George Murphy

George Lloyd Murphy ( born July 4, 1902 in New Haven, Connecticut; † 3 May 1992, Palm Beach, Florida) was an American film and theater actor and politician.

Biography

Early life

George Murphy, son of Catholic Irish immigrants, graduated from Yale University and worked to earn a living, first as a tool maker for Ford, later in the mining industry and as a real estate broker, and finally as a dancer in various nightclubs.

Actor

The mid-1920s moved Murphy to New York, where on Broadway he was on stage in 1927. Here he met his first wife, Juliette Henkel, whom he married in 1926. With her he had two children, son Dennis and daughter Melissa.

After his departure from the theater stage Murphy and his family moved to Hollywood in 1935, where he was already seen after 1934 in feature films. Until the late 1950s, Murphy was so committed for around 50 feature films, in the time of World War II increased in endurance films to strengthen the morale of U.S. troops. 1944-1946 Murphy took over the presidency of the Screen Actors Guild; Moreover, he was from 1958 to 1961 vice-president of the film production company Desilu.

Although his work was mostly limited to relatively unknown films, he received in 1951 for his achievements in the film industry an honorary Oscar.

Political career

End of the 1950s, Murphy began increasingly to engage in political activity. He was a member of the Republican Party and was three times, 1952, 1956 and 1960, head of entertainment at the TV coverage of the inauguration of U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower and John F. Kennedy.

In the early 1960s took over the party chairmanship Murphy Republicans of the State of California and in 1964 was elected U.S. Senator. He defeated the incumbent Senator Pierre Salinger case against the general trend of the elections of 1964. He remained a six-year term in the Senate before he retired in January 1971. Murphy was thus the first actor who pursued a political career, and was his party colleagues Ronald Reagan and Arnold Schwarzenegger as a model. Reagan himself called Murphy always as his " John the Baptist".

During his tenure, Murphy was diagnosed with esophageal cancer, which is why it had to be removed by surgery of the larynx. This was one reason why he decided not to run again for a second term. As a result of the operation it was difficult to speak for the rest of his life; he could only communicate in a low tone with its environment more.

Later life

George Murphy retired into private life, which he shared with his second wife Betty Blandi. He left California and moved to Palm Beach, where he died of leukemia two months before his 90th birthday.

Trivia

1968 Murphy began the tradition of the candy desk by allowing his Senate colleagues to make use of the stored in its table in the boardroom sweets.

Filmography (selection)

Awards

George Lloyd Murphy dedicated a star on the Walk of Fame.