| Murphy Brown | |
|---|---|
 The cast of Murphy Brown |
|
| Format | Sitcom |
| Created by | Diane English |
| Starring | Candice Bergen Faith Ford Pat Corley Grant Shaud Joe Regalbuto Robert Pastorelli Charles Kimbrough Lily Tomlin |
| Country of origin |  United States |
| No. Diane English (born May 18, 1948) is an Emmy Award -winning American Television producer, writer and Film director Candice Patricia Bergen (born May 9, 1946) is an Academy Award -nominated and Golden Globe - and Emmy Award -winning American Faith Alexis Ford (born September 14 1964 in Alexandria Louisiana) is an American Television and Film actress Pat Corley ( June 1, 1930 – September 11, 2006) was an American Actor. Grant Shaud (born Edward Shaud III on February 27, 1961) is an American actor best known for playing the character of Miles Silverberg on Joseph "Joe" Regalbuto (born August 24, 1949) is an American Actor and director best known for his on-screen role as Robert Pastorelli ( June 21, 1954 &ndash March 8, 2004) was an American actor Charles Kimbrough (born May 23, 1936) is an American Character actor best known for playing the straight-faced anchor Jim Dial on Murphy Mary Jean “Lily” Tomlin (born September 1 1939 is an American Actress, Comedian, Writer and producer who has won several The United States of America —commonly referred to as the of seasons | 10 |
| No. of episodes | 247 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 30 Minutes |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | CBS |
| Original run | November 14, 1988 – May 18, 1998 |
| External links | |
| IMDb profile | |
| TV.com summary | |
Murphy Brown is an American situation comedy which aired on CBS from November 14, 1988 to May 18, 1998, for a total of 247 episodes. CBS Broadcasting Inc ( CBS) is an American radio and Television network. Events 1533 - Conquistadors from Spain under the leadership of Francisco Pizarro arrive in Cajamarca, Inca Year 1988 ( MCMLXXXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar) Events 1152 - Henry II of England marries Eleanor of Aquitaine. Year 1998 ( MCMXCVIII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1998 Gregorian calendar) The United States of America —commonly referred to as the CBS Broadcasting Inc ( CBS) is an American radio and Television network. Events 1533 - Conquistadors from Spain under the leadership of Francisco Pizarro arrive in Cajamarca, Inca Year 1988 ( MCMLXXXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar) Events 1152 - Henry II of England marries Eleanor of Aquitaine. Year 1998 ( MCMXCVIII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1998 Gregorian calendar) The program starred Candice Bergen as the eponymous Murphy Brown, an investigative journalist and news anchor for FYI, a fictional CBS television newsmagazine. Candice Patricia Bergen (born May 9, 1946) is an Academy Award -nominated and Golden Globe - and Emmy Award -winning American Investigative journalism is a type of reporting in which reporters deeply investigate a topic of interest often involving crime Political corruption, or some other Scandal A newsmagazine, also spelled news magazine, is usually a weekly Magazine featuring articles or segments on current events The show achieved a level of political notoriety in the 1992 presidential election when Dan Quayle mentioned the show in a campaign speech, known as the "Murphy Brown speech". The United States presidential elections of 1992 featured a battle between incumbent President, Republican George H James Danforth "Dan" Quayle (born February 4 1947 is an American politician and a former Senator from the state of Indiana.
Contents |
Characters
Brown (born May 1948 in Philadelphia) was a recovering alcoholic, who, in the show's first episode, was returning to FYI (the name of the fictional TV show that is the center of the series) for the first time since a stay at the Betty Ford Clinic. Year 1948 ( MCMXLVIII) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display the 1948 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Philadelphia (ˌfɪləˈdɛlfiə Alcoholism is a term with multiple and sometimes conflicting definitions The Betty Ford Center is a drug and alcohol rehabilitation center for adults in Rancho Mirage California, United States, co-founded by former U Her colleagues at FYI included stuffy anchor Jim Dial (Charles Kimbrough), reporter Frank Fontana (Joe Regalbuto), who hated the toupée he had to wear for the show, and the scatterbrained Corky Sherwood (Faith Ford), a former Miss America. Charles Kimbrough (born May 23, 1936) is an American Character actor best known for playing the straight-faced anchor Jim Dial on Murphy Joseph "Joe" Regalbuto (born August 24, 1949) is an American Actor and director best known for his on-screen role as A toupée is a hairpiece or partial wig of natural or synthetic hair worn to cover partial Baldness or for theatrical purposes Faith Alexis Ford (born September 14 1964 in Alexandria Louisiana) is an American Television and Film actress The Miss America pageant is a long-standing competition which awards scholarships to young women from the 50 states plus the District of Columbia and the US Virgin Islands Sherwood was actually first runner-up until the winner was forced to resign (Sherwood remarked in the first episode, "She told everyone she loved animals, but who knew to take her literally?"). New to the staff was producer Miles Silverberg (Grant Shaud), who, at 25 and fresh from work in public television, was perfect for utter torture from Murphy. Grant Shaud (born Edward Shaud III on February 27, 1961) is an American actor best known for playing the character of Miles Silverberg on The Public Broadcasting Service ( PBS) is a Non-profit Public broadcasting Television service with 354 member TV stations in the
The FYI team also frequently socialized at Phil's, a bar across the street from their studio in Washington, D.C.. Washington DC ( formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D Phil, the bar owner, was played by Pat Corley. Pat Corley ( June 1, 1930 – September 11, 2006) was an American Actor.
