Mary Murphy (actress)
Encyclopedia
Mary Murphy was an American
film actress of the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. She was born in Washington, D.C.
and spent most of her early childhood in Cleveland, Ohio
. Her father, James Victor Murphy, died in 1940. Shortly afterwards, she and her mother moved to Southern California
. Shortly out of high school she was signed to appear in films for Paramount Pictures in the late 1940s.
Murphy was the youngest of four children. She first gained attention in 1953, when she played a good-hearted girl who tries to reform Marlon Brando
in The Wild One
. The following year, she appeared opposite Tony Curtis
in Beachhead
, and the year after that as Fredric March
's daughter in the thriller The Desperate Hours
, which also starred Humphrey Bogart
. She co-starred with actor-director Ray Milland
in his Western A Man Alone
, and appeared in dozens of television series including Perry Mason
, I Spy, The Outer Limits
and Ironside
. She was long absent from the big screen before acting in 1972 with Steve McQueen
in the Sam Peckinpah
film Junior Bonner
. She had retired from acting by the 1980s.
Murphy died from heart disease complications on May 4, 2011 in Los Angeles; she was 80 years old.
Americans
The people of the United States, also known as simply Americans or American people, are the inhabitants or citizens of the United States. The United States is a multi-ethnic nation, home to people of different ethnic and national backgrounds...
film actress of the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. She was born in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
and spent most of her early childhood in Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
. Her father, James Victor Murphy, died in 1940. Shortly afterwards, she and her mother moved to Southern California
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
. Shortly out of high school she was signed to appear in films for Paramount Pictures in the late 1940s.
Murphy was the youngest of four children. She first gained attention in 1953, when she played a good-hearted girl who tries to reform Marlon Brando
Marlon Brando
Marlon Brando, Jr. was an American movie star and political activist. "Unchallenged as the most important actor in modern American Cinema" according to the St...
in The Wild One
The Wild One
The Wild One is a 1953 outlaw biker film directed by László Benedek and produced by Stanley Kramer. It is famed for Marlon Brando's iconic portrayal of the gang leader Johnny Strabler.-Basis:...
. The following year, she appeared opposite Tony Curtis
Tony Curtis
Tony Curtis was an American film actor whose career spanned six decades, but had his greatest popularity during the 1950s and early 1960s. He acted in over 100 films in roles covering a wide range of genres, from light comedy to serious drama...
in Beachhead
Beachhead (film)
Beachhead is a 1954 Technicolor war film based on Captain Richard G. Hubler USMCR's 1945 novel I've Got Mine. It was filmed in Kauai by Aubrey Schenck Productions, released through United Artists and directed by Stuart Heisler.-Plot:...
, and the year after that as Fredric March
Fredric March
Fredric March was an American stage and film actor. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor in 1932 for Dr. Jekyll and Mr...
's daughter in the thriller The Desperate Hours
The Desperate Hours (film)
The Desperate Hours is a 1955 film from Paramount Pictures starring Humphrey Bogart and Fredric March. The movie was produced and directed by William Wyler and based on a novel and play of the same name written by Joseph Hayes which were loosely based on actual events.The original Broadway...
, which also starred Humphrey Bogart
Humphrey Bogart
Humphrey DeForest Bogart was an American actor. He is widely regarded as a cultural icon.The American Film Institute ranked Bogart as the greatest male star in the history of American cinema....
. She co-starred with actor-director Ray Milland
Ray Milland
Ray Milland was a Welsh actor and director. His screen career ran from 1929 to 1985, and he is best remembered for his Academy Award–winning portrayal of an alcoholic writer in The Lost Weekend , a sophisticated leading man opposite a corrupt John Wayne in Reap the Wild Wind , the murder-plotting...
in his Western A Man Alone
A Man Alone (film)
A Man Alone is a 1955 Western directed by and starring Ray Milland. The supporting cast includes Mary Murphy, Ward Bond, Raymond Burr, Lee Van Cleef, and Alan Hale, Jr.. The story involves a man who stumbles into the aftermath of a stagecoach robbery in the desert in which there were no...
, and appeared in dozens of television series including Perry Mason
Perry Mason
Perry Mason is a fictional character, a defense attorney who was the main character in works of detective fiction authored by Erle Stanley Gardner. Perry Mason was featured in more than 80 novels and short stories, most of which had a plot involving his client's murder trial...
, I Spy, The Outer Limits
The Outer Limits
The Outer Limits or Outer Limits may refer to:*The Outer Limits , a black-and-white science fiction series that aired from 1963 to 1965...
and Ironside
Ironside (TV series)
Ironside is a Universal television series which ran on NBC from September 14, 1967 to January 16, 1975. The show starred Raymond Burr as the wheelchair-using Chief of Detectives, Robert T. Ironside. The character's debut was in a TV-movie on March 28, 1967. The original title of the show in the...
. She was long absent from the big screen before acting in 1972 with Steve McQueen
Steve McQueen
Terrence Steven "Steve" McQueen was an American movie actor. He was nicknamed "The King of Cool." His "anti-hero" persona, which he developed at the height of the Vietnam counterculture, made him one of the top box-office draws of the 1960s and 1970s. McQueen received an Academy Award nomination...
in the Sam Peckinpah
Sam Peckinpah
David Samuel "Sam" Peckinpah was an American filmmaker and screenwriter who achieved prominence following the release of the Western epic The Wild Bunch...
film Junior Bonner
Junior Bonner
Junior Bonner is a film released in 1972 directed by Sam Peckinpah and starring Steve McQueen, Joe Don Baker, Robert Preston and Ida Lupino. The film focuses on a veteran rodeo rider as he returns to his hometown of Prescott, Arizona to participate in an annual rodeo competition and reunite with...
. She had retired from acting by the 1980s.
Murphy died from heart disease complications on May 4, 2011 in Los Angeles; she was 80 years old.