Earl Hamner, Jr.

Earl Henry Hamner Jr. was an American television writer and producer, best known for his work in the 1970s and 1980s as the creator of two long-running series, The Waltons and Falcon Crest. As a novelist, he is best known for Spencer's Mountain, which was inspired by his own childhood and formed the basis for both the film of the same name and the television series The Waltons, for which he provided voice-over narration at the beginning of most episodes to set the scene and provide context and occasionally at the end of the program.