Bill Murray

See also William Murray (disambiguation).

William James Murray (born September 21, 1950) is an Academy Award-nominated American comedian, actor, producer, director and poet.

Biography

Early Life

Murray was born in Chicago, Illinois, the fifth of nine children of Edward J. Murray II, a lumber salesman, and Lucille Collins,^* Irish American Catholics. Three of Murray's siblings are also actors: John Murray, Joel Murray, and Brian Doyle-Murray. A sister, Nancy, is an Adrian Dominican nun in Illinois. The four Murray brothers appeared in the 1988 film Scrooged.

Murray was raised in Wilmette, Illinois and graduated from Loyola Academy. He went to Regis University in Denver, Colorado before dropping out to pursue his comedy career.

Career

With an invitation from his older brother, Brian Doyle-Murray, Murray got his start at Second City Chicago studying under Del Close. The improvisational troupe was a perfect fit for Murray's clever, dry wit and ad-libbing. Murray later revisited the troupe with the TV special Bill Murray Live From the Second City (1980). While in Chicago, Murray worked at Little Caesar's alongside now-celebrity chef Kerry Simon. In 1975, Murray took on the role of Johnny Storm of the Fantastic Four in a short-lived radio adaptation of the Marvel comic.

Murray initially rose to prominence as a cast member of and a writer for NBC's Saturday Night Live television series from 1977 to 1980, replacing Chevy Chase, with whom he reportedly got into a fist fight off camera when Chase did a guest host in the late 70s (Chase claims they've long since put the incident behind them). He had previously been a featured player on The National Lampoon Radio Hour, aired nationally on some 600 stations between 1973 and 1975. Other cast members included Dan Aykroyd, John Belushi, Gilda Radner, and his brother Brian Doyle-Murray. Former SNL writer Margaret Oberman has said Murray and Eddie Murphy are the two most talented people in the history of the show.

Most of his roles have been comedic, featuring Murray's dry wit. However, he has also played serious (or at least semi-serious) roles in films such as Mad Dog and Glory, The Razor's Edge, Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums, and Broken Flowers. His Groundhog Day has become a cult classic. Yet another cult favorite is Murray's portrayal of multiphobic psychiatric patient Bob Wiley in the 1991 comedy What About Bob? He also garnered considerable acclaim (an Academy Awards nomination, and Golden Globes and BAFTA awards) as the lead in the 2003 film Lost in Translation. In an interview included on the Lost in Translation DVD, Murray states that this is his favorite movie in which he has appeared. One of Murray's most recognised roles is that of Peter Venkman from the Ghostbusters movies, a role originally intended for John Belushi who died before production began. He also was in the cult comedy classic Caddyshack, which also starred Chase and other comedian Rodney Dangerfield. His wildly famous Dalai Lama speech from the film was completely improvised. In 2005, he announced that he would take a break from acting, as he had not had the time since his new breakthrough in the late-1990s. However, he is doing the voice of Garfield in Garfield: the Movie and A Tail of Two Kitties. At the height of his fame in the mid-1980s, following Ghostbusters, Murray, upset at the lower gross for his attempt at drama The Razor's Edge (part of his contract for starring in Ghostbusters) took four years off to study French at the Sorbonne. Therefore, from 1985 until 1988, with the exception of a memorable cameo in the 1986 movie Little Shop of Horrors, he did not make any appearances in films.

He was named #1 Smartass on Comedy Central's List of the 51 Greatest Smartasses.

Personal life

Murray has been married twice. First to Margaret Kelly, who bore two of his children. They married in 1980, and they divorced in 1994. In 1997, he married Jennifer Butler. They have 4 children together.

He is a partner with his brothers in Murray Bros. Caddy Shack, a restaurant chain with locations near Jacksonville and in Myrtle Beach. Murray is an avid golfer who often plays in celebrity tournaments. His 1999 book Cinderella Story: My Life in Golf, part autobiography and part essay, expounds on his love of golf.

He is a part-owner of the St. Paul Saints independent minor-league baseball team and occasionally travels to Saint Paul, Minnesota to watch the team's games.

Very detached from the Hollywood scene, Murray does not have an agent or manager, and reportedly ^* only fields offers for scripts and roles using a personal telephone number with a voice mailbox which he checks infrequently. This practice has the downside of sometimes preventing him from taking parts that he had auditioned for, and was interested in, such as that of Sulley in Monsters, Inc and Willy Wonka in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Murray has homes in Los Angeles and upstate New York.

During the 2000 presidential campaign, Murray stumped for Green Party candidate Ralph Nader.

Murray is a huge fan of the Chicago pro teams, especially the Chicago Cubs. He also is a huge Michael Jordan fan, and has made cameo appearances in Space Jam and Jordan documentaries.

Trivia

Murray played Venkman in the Ghostbusters movie and its sequel, while the late Lorenzo Music was the voice of Venkman in the cartoon series (until being replaced by Dave Coulier) as well as the title character in all of the Garfield animation. Murray would go on to be the voice of Garfield in 2004.
Murray is said to have a policy of not doing a third version of anything, which is one of the reasons Ghostbusters III has been reported to be in development hell (another actor could be hired, however).
There's a B-Side to the single "Feel Good Inc." by the fictional band Gorillaz named "Bill Murray."
Bill Murray is part owner of the Fort Myers Miracle, a minor league baseball Class - A Affiliate of the Minnesota Twins. The Miracle have honored their part owner by celebrating him in the form of a Bill Murray bobblehead giveaway.

Filmography

Ray Gun (2007)
A Tail of Two Kitties (2006)
The Lost City (2005)
Broken Flowers (2005)
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004)
Garfield: The Movie (2004) (voice)
This Old Cub (2004) (documentary)
Coffee and Cigarettes (2003)
Lost in Translation (2003); nomination for Academy Award for Best Actor
The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)
Osmosis Jones (2001)
Speaking of Sex (2001)
Charlie's Angels (2000)
Michael Jordan to the Max (2000) (documentary)
Hamlet (2000)
Scout's Honor (1999) (short subject)
Cradle Will Rock (1999)
Rushmore (1998)
With Friends Like These... (1998)
Wild Things (1998)
The Man Who Knew Too Little (1997)
Space Jam (1996)
Larger Than Life (1996)
Kingpin (1996)
Ed Wood (1994)
Mad Dog and Glory (1993)
Groundhog Day (1993)
What About Bob? (1991)
Quick Change (1990) (also director and producer)
Ghostbusters II (1989)
Scrooged (1988)
She's Having a Baby (1988) (cameo)
Little Shop of Horrors (1986)
The Razor's Edge (1984) (also screenwriter)
Nothing Lasts Forever (1984)
Ghostbusters (1984)
Tootsie (1982)
Stripes (1981)
Loose Shoes (1980)
Caddyshack (1980)
The Missing Link (1980) (voice in English dubbed version)
Where the Buffalo Roam (1980)
Mr. Mike's Mondo Video (1979)
Meatballs (1979)
Fear and Loathing in Gonzovision (1978) (cameo)
All You Need Is Cash (1978) (cameo)
Next Stop, Greenwich Village (1976)
Shame of the Jungle (1975) (voice in English dubbed version)

External links

Murray Bros. Caddyshack Restaurant
Streaming audio interview from 1988 (18 minutes)