Brown was unmarried, but had a home life as well: she hired a philosophy-dispensing house painter named Eldin Bernecky (Robert Pastorelli) to repaint her house, but he had so many grand ideas that he was with the show for six seasons. Robert Pastorelli ( June 21, 1954 &ndash March 8, 2004) was an American actor
In the show's 1991–1992 season, Murphy became pregnant and had a child, and after 6 months, she decided to name the baby Avery after her mother, who was played by Colleen Dewhurst, had died earlier in real life and on the show. Year 1991 ( MCMXCI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar. Year 1992 ( MCMXCII) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar) Colleen Dewhurst ( June 3, 1924 – August 22, 1991) was a Canadian actress whose distinguished stage career also encompassed significant This story line made the show a subject of political controversy during the 1992 American presidential campaign. The United States presidential elections of 1992 featured a battle between incumbent President, Republican George H On May 19, 1992, then Vice President Dan Quayle spoke at the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco. Events 1535 - French explorer Jacques Cartier sets sail on his second voyage to North America with three ships 110 men and Year 1992 ( MCMXCII) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar) __FORCETOC__ For the Vice President of the United States, their roles and other information see Vice President of the United States. James Danforth "Dan" Quayle (born February 4 1947 is an American politician and a former Senator from the state of Indiana. The Commonwealth Club of California is a Non-profit, Non-partisan educational organization based in Northern California. The City and County of San Francisco is the fourth most populous city During his speech, he criticized the Murphy Brown character for ignoring the importance of fathers and bearing a child alone. [1] Quayle's remarks caused a public discussion on family values, culminating in the 1992-93 season premiere ("You Say Potatoe, I Say Potato") where the television characters reacted to Quayle's comments and produced a special episode of FYI showcasing and celebrating the diversity of the modern American family. Year 1993 ( MCMXCIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1993 Gregorian calendar) Potato, which is the English term for Solanum tuberosum, is a Carib loanword At the end, Brown arranges a retaliatory prank in which a truckload of potatoes is dumped in front of Quayle's residence, while a disc jockey commenting on the incident notes the Vice President should be glad people were not making fun of him for misspelling "fertilizer. A disc jockey (also known as DJ or deejay) is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience " When Candice Bergen won another Emmy that year, she thanked Dan Quayle. The feud was cited by E! as #81 on its list of "101 Reasons the '90s Ruled. E! Entertainment Television (or simply E!) is an American Cable television and Direct broadcast satellite network "[2] (In 2002, Bergen said in an interview that she personally agreed with much of Quayle's speech, calling it "a perfectly intelligent speech about fathers not being dispensable" and adding that "nobody agreed with that more than I did. "[3]) Quayle would eventually display a sense of humor about the incident -- after the controversy died down, he appeared for an interview on an independent Los Angeles TV station and for his final question was asked what his favorite TV show was. Los Angeles (lɑˈsændʒələs los ˈaŋxeles in Spanish) is the largest City in the state of California and the American West He responded with "Murphy Brown-Not!" The station would later use the clip of Quayles' response to promote its showing of Murphy Brown re-runs in syndication. In Broadcasting, syndication is the sale of the right to broadcast Radio shows and Television shows to multiple individual stations without going through
Shaud left the series in 1996, and was replaced by Lily Tomlin as producer Kay Carter-Shepley for the show's final seasons. Mary Jean “Lily” Tomlin (born September 1 1939 is an American Actress, Comedian, Writer and producer who has won several Kay proved that she had just as little experience as Miles Silverberg when he started with the show; the only experience Kay had in television was producing a daytime game show.
