Everything about Eddie Murphy totally explained
Edward Regan "Eddie" Murphy (pronounced ɛddj murphi)(born
April 3,
1961) is an
Academy Award-nominated,
Golden Globe-,
Screen Actors Guild Award-winning
American actor,
film director,
producer and
comedian. Murphy ranks as the highest grossing film star in history, having a total of 33 films to date, his films grossing over $3.4 billion in the US alone, averaging $104 million per film. He was a regular cast member on
Saturday Night Live from 1980 to 1984, and has worked as a
stand-up comedian. He has also enjoyed a minor singing career.
Murphy has received
Golden Globe nominations for
best actor in a comedy or musical for his performances in
Beverly Hills Cop,
Trading Places, and
The Nutty Professor. In 2007, he won the
Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of
soul singer James "Thunder" Early in
Dreamgirls, and received a nomination for the
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for the same role.
Murphy's work as a
voice actor includes Thurgood Stubbs in
The PJs,
Donkey in the
Shrek series and the
dragon Mushu in
Disney's
Mulan. In some of his films, he plays multiple roles in addition to his main character, which he calls a tribute to one of his idols
Peter Sellers (who is famous for playing multiple roles in one film), films which Murphy has played multiple roles include
Coming to America,
Wes Craven's
Vampire In Brooklyn, the
Nutty Professor films, where he played much of the Klumps clan,
Bowfinger and 2007's
Norbit. Another
trademark of Murphy is his deep, infectious, and considerably goofy laugh.
Biography
Early life
Murphy was born in
Brooklyn,
New York. His mother, Lillian, was a
telephone operator, and his father, Charles Edward Murphy, was a transit police officer and amateur comedian. Murphy's father left the family when Murphy was three and was stabbed to death when Murphy was eight. Murphy and his brother
Charlie were raised in
Roosevelt, Long Island by his mother and stepfather Vernon Lynch, a foreman at an ice cream plant.
Also in 1984, Murphy appeared in
Best Defense, co-starring
Dudley Moore. Murphy, who was credited as a "Strategic Guest Star", was added to the film after an original version was completed but tested poorly with audiences.
Best Defense was a major financial and critical disappointment. When he hosted
SNL, Murphy joined the chorus of those bashing
Best Defense, calling it "the worst movie in the history of everything". Murphy has also been rumored to be initially a part of hits such as
Ghostbusters (featuring his
Trading Places co-star Dan Aykroyd and fellow
SNL alumnus
Bill Murray). The part that was originally written with Murphy in mind ultimately went to
Ernie Hudson. Murphy was also offered a part in 1986's, a role that, after being heavily re-written from comic relief to love interest, ultimately went to future
7th Heaven star
Catherine Hicks. By this point Murphy's near-exclusive contract with
Paramount Pictures rivaled
Star Trek as Paramount's most lucrative franchise.
Also in 1986, Murphy starred in the
supernatural comedy,
The Golden Child.
According to Murphy's childhood friend
Harris Haith in his book,
Growing Up Laughing With Eddie, However, Buchwald and his partner Alain Bernheim did win the suit against Paramount Pictures, were awarded damages, and then accepted a
settlement from Paramount. The case was the subject of a 1992 book, by
Pierce O'Donnell and
Dennis McDougal.
Career slump
From 1989 until the mid-1990s, box office results for Murphy's films dropped, hitting a low point with the critically- panned
Beverly Hills Cop III (a movie Murphy would ultimately denounce during an appearance on
Inside the Actors Studio), Murphy was nominated for an
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor on January 23, 2007, but lost to
Alan Arkin for his performance in
Little Miss Sunshine.
Dreamgirls was the first film distributed by Paramount Pictures to star Murphy (who once signed an exclusive contract with the studio) since
Vampire in Brooklyn in 1995. As a result of
Viacom's acquisition of
Dreamworks SKG, Paramount distributed his other 2007 releases:
Norbit and
Shrek the Third. He is currently filming
NowhereLand for Paramount Pictures.
Murphy is expected to begin work on
Beverly Hills Cop IV sometime in the near future, and it's expected that producer
Jerry Bruckheimer won't participate in the fourth installment of the series. Murphy recently told
The Sun Online that “the new script is looking good.”
Personal life
Murphy began a longtime romantic relationship with Nicole Mitchell after meeting her in 1988 at an
NAACP Image Awards show. They lived together for a year and a half before getting married at the Grand Ballroom of
The Plaza Hotel in
New York City on
March 18,
1993. In
August 2005, Mitchell filed for
divorce, citing "
irreconcilable differences." The divorce was finalized on
April 17,
2006.
