5 facts about 'Mama's Family' executive producer Joe Hamilton

A singer, composer and executive producer, Joe Hamilton did it all!

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How often do singers turn into legendary executive producers of classic comedy sitcoms? Not often at all. However, for Joe Hamilton, it was something that came naturally.

Hamilton is known as the executive producer of Mama's Family, but the multi-talented Los Angeles native had his eye on a few different areas. He started his career singing in a group called The Skylarks. They were a vocal group, and the producer also composed their music. It's unknown exactly how he transitioned from music to television or if his musical talents contributed to his production success.

He passed away at 62 in 1991, leaving behind a classic legacy worth learning about. So, here are five facts about Mama's Family Producer Joe Hamilton.

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1. He became a producer on 'The Garry Moore Show.'

 

Image: CBS

Although Hamilton started a career in music, he somehow made his way into television. He became a producer on The Gary Moore Show in 1958. The show starred Carol Burnett, an iconic comedian whom Hamilton often worked with throughout his career. It is assumed that the show is where the two first met.

2. Hamilton has eleven children, three with Burnett.

 

Image: Unsplash.com

The producer and Burnett got married and had three children together. Supposedly, they divorced because their careers were too hectic. He was previously married to a woman named Gloria Hartley, with whom he had eight children during their time together.

3. Hamilton worked with Carol Burnett several times.

 

After working together on The Gary Moore Show, Hamilton and Burnett kept creating magic. Hamilton was the executive producer of The Carol Burnett Show and composed the theme song. The two also worked together on a movie titled Eunice.

4. He executive produced all 130 episodes of 'Mama's Family.'

 

A producer rarely gets the chance to work on every episode in a series, but Hamilton executive produced all of Mama's Family's 130 episodes. Although the show was canceled at 30 episodes at first, it returned for another 100.

5. He won many awards during his career.

 

Image: Unsplash.com

Hamilton won five Emmys during the duration of his career. He won his first Emmy for his contribution to The Gary Moore Show. As he continued to build his legacy, more awards kept coming.

SEE MORE: 11 things you might not know about 'Mama's Family'

 

Revisit Raytown and learn about the sitcom's house changes, family changes, secret theme song lyrics, presidential candidates and more!

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27 Comments

bagandwallyfan52 22 months ago
There are two different men with the
name of Joe Hamilton.
ruswilinc 23 months ago
Should have been 6 things. He was also married to Carol Burnett.
F5Twitster 23 months ago
Some episodes he appeared in are 'Sherriff Barney,' 'Barney and the Cave Rescue,' and more."

Only ONE "r" in sheriff.

PROOFREAD!
ETristanBooth 23 months ago
As seen in the image, Garry Moore's name was spelled "Garry." In the text, they spell it "Gary" several times.
LanceMcCrickard 23 months ago
The Joseph Hamilton on The Andy Griffith Show died in 1965. MeTV really botched this story with their lack of research.
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0357975/
meowmom 23 months ago
The youngsters at Me-TV did not check the facts before writing this story. I refer you to point #2 of this article. The actor Joseph Hamilton, who appeared in numerous episodes of TAGS and other television shows, died in 1965. The prolific producer Joe Hamilton, who was married to Carol Burnett from 1963-1984, has only one acting credit listed, for Mama's Family. Same name, different folks.
LoveMETV22 meowmom 23 months ago
And obviously you read IMDb's bio on The Andy Griffith Show, as your only source.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------


One source may not list or credit as another source does. Yes the actor mentioned on the IMDb made numerous appearances, whereas the Director only made several. Two different individuals, with the same name, that appeared on TAGS.
meowmom LoveMETV22 23 months ago
No, I read many articles and looked at various photos before posting my comment. Wikipedia can be wrong, too.
LoveMETV22 meowmom 23 months ago
As well as the articles you read could be wrong. There have been shows that have non-credited (including non- listing of their names as well).Not really dispute worthy, or deep research worthy.
KJExpress meowmom 23 months ago
I like the picture of your kitty. ☺️
cperrynaples LoveMETV22 23 months ago
The man in the middle of the photo is none other than Fred Allen! He was big on radio but died before he made an impact on TV!
LoveMETV22 cperrynaples 23 months ago
Thank you cperrynaples.
Moverfan cperrynaples 22 months ago
Both Fred Allen and Dorothy Kilgallen were panelists on What's My Line and both passed away during the run of the series. I used to record them off the Game Show Network (which ran it at 3 am with I've Got A Secret--they called it Late Night Black & White) and when I saw the episodes where host John Charles Daly announced their passing, I got so caught up that I made a note to buy and mail a sympathy card the next time I ran errands. Very nice thought...except they passed in the sixties and I was watching them in 2007 or around there...
Deleted 23 months ago
This comment has been removed.
RobertM 23 months ago
They forgot to mention that he was married to Carol Burnett.
justjeff RobertM 23 months ago
Perhaps they didn't forget, but simply wanted to keep the spotlight on him for this story, considerign how many "Carol" articles they run.

I didn't know that Hamilton wrote Carol's theme song, and if you've ever heard the full version, I hope you'll agree that the lyrics are so tender and emotional. YouTube has her singing it in full on her last broadcast...
MrsPhilHarris RobertM 23 months ago
I reread it because I thought I must have missed where they mentioned he was married to CB.
cperrynaples 23 months ago
Hamilton is not the only producer who started as an actor! Love Boat producer Aaron Spelling appeared on such classics as I Love Lucy & Alfred Hitchcock Presents!
Didn't Garry Marshall get his start as an actor .I know that Sheldon
Leonard the producer of Gomer
Pyle started out as an actor in
Movies.
Yes, both Marshall & Leonard did lots of acting! MeTV even gave Leonard a quiz!
LoveMETV22 cperrynaples 23 months ago
Although Garry Marshall didn't get a quiz, his sister Penny did.
GARRY MARSHALL PLAYED THE DRUMS IN AT LEAST ONE UNCREDITED APPEARANCE WHEN
RICHIE POTSIE AND RALPH GRADUATED FROM HIGH SCHOOL AND FONZIE GRADUATED FROM NIGHT SCHOOL AND THIS GRADUATION TWO PART EPISODE WAS THE LAST APPEARANCE OF SPIKE (DANNY BUTCH).
MY HAPPY DAYS QUESTION IS ABOUT THE HAPPY DAYS BAND.
DID BAG ZOMBROSKI (NEIL J. SCHWARTZ) STICKS DOWNEY JR.
(JOHN ANTHONY BAILEY )
DAPHNE (HILLARY HORAN ) AND
CHACHI ARCOLA (SCOTT BAIO)
REALLY PLAY THE DRUMS IN
RICHIES BAND OR DID BAG AND THE OTHER DRUMMERS DO A DRUM 🥁 FAKEOUT ??
IF CHUCK CUNNINGHAM 2
RANDOLPH ROBERTS HAD PLAYED THE FLUTE IN RICHIES BAND THEN
MAYBE CHUCK WOULD HAVE BEEN ON HAPPY DAYS UNTIL 1980 WHEN
RON HOWARD AND DONNY MOST
LEFT HAPPY DAYS AND ROGER PHILLIPS TED McGINLEY MORE OR LESS REPLACED RICHIE AS FONZIES SIDEKICK.
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