Nothing Special   »   [go: up one dir, main page]

    Release calendarTop 250 moviesMost popular moviesBrowse movies by genreTop box officeShowtimes & ticketsMovie newsIndia movie spotlight
    What's on TV & streamingTop 250 TV showsMost popular TV showsBrowse TV shows by genreTV news
    What to watchLatest trailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb SpotlightFamily entertainment guideIMDb Podcasts
    EmmysSuperheroes GuideSan Diego Comic-ConSummer Watch GuideBest Of 2025 So FarDisability Pride MonthSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll events
    Born todayMost popular celebsCelebrity news
    Help centerContributor zonePolls
For industry professionals
  • Language
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Watchlist
Sign in
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Use app
  • Biography
  • Awards
  • Trivia
  • FAQ
IMDbPro

Michael Murphy(I)

  • Actor
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
Michael Murphy
American Experience: The Circus
Play trailer1:00
The Circus: Part 1 (2018)
70 Videos
58 Photos
Michael Murphy was born in Los Angeles, California, to Georgia Arlyn (née Money), a teacher, and Bearl Branton Murphy, a salesman. After a hitch in the Marine Corps, Murphy attended the University of Arizona, Tucson, and then went to U.C.L.A. for his California teaching credential. From 1962 to 1964, he taught high school English and drama in Los Angeles.

Murphy's most notable appearance was as Woody Allen's best friend Yale, the self-tortured adulterer, in Allen's masterpiece Manhattan (1979). The two had acted together earlier in Martin Ritt's The Front (1976) and had become good friends. Surprisingly, despite the excellent performance Murphy gave in the film, Allen hasn't used him again.

Murphy's career as a first-rate supporting player began in 1962 and has continued for over five decades, with major parts in Paul Mazursky's An Unmarried Woman (1978), which he calls "the first of the whining yuppies," Peter Weir's The Year of Living Dangerously (1982), and Oliver Stone's Salvador (1986). He also has worked with such significant directors as Elia Kazan in The Arrangement (1969), Tim Burton in Batman Returns (1992), and Paul Thomas Anderson in Magnolia (1999). Murphy co-starred in John Sayles' Silver City (2004), as a U.S. Senator who is the father of a gubernatorial candidate played by Oscar-winner Chris Cooper, standing-in for the pre-presidential George W. Bush.

Murphy is perhaps best known for his long collaboration with director Robert Altman that stretches back to the beginning of his career.

"I was right out of the University of Arizona," Murphy reminisced during a 2004 interview, "and a friend said, 'Go over to MGM and meet Bob Altman. He's using a lot of young guys for this Army thing he's doing.'" Altman was directing the World War II television series Combat! (1962), and Altman cast him in the show without an audition. "We became immediate friends. He told me, 'You may not turn out to be a movie star, but you'll get to do some interesting work.' Bob was in his thirties when we met. He had been a young bomber pilot in World War II and was wise beyond his years. From the very beginning, he never played it safe when it came to making movies. He had amazing fortitude and guts."

In addition to Combat! (1962) and the Altman-directed TV movie Nightmare in Chicago (1964), Murphy has appeared in seven theatrical movies directed by Altman between 1968 and 1996: Countdown (1967), That Cold Day in the Park (1969), M*A*S*H (1970), Brewster McCloud (1970), McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971), Nashville (1975), and Kansas City (1996). Murphy has also appeared in Altman's TV adaptation of Herman Wouk's play The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial (1988) and in two cable-TV mini-series for him: Tanner '88 (1988) and Tanner on Tanner (2004).

About Altman, Murphy says, "I adored the guy. If you were getting married or divorced, or, really, if anything momentous was happening in your life, you'd want to seek him out to talk about it. He was very strong when it came to life's dilemmas...could always see the big picture...was always helpful. An extraordinary man."

Murphy played the title role of Michigan Congressman Jack Tanner in Altman's ground-breaking HBO series Tanner '88 (1988), which was scripted by Garry Trudeau of "Doonesbury" fame. The fictional Tanner ran for president in the Democratic Party primaries of 1988, alongside George Bush (whom Murphy himself "plays" in Silver City (2004)), Michael Dukakis, Al Gore, and Pat Robertson, with some "guest appearances" by Ronald Reagan along the way. The "candidate" Tanner actually interacted on-camera with candidates Gary Hart, Bob Dole, and Jesse Jackson, and with the journalists Linda Ellerbee and Chris Matthews.

During the progress of the series' eleven episodes, Tanner increasingly became alienated as the grueling political marathon went on. He was portrayed as an intellectual troubled by sound-bite politics and the public persona he was compelled to create for the media-fueled electoral machine that vetted the candidates for the public at the other end of the cathode-ray tube. Tanner eventually realizes he lacks the all-consuming drive to be a successful presidential candidate under such a system.

A caustic look at American politics from a liberal-left-anarchist point of view, "Tanner '88" won the prize for best television series at the Festival International de Programmes Audiovisuels in Cannes in the fall of 1988. The mini-series ranks among the best and most important of television programs. Altman-Murphy-Trudeau reprised Tanner with "Tanner on Tanner" (2004), in which the character did not run but commented on the political process and on the media circus accompanying the pursuit for the nation's highest office.

About the cable mini-series, Murphy says, "Yes, Bob shows some of the nastiness behind all campaigns, but I don't think it's a polemic. In Bob's case, you vote for the Democrat, but be careful of what you wish for. He is very cynical."

In 2019, Murphy's Jack Tanner found himself back on the silver screen in "Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story by Martin Scorsese". In this movie, Tanner gets to go to a Dylan concert at the behest of President Jimmy Carter...a mutual friend.

Despite decades of solid performances in a plethora of movies, Murphy remains somewhat anonymous to the public at large. Arriving in a limousine at the 2004 Toronto Film Festival premiere of Silver City (2004), he got out of the car and was unrecognized. When the publicists eventually realized he was a star of the film, Murphy was ordered back into the limousine so that he could exit it again, and the paparazzi could photograph him.

"I'm in this kind of fun position where I'm not especially recognizable," Murphy said when recounting the incident. "This sometimes allows me to stand back and watch the circus...even though I'm a part of it it. You wind up with an interesting perspective."

In 1988, Michael Murphy married the co-star of his short-lived television show Hard Copy (1987), the actress Wendy Crewson. She has also appeared with her husband in Tanner '88 (1988) and in the theatrical films Folks! (1992) and Sleeping Dogs Lie (1998). They have two children, a daughter, Maggie Murphy, born in 1989, and a son, John ("Jack") Branton Murphy, born in 1992.
BornMay 5
  • More at IMDbPro
    • Contact info
    • Agent info
    • Resume
BornMay 5
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
  • View contact info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 3 wins & 2 nominations total

    Photos58

    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    + 52
    View Poster

    Known for

    Manhattan (1979)
    Manhattan
    7.8
    • Yale
    • 1979
    Nashville (1975)
    Nashville
    7.6
    • John Triplette
    • 1975
    Tanner '88 (1988)
    Tanner '88
    7.8
    TV Mini Series
    • Jack Tanner
    Julie Christie and Gordon Pinsent in Away from Her (2006)
    Away from Her
    7.5
    • Aubrey
    • 2006

    Credits

    Edit
    IMDbPro

    Actor



    • David Ogden Stiers, David McCullough, and Michael Murphy in American Experience (1988)
      American Experience
      8.6
      TV Series
      • Narrator
      • 2011–2020
    • Bob Dylan in Rolling Thunder Revue (2019)
      Rolling Thunder Revue
      7.5
      • The Politician
      • 2019
    • Cynthia Dale, Cara Ricketts, Steve Lund, and Yvonne Chapman in Street Legal (2019)
      Street Legal
      6.7
      TV Series
      • Gerry Czernik
      • 2019
    • Two Plains & a Fancy (2018)
      Two Plains & a Fancy
      5.5
      • Rancher
      • 2018
    • Indian Horse (2017)
      Indian Horse
      7.3
      • Father Quinney
      • 2017
    • Rogue (2013)
      Rogue
      6.9
      TV Series
      • George Kelly
      • 2015
    • Fall (2014)
      Fall
      6.2
      • Father Sam Ryan
      • 2014
    • Amy Poehler and Paul Rudd in They Came Together (2014)
      They Came Together
      5.6
      • Roger
      • 2014
    • Jamie Foxx and Channing Tatum in White House Down (2013)
      White House Down
      6.3
      • Vice President Hammond
      • 2013
    • Great Scot Beer
      TV Movie
      • Randy
      • 2012
    • Jim Caviezel and Michael Emerson in Person of Interest (2011)
      Person of Interest
      8.5
      TV Series
      • Congressman Jim Hallen
      • 2011
    • Bob Martin and Matt Watts in Michael: Every Day (2011)
      Michael: Every Day
      6.7
      TV Series
      • Stanley Dyer
      • 2011
    • Living in Your Car (2010)
      Living in Your Car
      7.5
      TV Series
      • Frank
      • 2010
    • Inga Cadranel, Aaron Douglas, Ona Grauer, Michael Murphy, Paul Popowich, and Theresa Joy in The Bridge (2010)
      The Bridge
      6.9
      TV Series
      • Ed Wycoff
      • 2010
    • Hilary Duff and Evan Ross in According to Greta (2009)
      According to Greta
      6.1
      • Joseph
      • 2009

    Videos70

    Fall
    Clip 1:18
    Fall
    Fall
    Clip 1:28
    Fall
    Fall
    Clip 1:28
    Fall
    The Trotsky
    Clip 1:24
    The Trotsky
    The Trotsky
    Clip 1:02
    The Trotsky
    American Experience: The Presidents Collection
    Clip 0:31
    American Experience: The Presidents Collection
    Trailer
    Trailer 2:47
    Trailer

    Personal details

    Edit
    • Height
      • 6′ 1″ (1.85 m)
    • Born
      • May 5
      • Los Angeles, California, USA
    • Spouse
      • Wendy CrewsonMarch 7, 1988 - January 10, 2009 (divorced, 2 children)
    • Children
        Maggie Murphy
    • Parents
        Bearl Branton Murphy
    • Relatives
        Monica Ann Murphy(Sibling)
    • Publicity listings
      • 1 Interview
      • 3 Articles

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Has appeared in more Robert Altman feature films and television productions than any other actor in movie history.
    • Trademarks
        Plays urbane, WASP-type characters

    FAQ

    Powered by Alexa
    • Where was Michael Murphy born?
      Los Angeles, California, USA
    • What is Michael Murphy's birth name?
      Michael George Murphy
    • How tall is Michael Murphy?
      6 feet 1 inch, or 1.85 meters
    • What is Michael Murphy known for?
      Nashville, Manhattan, Tanner '88, and Away from Her
    • Is Michael Murphy married?
      He was married to Wendy Crewson from March 7, 1988 to January 10, 2009.

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    Sign in for more accessSign in for more access
    Follow IMDb on social
    Get the IMDb App
    For Android and iOS
    Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • License IMDb Data
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Your Ads Privacy Choices
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2025 by IMDb.com, Inc.