Transport[link]

Roads[link]

Hamm is linked to three motorways. The Bundesautobahn 1 (BAB 1 or A1, Puttgarden-Saarbrücken) named Hansaline with two connections No.81 and 82., the (BAB 2 or A2, Oberhausen-Berlin) with three connctions No.17,18 and 19 and the A445 (Hamm-Arnsberg) which is connected by the B63 until the planned construction between Hamm and Werl is completed. The Kamener Kreuz is situated in the southwest of Hamm. Two "federal roads" (Bundesstrassen) the B61 and B63 intersect in the city centre. Several state roads (Landesstrassen) are connecting Hamm with its neighbouring towns and municipalities.

Railways[link]

Hamm has three stations, the main railway station Hamm (Westfalen) and two minor stations, one in Bockum-Hövel and the other one in Heessen. The main station is one of the biggest railway hubs in Germany, and connected with one of the greatest marshalling yards of Europe, the latter now only partly operating. Notable is the railway station for its Art deco

Gründerzeit inspired building styles. Hamm is connected to the rail since May 2, 1847.

Buses[link]

The city bus net Hamm is served by the "Stadtwerke Hamm", with 65 buses, and the "Verkehrsgesellschaft Breitenbach". A regional bus service is served by different companies and both nets serve the central bus station, which is situated in front of the main railway station in the centre of Hamm. Hamm is part of the Verkehrsgemeinschaft Ruhr-Lippe. About 12 million people are using the bus net every year, transported by 50 bus lines with 500 bus stops within the city.

Canal[link]

Hamm is the end of the "Datteln-Hamm-Kanal", three ports are situated in the urban district. The city port, the canal end port Uentrop, and the port of "Gersteinwerk". The ports of Hamm are the second biggest canal port by freight transact, 1,4 millions tons a year by ships and 0,5 million tons by train. The city port allowes for ships up to 110 meters length 11,45 meters width and 2,7 meters draft. It is linked with the railway by a track to the near main railway station and the marshaling yard.

Airfield and Airports[link]

Near city centre, in the meadows of the River Lippe, the sport airfield Hamm is situated. Its runway is 900 m long and 30 m wide. The airfield is operated by the Luftsportclub Hamm e. V.. Hamm is situated in the middle of a triangle of three smaller International Airports, in the north the Münster Osnabrück International Airport (FMO) in the south-west Dortmund Airport and in the east Paderborn Lippstadt Airport. The nearest greater International Airport is Düsseldorf International Airport.

Hamm light airfield

Notable Citizens[link]

• 1770, 5 April, Rulemann Friedrich Eylert, pastor of the Reformed Church in Hamm, ev. Bishop in Potsdam
• 1824, 13 April, Friedrich Kapp, German-American attorney, author and politician
• 1868, 24 October, Gustav Lübcke, bookbinder, merchant, art collector and director of the Museum Hamm (later named after him)
• 1882, 18 January, Anna Siemsen, educationalist and politician
• 1884, 5 July, August Siemsen, educationalist and politician
• 1891, 27 March, Hans Siemsen, journalist and author
• 1900, 9 July, Hermann Freytag, Lord mayor of Duisburg (NSDAP)
• 1902, 2 June, Joachim von Elbe, jurist, member of legal department of the US military government in Germany after the Second World War.
• 1903, 5 February, Fritz Everding, naturalistic painter and graphic artist
• 1906, 19 May, Gerd Bucerius, publisher („Die Zeit“ ab 1959) and publicist (founder of the publishing house Gruner und Jahr GmbH & Co.)
• 1907, 13 March, Ludwig Biermann, physicist
• 1907, 21 March, Josef Veldtrup, educationalist and poet
• 1923, 16 March, Heinz Wallberg, conductor
• 1926, 21 February, Karl Otto Conrady, literary scientists, publisher, lyric poet („Der Neue Conrady. Das große deutsche Gedichtbuch“)
• 1927, 15 March, Hanns Joachim Friedrichs, TV-Journalist und moderator („Tagesthemen“)
• 1927, 17 October, Friedrich Hirzebruch, mathematician, founder and first director of the Max Planck Institute for Mathematics in Bonn
• 1930, 16 August, Manfred Schulte, politician (SPD), Member of the Bundestag (MdB)
• 1941, 21 October, Gerhard Schmitt-Thiel, moderator, author and journalist
• 1948, 22 March, Bernard Dietz, named „Ennatz“, footballer
• 1951, 17 April, Horst Hrubesch, footballer
• 1953, 23 March, Josef Kaczor, named „Jupp“, footballer
• 1956, 7 January, Leonard Lansink, actor („Wilsberg (TV-Series)“)
• 1957, 24 January, Klaus Fiehe, musician und radio presenter
• 1958, 17 April, Ralf Wosik, table tennis player
• 1960, 7 February, Klaus J. Behrendt, actor ("Tatort-Kommissar Max Ballauf")
• 1960, 13 June, Christoph Oertel, filmcomposer und sounddesigner
• 1960, 1 September, Joachim Masannek, author und director of "Die Wilden Kerle"
• 1964, 29 March, Andreas Obering (Der OBeL), actor („Das Wunder von Bern“), comedian
• 1964, 16 June, Michael Lusch, footballer
• 1964, 4 December, Uwe Kröger, musical actor
• 1965, 1 December, Till Hoheneder (Till), former Till&Obel, comedian und musician
• 1978, 5. July, İsmail YK, musician
• 1978, 8. October, Torben Wosik, table tennis player
• 1983, 5. November, Mike Hanke, footballer for Hannover 96