The show began in the Monday 9/8PM timeslot and remained there until its final season when it was moved to Wednesday at 8:30/7:30PM. The series finale aired in its original Monday timeslot.
In the show's final season, a year-long story arc aired in which Murphy battled breast cancer. Breast cancer is a Cancer that starts in the cells of the Breast in women and men The show's handling of the subject was credited with a 30 percent increase in the number of women getting mammograms. Mammography is the process of using low-dose X-rays (usually around 0 The storyline was not without controversy; an episode in which she used medical marijuana to relieve side effects of chemotherapy was attacked by conservative groups, and a women's health group protested an episode in which Murphy, while shopping for prosthetic breasts, uttered the line "Should I go with Demi Moore or Elsie the Cow?"
However, Bergen was presented an award from the American Cancer Society in honor of her role in educating women on the importance of breast cancer prevention and screening. Medical cannabis refers to the use of the Cannabis plant as a physician-recommended Herbal therapy as well as synthetic THC and Cannabinoids Chemotherapy, in its most general sense refers to treatment of disease by chemicals that kill cells specifically those of micro-organisms or Cancer. Demi Moore (born Demetria Gene Guynes on November 11 1962 is an American Actress. Elsie the Borden Cow is the unofficial Mascot of the Borden Company, now primarily used to promote the Dairy Farmers of America 's Borden Cheese The American Cancer Society ( ACS) is the "nationwide community-based voluntary health organization dedicated to
In the show's final episode, Murphy met and interviewed God (played by Alan King) and Edward R. Murrow in a dream while undergoing surgery. God is the principal or sole Deity in Religions and other belief systems that worship one deity. Alan King (December 26 1927 &ndash May 9 2004 was an American comedian known for his biting wit and often angry humorous rants Edward R Murrow (born Egbert Roscoe Murrow; April 25 1908 &ndash April 27 1965) was an American journalist Computer editing was used to insert footage of the real Murrow, who died in 1965, into the show. Diane English, who created the show, made a cameo appearance as a nurse who delivered the results to Murphy after her surgery. Diane English (born May 18, 1948) is an Emmy Award -winning American Television producer, writer and Film director A cameo role or cameo appearance (often shortened to just cameo) is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the Performing arts, such as At the end of the episode, Murphy walks through her house seemingly alone, only to have Eldin appear at the end to offer to repaint her house.
Ratings
Murphy Brown was a top-30 hit for 7 seasons[4]:
- 1988-1989:
- 1989-1990: #27
- 1990-1991: #6
- 1991-1992: #3
- 1992-1993: #4
- 1993-1994: #9
- 1994-1995: #16
- 1995-1996: #18 (tie)
- 1996-1997:
- 1997-1998:
Running gags
- The show did not have an opening theme song, but instead many episodes began with a Motown song whose lyrics were somehow relevant to the plot of the episode. "Motown" redirects here For the city see Detroit Michigan.
- Many characters often commented that Murphy was especially difficult or grouchy around the 18th of every month. (Corky Sherwood said in one episode: "Circle the 18th. We all do!")
- For a few seasons, Corky Sherwood was known as "Corky Sherwood Forrest" after marrying a lawyer named Will Forrest (Scott Bryce) in the show's 1989-1990 season, whom she later divorced (Faith Ford's husband at this time was named Robert Nottingham). Sherwood Forest is a Royal Forest in Nottinghamshire, England, that is famous through its historical association with the Legend of Robin A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law as an attorney, Counsel or Solicitor; a person Scott Macalister Bryce (born January 6, 1958) sometimes credited as Scott M Year 1989 ( MCMLXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar) Year 1990 ( MCMXC) was a Common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1990 Gregorian calendar)
- While the other news anchors produced many serious news stories, Corky's running gag was that her stories were frivolous. Examples included a retrospective on Bert Parks, where to take one's cat while one goes on vacation, and "a dinner with the Van Patten family. Bert Parks ( December 30, 1914 – February 2, 1992) was an American Actor, Singer, and Radio and The Van Patten family is a family of actors and directors Members include Dick Van Patten James Van Patten Joyce "