Following his divorce from Mitchell, he dated
Spice Girl Melanie B or Melanie Brown, who stated that her child is Murphy's. When questioned about the pregnancy in
December 2006, Murphy told a reporter, "I don't know whose child that's until it comes out and has a blood test. You shouldn't jump to conclusions, sir". Brown gave birth to a baby girl, Angel Iris Murphy Brown, on Murphy's 46th birthday,
April 3,
2007. On
June 22,
2007, representatives for Brown announced in
People that a
DNA test had confirmed that Murphy was the father. Brown's daughter is Murphy's seventh child; he's four daughters, Bria, Shane Audra, Zola Ivy, and Bella Zahra and one son, Miles Mitchell from his previous marriage to Nicole Mitchell, and another son, Christian from a previous relationship.
Murphy exchanged marriage vows with film producer
Tracey Edmonds, former wife of
Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds, on
January 1 2008 in a private ceremony on an island off
Bora Bora. It was announced on January 16, 2008 that they never legally wed, had decided to forgo legalizing their union and had instead chosen to remain friends.
Charitable work
Murphy has donated money to the AIDS Foundation, the
Martin Luther King Jr. Center, various cancer charities and $100,000 to the
Screen Actors' Guild's strike relief fund.
Awards/nominations
Academy Award
- 2007: Nominee - Actor in a Supporting Role - Dreamgirls
Screen Actors Guild
- 2007: Winner - Actor in a Supporting Role - Dreamgirls
Golden Raspberry Awards
- 2007: Winner - Worst Actor - Norbit
- 2007: Winner - Worst Supporting Actor - Norbit
- 2007: Winner - Worst Supporting Actress - Norbit
- 2007: Nominee - Worst Screenplay- Norbit
- 2007: Nominee - Worst Screen Couple - Norbit
NAACP Image Awards
- 2007: Nominee - Actor in a Supporting Role - Dreamgirls
Golden Globes
- 2007: Winner - Actor in a Supporting Role - Dreamgirls
- 1997: Nominee - Actor in a Leading Role (Musical or Comedy) - The Nutty Professor
- 1985: Nominee - Actor in a Leading Role (Musical or Comedy) - Beverly Hills Cop
- 1984: Nominee - Actor in a Leading Role (Musical or Comedy) - Trading Places
- 1983: Nominee - New Star of the Year (Male) - 48 Hrs.
BAFTA Award
- 2002: Nominee - Actor in a Supporting Role - Shrek
Black Reel Awards
- 2007: Nominee - Actor in a Supporting Role - Dreamgirls
- 2002: Nominee - Actor in a Supporting Role - Shrek
- 2000: Nominee - Actor in a Leading Role - Bowfinger
Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards
- 2007: Winner - Actor in a Supporting Role - Dreamgirls
Chicago Film Critics Awards
- 2007: Nominee - Actor in a Supporting Role - Dreamgirls
Emmy Awards
- 1999: Nominees - Outstanding Animated Programming (One Hour or Less)- The PJ's
- 1984: Nominee - Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program - Saturday Night Live
- 1984: Nominee - Outstanding Writing for a Variety or Music Program - Saturday Night Live
- 1983: Nominee - Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy, Variety or Music Series - Saturday Night Live
Filmography
Television
Saturday Night Live (cast member from 1980-1984)
Eddie Murphy: Delirious (1983)
Eddie Murphy RAW (1987)
What's Alan Watching? (1989)
(1993)
The PJ's (1999-2001) (voice)
Shrek The Halls (2007) (voice)
Films
Upcoming
Discography
Albums
Studio albums
Eddie Murphy (1982) (comedy) US #52
Comedian (1983) (comedy) US #35
How Could It Be (1985) (music) US #26
So Happy (1989) (music) US #70
Love's Alright (1992) (music)
Compilation albums
Greatest Comedy Hits (1997) (comedy)
All I Fuckin' Know (1998) (comedy)
Film Soundtracks
Beverly Hills (1986)
Dreamgirls (2006) (with Beyoncé Knowles, Jermaine Bolling, Jennifer Hudson, Keith Robinson and Sharon Leal)
Singles
"Boogie In Your Butt/No More Tears" (Columbia, 1982) (comedy/music)
"Party All The Time" (featuring Rick James) (Columbia, 1985) (music) US #2, UK #87
"How Could It Be" (featuring Crystal Blake) (Columbia, 1985) (music)
"Put Your Mouth On Me" (Columbia, 1989) (music) US #27
"Til The Money's Gone" (Columbia, 1989) (music)
"I Was A King" (Motown, 1993) (music) UK #64
"Whatzupwitu" (featuring Michael Jackson) (Motown, 1993) (music)
"Desdemona" (Motown, 1993) (music)Further Information
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