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Hamm

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Hamm

• The official site for Hamm, in German
• City Wiki for Hamm, in German

v t e Members of the Hanseatic League by Quarter Chief cities are highlighted; Free Imperial Cities of the Holy Roman Empire are shown in italics. Wendish Quarter Lübeck Anklam · Demmin · Greifswald · Hamburg · Kolberg (Kołobrzeg) · Lüneburg · Rostock · Rügenwalde (Darłowo) · Stettin (Szczecin) · Stolp (Słupsk) · Stockholm · Stralsund · Visby · Wismar Saxon Quarter Brunswick Berlin · Bremen · Erfurt · Frankfurt an der Oder · Goslar · Magdeburg Baltic Quarter Danzig (Gdańsk) Breslau (Wrocław) · Dorpat (Tartu) · Elbing (Elbląg) · Königsberg (Kaliningrad) · Kraków · Reval (Tallinn) · Rīga · Thorn (Toruń) Westphalian Quarter Cologne* Dortmund* Deventer · Groningen · Kampen · Münster · Osnabrück · Soest Principal Kontore Bryggen (Bergen) · Hanzekantoor (Bruges, Antwerp†) · Steelyard (London) · Peterhof (Novgorod) Subsidiary Kontore Bishop's Lynn · Falsterbo · Ipswich · Kovno (Kaunas) · Malmö · Polotsk · Pskov Other cities Bristol · Boston · Damme · Leith · Herford · Hull · Newcastle · Stargard · Yarmouth · York * Cologne and Dortmund were both capital of the Westphalian Quarter at different times. † Antwerp gained importance once Bruges became inaccessible due to the silting of the Zwin channel.

v t e Urban and rural districts in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany Urban districts Bielefeld Bochum Bonn Bottrop Dortmund Duisburg Düsseldorf Essen Gelsenkirchen Hagen Hamm Herne Köln (Cologne) Krefeld Leverkusen Mönchengladbach Mülheim Münster Oberhausen Remscheid Solingen Wuppertal Rural districts Aachen Borken Coesfeld Düren Ennepe-Ruhr-Kreis Euskirchen Gütersloh Heinsberg Herford Hochsauerlandkreis Höxter Kleve (Cleves) Lippe Märkischer Kreis Mettmann Minden-Lübbecke Oberbergischer Kreis Olpe Paderborn Recklinghausen Rheinisch-Bergischer Kreis Rhein-Erft-Kreis Rhein-Kreis Neuss Rhein-Sieg-Kreis Siegen-Wittgenstein Soest Steinfurt Unna Viersen Warendorf Wesel

Jon Hamm
Hamm at the Vancouver Olympics in February 2010
Born	Jonathan Daniel Hamm (1971-03-10) March 10, 1971 (age 41) St. Louis, Missouri United States
Alma mater	University of Missouri
Occupation	Actor, Director
Years active	2000–present
Partner	Jennifer Westfeldt (1997–present)

Jonathan Daniel "Jon" Hamm (born March 10, 1971) is an American actor best known for playing advertising executive Don Draper in the AMC drama series Mad Men, which premiered in July 2007. His performance on the show earned him a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Drama Series in 2008.