- The network regularly sent Murphy incompetent secretaries, with a different secretary in almost every episode. On one occasion, it was Carol (Marcia Wallace) from The Bob Newhart Show, who proved really good at the job but quit when Bob Hartley (Bob Newhart) showed up and begged her to come back to his office. Marcia Joan Wallace (born November 1, 1942) is an American character actress of stage The Bob Newhart Show is the name of two different Television series, both starring comedian Bob Newhart. George Robert "Bob" Newhart (born September 5, 1929) is an American stand-up comedian and Actor. Other secretaries included a crash test dummy, a prostitute who operated a phone sex line from her desk, and a rapper who related all Murphy's phone messages to her in verse. For the band see Crash Test Dummies. For the series of toys see The Incredible Crash Dummies. Phone sex is a type of Virtual sex that refers to sexually explicit conversation between two or more persons via telephone especially when at least one of the participants Rapping (also known as emceeing, MCing, spitting, or just rhyming) is the Rhythmic spoken delivery of Rhymes wordplay and In the show's final season, the secretaries were played by celebrities, including Bette Midler, Don Rickles, Rosie O'Donnell, Sally Field, Laura Kightlinger, Cecily Adams, Paul Reubens, John F. Kennedy Jr. and Julie Brown. Bette Midler (born December 1, 1945) is anAmerican Singer, Actress and Comedian, also known (as her informal stage name as For the radio and television announcer see Donald Rickles (announcer. Roseann "Rosie" O'Donnell Sally Margaret Field (born November 6, 1946) is an American two-time Academy Award -winning actress Laura Kightlinger (born June 13 1969 in Jamestown New York) is an American Comedian and Actress. Cecily April Adams ( February 6, 1958 – March 3, 2004) was born in Jamaica Queens New York, the daughter of comic actor Don John Fitzgerald Kennedy Jr (November 25 1960 – July 16 1999 often referred to as John F Julie Ann Brown (born August 31, 1954) is an American Actress, Stand-up comic, comedic Singer-songwriter and Over the course of the series, 93 different secretaries appeared in all. In the final season, Murphy learns of her former secretaries' support group, which included a Hitler look-alike, a woman who spoke with a long pause after every word and a mentally unstable man.
- In addition to the above list of secretaries appearing on the actual show, an episode of Seinfeld featured Kramer appearing as one of Murphy's secretaries. Seinfeld is an American Situation comedy, or sitcom that originally aired on NBC from July 5 1989 to May 14 1998 lasting nine seasons Cosmo Kramer is a character on the American television sitcom Seinfeld (1989–1998 played by Michael Richards.
- When Murphy became a mother in season four, she went through nannies the same way she went through secretaries, and Eldin Bernicky, the house painter, ended up looking after Avery most of the time.
Recurring characters
A number of recurring characters also appeared during the show's run:
- John Hostetter played John, the stage manager in 62 episodes.
- Jay Thomas appeared in several episodes as tabloid talk show host Jerry Gold, who became a friend of Murphy's and an occasional love interest, despite their significantly different journalistic values. Jay Thomas (born July 12, 1948) is an American Actor and Disc jockey. A talk show ( American) or chat show ( Global) is a Television or Radio program where one person or group of people come together to
- Colleen Dewhurst appeared in a number of episodes as Murphy's mother, Avery Brown. Colleen Dewhurst ( June 3, 1924 – August 22, 1991) was a Canadian actress whose distinguished stage career also encompassed significant Dewhurst won several Emmy Awards for her appearances. When Dewhurst died in 1991, the writers chose to have her character die as well, and dedicated the episode to the memory of Dewhurst. Murphy, who was pregnant at the time of her mother's death, named her son Avery in her mother's memory the following season.
- Darren McGavin appeared in several episodes as Murphy's father. Darren McGavin (born William Lyle Richardson; May 7, 1922 &ndash February 25, 2006) was an American Actor best He earned an Emmy nomination in 1990 for his performance as Bill Brown.
- Scott Bakula appeared as reporter (and occasional love interest for Murphy) Peter Hunt. Scott Stewart Bakula (born October 9, 1954) is an American Actor.
- Jane Leeves appeared in a number of episodes as Miles' girlfriend Audrey. Jane Leeves (born April 18, 1961) is a Screen Actors Guild Award winning English actress best known for her work as Daphne Moon Her appearances ended when she joined the cast of Frasier. Frasier is an American sitcom, a Spin-off of Cheers starring Kelsey Grammer as
- Robin Thomas appeared as Jake, Murphy's ex-husband. Robin Thomas (born February 12, 1953) is an American film and television Actor. Murphy and Jake had another brief relationship, and Jake was the father of her child.
- Christopher Rich played Miller Redfield, a reporter with the local affiliate who had semi-regular appearances on the show, first as a substitute anchor when Jim was on leave, and also when the team went on strike. Christopher Rich Wilson (born September 16, 1953 in Dallas Texas) is an American Actor, best known for his roles on Murphy Strike action, often simply called a strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal by Employees to perform work.
