Charlie Murphy (actor)

Early life

Murphy was born on July 12, 1959, in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. His mother Lillian Murphy was a telephone operator and his father, Charles Edward Murphy, was a transit police officer, actor, and comedian.

As an adolescent, Murphy spent ten months in jail. In 1978, on the day of his release, he enlisted in the United States Navy and served for six years as a boiler technician.

Career

Murphy made his first film appearance in the 1970 comedy-drama film The Landlord. The film was shot in a neighborhood where Murphy lived and he appears in a brief scene as a boy stealing Beau Bridges's hubcaps. Murphy had minor roles in several films in the late 1980s and early 1990s and worked behind the scenes with hip hop group K-9 Posse, a duo composed of his half-brother Vernon Lynch Jr. and Wardell Mahone. On their 1988 self-titled debut, Murphy was credited as the album's executive producer as well as songwriter on "Somebody's Brother" and "Say Who Say What." He also made an appearance in the video for the duo's first single, "This Beat Is Military." Murphy's first major role in a motion picture was in the 1993 film CB4, playing the antagonist Gusto.

Murphy gained national attention as a recurring performer on Chappelle's Show, particularly in the Charlie Murphy's True Hollywood Stories sketches. In these, Murphy recounts his misadventures as part of his brother's entourage, including encounters with various celebrities such as Rick James and Prince. After Chappelle's Show host Dave Chappelle left the show, Murphy and Donnell Rawlings hosted the "lost episodes" compiled from sketches produced before his departure.

In 2005, he appeared in King's Ransom (alongside Anthony Anderson and Jay Mohr). In the film, Murphy portrayed Herb, a gay ex-con who is hired by King (Anderson) to fake his kidnapping. Murphy also did voiceovers for Budweiser radio commercials, provided the voice for Iraq War veteran/criminal Ed Wuncler III on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim series The Boondocks, and the voice for a pimp named Jizzy-B in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas and as an albino Black graffiti artist named White Mike in Marc Ecko's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure. Murphy provided the voice for Spock on the G4TV's Star Trek 2.0 shorts, and the dog in his younger brother Eddie's 2007 film, Norbit.

On March 20, 2009, he began his own sketch comedy series Charlie Murphy's Crash Comedy on Crackle. A stand-up special, Charlie Murphy: I Will Not Apologize premiered on Comedy Central in late February 2010. Murphy also made special appearances in 1000 Ways to Die and the TBS sitcom Are We There Yet? as Frank Kingston. In 2014–15, Murphy played Vic on the Adult Swim live-action show Black Jesus.

Personal life and death

Murphy was a resident of Tewksbury Township, New Jersey. He was married to Tisha Taylor Murphy from 1997 until her death from cervical cancer in December 2009. The couple had two children together, and Murphy had a child from a previous relationship. He was a karate practitioner.

Murphy died from leukemia on April 12, 2017, at age 57 in New York City, New York.

The third-season premiere of Black Jesus and his brother's film, Dolemite Is My Name, were dedicated to Murphy. Murphy was the one who piqued his brother's interest in the biopic's subject, Rudy Ray Moore.

Filmography

Film

Television

Video games

Music videos

References

References

1. (March 11, 2012). "The other funny Murphy, Eddie's brother Charlie". [[The Daily Telegraph (Sydney).
2. Zehme, Bill. (August 24, 1989). "Eddie Murphy: the Rolling Stone interview".
3. Murphy, Charlie. (December 1, 2009). "The Making of a Stand-Up Guy". [[Simon & Schuster]].
4. Kugel, Allison. (December 15, 2007). "Charlie Murphy Shares His True Hollywood Stories and Passion for Comedy with PR.com".
5. Murphy, Keith. (April 13, 2017). "The hilarious and self-aware glory of Charlie Murphy".
6. Conan, Neal. (2009-11-30). "Comedian Charlie Murphy, A ''Stand-Up Guy''". [[NPR]].
7. "So Corny It's Good Part Five: The K-9 Posse". Bloggerhouse.net.
8. (June 18, 2011). "K-9 Posse- This Beat Is Military (Video)". YouTube.
9. "Remembering Charlie Murphy's Epic Story About Prince On Chappelle's Show".
10. (October 4, 2018). "Charlie Murphy's True Hollywood Stories: Rick James & Prince - Chappelle's Show". [[Comedy Central]].
11. (April 23, 2005). "Come on – kidnap me. I'm worth every penny.". Sfgate.
12. Andrew Williams. (July 17, 2012). "Charlie Murphy: I wasn't happy being one of Eddie's troops – I'm a general".
13. (March 3, 2009). "Charlie Murphy taking comedy to Crackle.com". The Hollywood Reporter.
14. ""COMEDY CENTRAL FEBRUARY PROGRAMMING HIGHLIGHTS" The Futon Critic December 21, 2009". Thefutoncritic.com.
15. (August 22, 2014). "Charlie Murphy on the Black Jesus Controversy and 10 Years of Hearing About Rick James".
16. link. (July 16, 2011 , SFstandup.com. Accessed January 21, 2011.)
17. "Charlie Murphy's Wife, Tisha Taylor Murphy, Dies". MTV News.
18. "Exclusive interview with Charlie Murphy".
19. S. Pajot. (June 25, 2010). "Charlie Murphy Discusses His Brother, Bitch-Slaps, and the Death of Chappelle's Show". Miami New Times.
20. (April 12, 2017). "Eddie Murphy's brother Charlie Murphy dead at 57: TMZ".
21. (April 12, 2017). "Comedian Charlie Murphy Dead at 57 After Leukemia Battle". TMZ.
22. Melas, Chloe. (April 13, 2017). "Comedian Charlie Murphy dies at 57". CNN.
23. "Why Netflix's 'Dolemite Is My Name' is dedicated to Eddie Murphy's brother, Charlie". Business Insider.
24. Cook, Brian. (April 12, 2017). "Comedian Charlie Murphy Dies at 57". Sheridan Broadcasting Networks.
25. Ebert, Roger. (June 6, 1993). "CB4 Movie Review & Film Summary (1993)". Roger Ebert.
26. "Mattie Fresno and the Holoflux Universe". River Front Times.
27. Gettell, Oliver. (April 12, 2017). "Eddie Murphy and family mourn Charlie Murphy: 'Our hearts are heavy'".
28. "Charlie Murphy". Rotten Tomatoes.
29. (March 12, 2010). "Our Family Wedding (2010)". Rotten Tomatoes.
30. Barker, Andrew. (August 12, 2010). "Review: 'Lottery Ticket'". Variety.
31. Punter, Jennie. (July 20, 2012). "Moving Day: Not as moving as it wants to be". The Globe and Mail.
32. Lemire, Christy. (April 1, 2016). "Meet the Blacks Movie Review & Film Summary (2016)". Roger Ebert.
33. Hornshaw, Phil. (April 12, 2017). "RIP Charlie Murphy: 6 Things You Probably Didn't Know He Was In (Photos)". The Wrap.
34. Isler, Ramsay. (March 8, 2010). "'Freaknik: The Musical' Review". IGN.
35. Nicholson, Max. (January 17, 2016). "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: "Journey to the Center of Mikey's Mind" Review". IGN.