Early life[link]

Hamm was born in St. Louis, Missouri, to Daniel and Deborah Hamm. His father ran a family trucking company and his mother was a secretary.^[1][2] Hamm's parents divorced when he was two, and he lived with his mother in Creve Coeur, Missouri,^[2] until she was diagnosed with terminal abdominal cancer when he was 10.^[3] Hamm then moved in with his father,^[4] who died when Hamm was 20.

Hamm's first acting role was as Winnie-the-Pooh in first grade. At 16, he was cast as Judas in Godspell.^[5] Although he enjoyed the experience, he did not take acting seriously. Hamm attended John Burroughs School in Ladue, Missouri, where he was a member of the football, baseball, and swim teams.^[6] Following graduation in 1989, Hamm enrolled at the University of Texas,^[7] where he was a member of the Upsilon Chapter of Sigma Nu fraternity.^[8] Hamm returned home to attend the University of Missouri after his father's death.^[7] At Missouri, he auditioned for and won a role in a production of A Midsummer Night's Dream.^[4] Other roles followed, including Leon Czolgosz in Assassins.

After graduating in 1993 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English,^[9] Hamm returned to his high school to teach eighth-grade acting.^[2][4][10] One of his students was Ellie Kemper, an actress best known for her role on The Office and as Hamm's co-star in Bridesmaids.^[11]

Career[link]

Early work[link]

Hamm relocated to Los Angeles in 1995.^[12] He moved into a house with four other aspiring actors and began waiting tables while attending auditions.^[4]

He found employment as an actor difficult despite representation by the William Morris Endeavor.^[13] In 1998, having failed to obtain any acting jobs after three years,^[1] he was dropped by William Morris. Hamm continued working as a waiter,^[4] and briefly took a job as a set designer for a softcore pornography film.^[14] After repeatedly failing to find acting jobs, he set his thirtieth birthday as a deadline to succeed in Hollywood,^[5] observing that:

You either suck that up and find another agent, or you go home and say you gave it a shot, but that's the end of that. The last thing I wanted to be out here was one of those actors who's 45 years old, with a tenuous grasp of their own reality, and not really working much. So I gave myself five years. I said, if I can't get it going by the time I'm 30, I'm in the wrong place. And as soon as I said that, it's like I started working right away.^[4]

In 2000, Hamm was cast as firefighter Burt Ridley on NBC's drama series Providence.^[15][16] Hamm made his feature film debut in Clint Eastwood's 2000 space adventure Space Cowboys. His role consisted of one line. More substantial roles followed in the independent comedy Kissing Jessica Stein (2001)^[17] and the war film We Were Soldiers (2002).^[18] Hamm played the recurring role of police inspector Nate Basso on Lifetime's television series The Division from 2002 to 2004.^[15][16] Other television appearances included roles in What About Brian, CSI: Miami, Related, Numb3rs, The Unit, and The Sarah Silverman Program.^[15][16]

Breakthrough role[link]

Hamm's breakthrough role came in 2007 when he was chosen from more than 80 candidates^[14] to portray protagonist Don Draper in AMC's drama series Mad Men, despite initial concerns by director Alan Taylor and Mad Men creator Matthew Weiner that he was too handsome for the role. In the series, set in a fictional 1960s advertising agency, he plays a suave advertising executive with a mysterious past.^[19] Hamm recalled, "I read the script for Mad Men and I loved it. I never thought they'd cast me. I mean, I thought they'd go with one of the five guys who look like me, but are movie stars."^[20]

Hamm in November 2008

Mad Men debuted July 19, 2007, with almost 1.4 million viewers.^[21] It quickly developed a loyal audience, with both the show and Hamm receiving strong reviews. Robert Bianco of USA Today was complimentary of Hamm, noting that his interpretation of Draper was a "star-making performance".^[22] The Boston Globe's Matthew Gilbert called Hamm a "brilliant lead".^[23]

Hamm appeared in the 2008 science fiction film The Day the Earth Stood Still, a remake of the 1951 film of the same name.^[24] Although the film received negative reviews,^[25] it was financially successful, earning $230 million worldwide at the box office.^[26] Hamm hosted Saturday Night Live on October 25, 2008,^[27] as well as on January 30 and October 30, 2010.^[28][29] In 2009, Hamm appeared in three episodes of the NBC comedy 30 Rock as Dr. Drew Baird, a neighbor and love interest of Liz Lemon, portrayed by Tina Fey.^[30] For his work on the sitcom, he received an Emmy nomination as Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series.^[31] On December 12, 2010, Hamm lent his voice to Fox's animated series The Simpsons, portraying an FBI supervisor.^[32]

Hamm's first leading film role was in 2009's Stolen, an independent mystery thriller in which he portrayed a father attempting to discover the circumstances surrounding his son's kidnapping.^[33][34] The Hollywood Reporter's Frank Scheck stated that the feature never came together, and added that Hamm was unable to do much with his "underwritten role".^[35] Hamm had a voice cameo in the animated feature Shrek Forever After, released in May 2010, as an ogre named Brogan.^[36] Also in 2010, Hamm appeared opposite Ben Affleck as an FBI agent in The Town.^[37] Hamm was pleased that the film offered him a chance to play a role unlike that of Don Draper, explaining that he had received "about forty scripts that were all set in the 60s, or had me playing advertising guys."^[38] The film received generally favorable reviews^[39] and earned $144 million worldwide.^[40] Still another 2010 project found Hamm playing a defense attorney in Howl, based on Allen Ginsberg's 1956 poem of the same name.^[41] 2011 projects included roles in Zack Snyder's action-fantasy movie Sucker Punch and the independent feature Friends with Kids, directed by real-life partner Jennifer Westfeldt, which he helped co-produce.^[42]

He has a recurring role in The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret as the servant of sociopathic billionaire Dave Mountford, the role of which is later revealed to in fact be a fictionalized version of Jon Hamm, complaining that being made into Dave's servant has made him need to be written out of the first four episodes of Mad Men.

Personal life[link]

Hamm with girlfriend Jennifer Westfeldt at the 60th Primetime Emmy Awards, 2008

Hamm has been in a romantic relationship with actress and screenwriter Jennifer Westfeldt since 1997.^[3] They own homes in Los Angeles and the Upper West Side of New York.^[3][17] In an interview, Hamm stated: "We may not have a piece of paper that says we're husband and wife, but after 10 years, Jennifer is more than just a girlfriend. What we have is much deeper and we both know that. To me, people [should] get married when they're ready to have kids, which I'm not ruling out."^[43] Hamm, along with Westfeldt, has appeared in Gap advertisements.^[44] In April 2009, Hamm and Westfeldt formed their own production company, Points West Pictures.^[45][46] The couple are advocates of animal rescue and adopted a dog named Cora from the Much Love Animal Shelter in California.^[47]

Although his role as Draper requires him to smoke, Hamm gave up smoking when he was 24.^[48][49] Due to laws regulating workplace safety, he does not smoke actual cigarettes, but rather herbal cigarettes that do not contain tobacco or nicotine.^[49][50]

Hamm was named Salon.com's Sexiest Man Living in 2007,^[51] and was named one of People magazine's Sexiest Men Alive in 2008.^[52] Hamm won GQ's 'International Man' award in September 2010^[53] and was named one of Entertainment Weekly's Entertainers of the Year in 2008 and 2010.^[54]

Hamm is an avid golfer^[55] and a devoted fan of both the NHL's St. Louis Blues (going as far as appearing in two television ads for the team)^[56] and the MLB's St. Louis Cardinals.^[57] He narrated the official highlight film for the 2011 World Series in which the Cardinals won. Growing up, Hamm was a fan of the NFL's St. Louis Cardinals, who in 1988 moved to Phoenix, eventually becoming the Arizona Cardinals. Hamm states, however, that given the Cardinals' dismal performance during the 1970s, he adopted the Pittsburgh Steelers as his fallback team. Hamm cites the Steelers' success during the 1970s and his distaste for the Cowboys' prowess over the Cardinals as a reason for choosing the Steelers.^[58]

In March 2010, Hamm replaced actor Richard Thomas as the voiceover for Mercedes-Benz' S400 Hybrid ad campaign.^[59]

Filmography[link]

Hamm on the set of The Town in September 2009

Feature films[link]

Television[link]

Music Videos[link]

Awards and nominations[link]

References[link]