- Garry Marshall appeared as network president Stan Lansing. Garry Kent Marshall
- Jean Stapleton appeared a few times, playing Miles' grandmother, Nana Silverberg. Jean Stapleton (born Jeanne Murray on January 19, 1923 in New York City New York) is an American character actress
- Rose Marie appeared as Frank Fontana's mother. Rose Marie (born August 15, 1923) is an American actress who had a successful singing career as Baby Rose Marie, but is perhaps best known
- Paul Reubens, better known as Pee-Wee Herman, appeared as Lansing's nephew Andrew, one of Murphy's 93 secretaries.
- In the show's final seasons, when the younger Avery was of school age, he was played by Haley Joel Osment. Haley Joel Osment (born April 10, 1988) is an Academy Award -nominated American Actor.
DVD releases
Warner Home Video released the first season of Murphy Brown on DVD in Region 1 on February 8, 2005. Warner Home Video is the Home video unit of Warner Bros Entertainment Inc Events 421 - Constantius III becomes co- Emperor of the Western Roman Empire. Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Due to low sales, no future releases are planned. [1] A listing for Murphy Brown Season 2 exists on Amazon.com, but neither details nor a release date is given. Amazoncom Inc ( is an American electronic commerce ( E-commerce) company in Seattle Washington.
| DVD Name | Ep # | Release Date |
|---|---|---|
| The Complete First Season | 22 | February 8, 2005 |
Awards and nominations
Awards won
- Outstanding Comedy Series (1990, 1992) 2 wins
- Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series (1989-1990, 1992, 1994-1995) 5 wins
- Best TV Series-Comedy/Musical (1992) 1 win
- Best Performance by an Actress in a TV Series-Comedy Candice Bergen (1989, 1992) 2 wins
Awards nominated
- Outstanding Comedy Series (1989, 1991, 1993) 3 nominations
- Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series (1991, 1993) 2 nominations
- Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series Faith Ford (1989-1992, 1994) 5 nominations
- Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series Jay Thomas (1992)
- Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series Charles Kimbrough (1990)
- Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series Joe Regalbuto (1989)
- Best TV Series-Comedy/Musical (1989, 1991-1993) 4 nominations
- Best Performance by an Actress in a TV Series-Comedy Candice Bergen (1990-1991, 1993-1996) 6 nominations
- Best Supporting Actress on TV Faith Ford (1991-1992) 2 nominations
- Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble Cast in a Comedy Series (1995)
- Outstanding Female Actor in a Comedy Series Candice Bergen (1995-1996)
Awards and reviews
- Bergen won five Emmys over the course of the series, a record for a television actress in a continuing role. Events 421 - Constantius III becomes co- Emperor of the Western Roman Empire. Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Golden Globe Awards are American awards for motion pictures and Television programs given out each year during a formal dinner Candice Patricia Bergen (born May 9, 1946) is an Academy Award -nominated and Golden Globe - and Emmy Award -winning American Faith Alexis Ford (born September 14 1964 in Alexandria Louisiana) is an American Television and Film actress Jay Thomas (born July 12, 1948) is an American Actor and Disc jockey. Charles Kimbrough (born May 23, 1936) is an American Character actor best known for playing the straight-faced anchor Jim Dial on Murphy Joseph "Joe" Regalbuto (born August 24, 1949) is an American Actor and director best known for his on-screen role as The Golden Globe Awards are American awards for motion pictures and Television programs given out each year during a formal dinner Candice Patricia Bergen (born May 9, 1946) is an Academy Award -nominated and Golden Globe - and Emmy Award -winning American Faith Alexis Ford (born September 14 1964 in Alexandria Louisiana) is an American Television and Film actress The Screen Actors Guild ( SAG) is an American labor union representing over 120000 Film and television principal performers and background Candice Patricia Bergen (born May 9, 1946) is an Academy Award -nominated and Golden Globe - and Emmy Award -winning American After her fifth Emmy, Bergen withdrew her name from the Emmy nominations.
References
- ^ Excerpts from Dan Quayle's speech, at Forerunner. com
- ^ "Reasons the '90s Ruled 101 - 81", TV. com
- ^ Associated Press. "Bergen: Quayle Was Right About Murphy", July 11, 2002
- ^ Brooks, Tim and Marsh, Earle, "The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable Shows 1946-present", 7th edition
External links
Events 911 - Signing of the Treaty of Saint-Clair-sur-Epte between Charles the Simple and Rollo of Normandy. See also 2002 (disambiguation Year 2002 ( MMII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. TVcom is a website owned by CNET Networks. The service was launched on June 1 2005 and replaced the popular TV Tome websiteDapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic