Michael Murphy (actor)

Michael George Murphy (born May 5, 1938) is an American film, television and stage actor. He often plays unethical or morally ambiguous characters in positions of authority, including politicians, executives, administrators, clerics, doctors, law enforcement agents, and lawyers. He is also known for his frequent collaborations with director Robert Altman, having appeared in twelve films, TV series and miniseries directed by Altman from 1963 to 2004, including the title role in the miniseries Tanner '88. He had roles in the films Manhattan, An Unmarried Woman, Nashville, The Year of Living Dangerously, Phase IV, The Front, Shocker, Magnolia, Cloak & Dagger, Salvador, Away from Her, Strange Behavior, Fall, X-Men: The Last Stand, M*A*S*H and Batman Returns, among others.

Early life
Murphy was born in Los Angeles, California, the son of Georgia Arlyn (née Money), a teacher, and Bearl Branton Murphy, a salesman. After serving in the U.S. Marine Corps near the end of the Korean War, Murphy attended the University of Arizona and the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA).

He taught English and drama at University High School (Los Angeles) before pursuing an acting career.

Career
Murphy is best known for his performances as Jill Clayburgh's adulterous husband Martin in Paul Mazursky's An Unmarried Woman (1978), as Woody Allen's morally ambiguous best friend Yale in Manhattan (1979), as ethically enigmatic lawyer Alan Kligman in Magnolia (1999), and as the star of Garry Trudeau and Robert Altman's HBO miniseries Tanner '88.

Murphy worked frequently with Altman, including as Captain Ezekiel Bradbury "Me Lay" Marston V, in M*A*S*H (1970), as Det. Lt. Frank Shaft in Brewster McCloud (1970), as John Triplette in Nashville (1975), and as the title character in Tanner '88 (a role he reprised in the 2004 follow-up miniseries Tanner on Tanner). Other Altman films and television series in which Murphy appeared include the World War II TV series Combat! (in which Murphy appeared in 1963, on the show's second of its five seasons), Countdown (1968), That Cold Day in the Park (1969), McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971), The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial (1988) and Kansas City (1996).

Other notable film roles include What's Up, Doc? (1972), The Front (1976), The Class of Miss MacMichael (1978), The Year of Living Dangerously (1982), My Letter to George (1986), Salvador (1986), Private Parts (1997), Silver City (2004), According to Greta (2009), White House Down (2013), They Came Together (2014). His television roles include guest appearances on Bonanza, Baretta, The Sixth Sense, Law & Order, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Judging Amy, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., Family Law, 12 O'Clock High, Life Stories, Salty, Here Comes the Brides and L.A. Law.

Though usually cast in supporting roles and character actor parts, Murphy has not been relegated solely to such work. He has also had leading turns in a variety of theatrical films including Phase IV (1974), Strange Behavior (1981), Hot Money (1983), Shocker (1989), The Island (1998) and the 2014 film Fall--in an acclaimed performance that garnered him a 2015 Canadian Screen Award nomination for Best Actor--as well as starring turns in television films like Bell, Book and Candle (1976), 3 by Cheever: O Youth and Beauty! (1979), Countdown to Looking Glass (1984), Tailspin: Behind the Korean Airliner Tragedy (1989), The Ultimate Lie (1996), Breaking the Surface: The Greg Louganis Story (1996) and In the Dark (2003), in addition to others.

Murphy has narrated numerous documentaries, including many episodes of the PBS historical documentary series The American Experience, and the public television travel series Weekends with Yankee. He has appeared in Canadian film and television, including the dramady series This Is Wonderland, for which he was nominated for three Gemini Awards, winning twice, successively, in 2004 and 2005, and nominated for a third in 2006. He has also appeared in the television films Sleeping Dogs Lie (1998), The Life and Crimes of William Palmer (1998), H2O (2004), and theatrically-released features including Folks! (1992), Childstar (2004), Away from Her (2006) and The Trotsky (2008).

Personal life
Murphy was married to Canadian actress Wendy Crewson from 1988 until their divorce in January 2009. They have two children, Maggie (born 1989) and John (born 1992).

Murphy currently resides in Cape Elizabeth, Maine.

Selected filmography

 * Double Trouble (1967) as Morley
 * Countdown (1968) as Rick
 * The Legend of Lylah Clare (1968) as Mark Peter Sheehan
 * That Cold Day in the Park (1969) as The Rounder
 * The Arrangement (1969) as Father Draddy
 * The Lawyer (1970) as Intern in Legal Office (uncredited)
 * Count Yorga, Vampire (1970) as Paul
 * M*A*S*H (1970) as Capt. Ezekiel Bradbury "Me Lay" Marston V
 * Brewster McCloud (1970) as Det. Lt. Frank Shaft
 * McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971) as Sears
 * The Crooked Hearts (1972) as Officer Frank Adamic
 * What's Up, Doc? (1972) as Mr. Smith
 * The Thief Who Came to Dinner (1973) as Ted
 * The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman (1974) as Quentin Lerner
 * I Love You...Good-bye (1974) as Alec Shield
 * Phase IV (1974) as Dr. James R. Lesko
 * Nashville (1975) as John Triplette
 * The Making of "The Front" (1976) as Self
 * The Front (1976) as Alfred Miller
 * Bell, Book and Candle (1976) as Alex Brandt
 * The Great Bank Hoax (1977) as Reverend Manigma
 * An Unmarried Woman (1978) as Martin Benton
 * The Class of Miss MacMichael (1978) as Martin Best
 * 3 by Cheever: O Youth and Beauty! (1979) as Cash Bentley
 * Manhattan (1979) as Yale
 * Strange Behavior (1981) as John Brady
 * The Rules of Marriage (1982) as Alan Murray
 * The Year of Living Dangerously (1982) as Pete Curtis
 * Hot Money (1983) as Burt / Tom
 * Talk to Me (1984) as Ross
 * Countdown to Looking Glass (1984) as Bob Calhoun
 * Cloak & Dagger (1984) as Rice
 * My Letter to George (1986) as Reverend Wilson
 * Salvador (1986) as U.S. Ambassador Thomas Kelly
 * Tanner '88 (1988) as Fmr. U.S. Congressman Jack Tanner
 * The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial (1988) as Captain Blakely
 * Shocker (1989) as Det. Lt. Don Parker
 * The Making of "Shocker" (1989) as Self
 * Tailspin: Behind the Korean Airliner Tragedy (1989) as Richard Burt
 * Folks! (1992) as Ed
 * Batman Returns (1992) as The Mayor
 * Dead Ahead: The Exxon Valdez Disaster (1992) as U.S. EPA Administrator William Reilly
 * Clean Slate (1994) as Dr. Doover
 * Bad Company (1995) as William V. 'Smitty' Smithfield (uncredited)
 * The First 100 Years: A Celebration of American Movies (1995) (uncredited - archive footage from Nashville and Manhattan)
 * Truman (1995) as Dinner Speaker (uncredited)
 * Breaking the Surface: The Greg Louganis Story (1996) as Pete Louganis
 * Kansas City (1996) as Henry Stilton
 * Special Report: Journey to Mars (1996) as Dean Rumplemeyer
 * The Ultimate Lie (1996) as Malcolm McGrath
 * Robert Altman: Giggle and Give In (1996) as Self
 * Private Parts (1997) as Roger Erlick
 * The Irish in America: Long Journey Home (1998) as Narrator
 * The Island (1998) as President John F. Kennedy
 * The Life and Crimes of William Palmer (1998) as Smith
 * Indiscretion of an American Wife (1998) as Russell Burton
 * Sleeping Dogs Lie (1998) as Edgar Tratt
 * Magnolia (1999) as Alan Kligman, Esq.
 * The Art of War (2000) as Politician (uncredited)
 * The Only Living Boy in New York (2000) as Rudy
 * Enlisted: The Story of "M*A*S*H" (2000) as Self
 * Twentieth Century Fox: The Blockbuster Years (2000) (uncredited – archive footage from An Unmarried Woman)
 * Tart (2001) as Mike Storm
 * The Day Reagan Was Shot (2001) as White House Deputy Chief of Staff Michael Deaver
 * American Experience – Mount Rushmore (2002) as Narrator
 * Live from Baghdad (2002) as Tom Johnson
 * American Experience – Transcontinental Railroad (2003) as Narrator
 * Footsteps (2003) as Robbie
 * In the Dark (2003) as George Speller
 * Tricks (2004) as Arthur
 * Childstar (2004) as Reed Harrison
 * American Masters – Julia! America's Favorite Chef (2004) as Narrator
 * Silver City (2004) as U.S. Senator Judson Pilager
 * Tanner on Tanner (2004) as Fmr. U.S. Congressman Jack Tanner
 * Behind the Scenes: Tanner on Tanner (2004) as Self
 * The Path to 9/11 (2004) as U.S. Secretary of Defense William Cohen
 * H2O (2004) as U.S. Ambassador Conrad
 * This is Wonderland (2004-2006) as Judge Maxwell Fraser
 * Tilt (2005) as Jimmy Malloy
 * Heights (2005) as Jesse
 * Mayday (2005) as Captain Randall Williams
 * American Experience – Las Vegas: An Unconventional History, Part I (2005) as Narrator
 * American Experience – Las Vegas: An Unconventional History, Part II (2005) as Narrator
 * X-Men: The Last Stand (2006) as Warren Worthington II
 * Away From Her (2006) as Aubrey
 * Playing House (2006) as Hubbard
 * The Wind in the Willows (2006) as Judge
 * American Experience – Jesse James (2006) as Narrator
 * American Experience – The Gold Rush (2006) as Narrator
 * Caring for Your Parents (2008) as Narrator
 * Depression: Out of the Shadows (2008) as Narrator
 * The Quality of Life (2008) as Charles Greenborne
 * American Experience – Kit Carson (2008) as Narrator
 * A War in Hollywood (2008) (archive footage – from The Front)
 * Not Quite Hollywood: Deleted Scenes (2008) (archive footage - Self)
 * The Trotsky (2009) as Frank McGovern
 * According to Greta (2009) as Joseph
 * American Experience – Wyatt Earp (2010) as Narrator
 * Angle of Attack: How Naval Aviation Changed the Face of War (2011) as Narrator
 * American Experience – Billy the Kid (2011) as Narrator
 * American Experience – Panama Canal (2011) as Narrator
 * American Experience – Dinosaur Wars (2011) as Narrator
 * American Experience – Triangle Fire (2011) as Narrator
 * American Experience – Custer's Last Stand (2012) as Narrator
 * American Experience – Grand Coulee Dam (2012) as Narrator
 * Great Scot Beer (2012) as Randy
 * White House Down (2013) as Vice President Alvin Hammond
 * The Making of "Nashville" (2013) as Self
 * American Experience – Silicon Valley (2014) as Narrator
 * American Experience – Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (2014) as Narrator
 * American Experience – The Rise and Fall of Penn Station (2014) as Narrator
 * Altman (2014) as Self
 * Fall (2014) as Father Sam Ryan
 * They Came Together (2014) as Roger
 * American Experience – Edison (2015) as Narrator
 * American Experience – The Forgotten Plague (2015) as Narrator
 * American Experience – Last Days in Vietnam (2015) as Narrator
 * American Experience – Bonnie & Clyde (2016) as Narrator
 * American Experience – Mine Wars (2016) as Narrator
 * American Experience – Murder of a President (2016) as Narrator
 * American Experience – Space Men (2016) as Narrator
 * American Experience – Tesla (2016) as Narrator
 * American Experience – The Battle of Chosin (2016) as Narrator
 * Close Encounters with Vilmos Zsigmond (2016) as Self
 * McCabe & Mrs. Miller: Way Out on a Limb (2016) as Self
 * American Experience – The Race Underground (2017) as Narrator
 * Indian Horse (2017) as Father Quinney
 * Two Plains & a Fancy (2018) as Rancher
 * American Experience – The Circus: Part 1 (2018) as Narrator
 * American Experience – The Circus: Part 2 (2018) as Narrator
 * American Experience – Sealab (2019) as Narrator
 * American Experience – The Feud (2019) as Narrator
 * Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story by Martin Scorsese (2019) as The Politician, Fmr. U.S. Congressman Jack Tanner
 * American Experience – The Man Who Tried to Feed the World (2020) as Narrator
 * A Vampire in L.A. (2022) as Self