Ben Murphy
Encyclopedia
Benjamin E. Murphy is an American actor
. He is known for his role in the ABC
television series Alias Smith and Jones
, co-starring as Kid Curry, first with Pete Duel
and later with Roger Davis
.
, a suburb
of Chicago, Illinois
. An alumnus of Benet Academy
in Lisle
, Illinois, he attended eight different colleges before deciding to pursue an acting career.
, a series featuring a rotating leading cast including Tony Franciosa, Gene Barry
, and Robert Stack
. From 1971 to 1973, he starred in Alias Smith and Jones
with Pete Duel
(1971–1972) and Roger Davis
(1972–1973). After Alias Smith and Jones, Murphy joined Lorne Greene
in the 1973 ABC crime drama Griff
. He played detective
S. Michael "Mike" Murdock, assistant to Greene's character, Wade "Griff" Griffin, a Los Angeles
retired police
officer turned private eye. The series had some notable guest stars but folded after thirteen weeks.
In the 1983-1984 season, Murphy co-starred with Marshall Colt
in the ABC drama series Lottery!
. Murphy played Patrick Sean Flaherty, the man who informed lottery winners of their stroke of fortune, and Colt, formerly with James Arness
on NBC
's short-lived crime drama, McClain's Law
, portrayed the Internal Revenue Service
agent, Eric Rush, who made sure the winners pay the U.S. government up front.
In 1985, Murphy co-starred as department store heir, Paul Berrenger, on the short-lived drama, Berrenger's
. His character was at odds with his former wife, Gloria (Andrea Marcovicci
) and his own father, Simon (Sam Wanamaker
) due to his romance with executive, Shane Bradley (Yvette Mimieux
).
Murphy starred in in his own series Gemini Man
, in which he played a character who could become invisible through the use of a watch. However, the show did not run beyond a single season. Murphy has since appeared in guest-starring parts, including having been a murder suspect in CBS's Cold Case.
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
. He is known for his role in the ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
television series Alias Smith and Jones
Alias Smith and Jones
Alias Smith and Jones is an American Western series that originally aired on ABC from 1971 to 1973. It stars Pete Duel as Hannibal Heyes and Ben Murphy as Jedediah "Kid" Curry, a pair of Western cousin outlaws trying to reform...
, co-starring as Kid Curry, first with Pete Duel
Pete Duel
Pete Duel was an American actor, best known for his role in the television series Alias Smith and Jones.-Early life:Peter Ellstrom Deuel was born in Rochester, New York, and grew up in nearby Penfield....
and later with Roger Davis
Roger Davis (television actor)
Jon Roger Davis is an American actor and entrepreneur. The sandy-haired Davis is best known for his boyish good looks, and lilting, Henry Fonda-like voice. He came to fame in such television series as Dark Shadows and Alias Smith and Jones...
.
Early life
Though born in Arkansas, Murphy grew up in HinsdaleHinsdale, Illinois
Hinsdale is a suburb of Chicago, Illinois; it is located partly in Cook County and mainly in DuPage County in the U.S. state of Illinois. The population was 17,349 at the 2000 census. The town's ZIP code is 60521. The town has a rolling, wooded topography, with a quaint downtown and is a 30-minute...
, a suburb
Suburb
The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...
of Chicago, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
. An alumnus of Benet Academy
Benet Academy
Benet Academy is a co-educational, college-preparatory, Benedictine high school in Lisle, Illinois, United States, overseen by the Diocese of Joliet. Founded in 1887, the school was initially established in Chicago as the all-boys St. Procopius College and Academy by Benedictine monks, who also...
in Lisle
Lisle, Illinois
Lisle is a village in DuPage County, Illinois, United States. The population was 22,930 at the 2011 census, and estimated to be 23,135 as of 2008. It is part of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Illinois Technology and Research Corridor...
, Illinois, he attended eight different colleges before deciding to pursue an acting career.
Career
Murphy appeared in a supporting role in The Name of the GameThe Name of the Game (TV series)
The Name of the Game is an American television series starring Tony Franciosa, Gene Barry, and Robert Stack that ran from 1968 to 1971 on NBC, totaling 76 episodes of 90 minutes. It was a pioneering wheel series, setting the stage for the likes of The Bold Ones and the NBC Mystery Movie in the 1970s...
, a series featuring a rotating leading cast including Tony Franciosa, Gene Barry
Gene Barry
Gene Barry was an American stage, screen, and television actor. Barry is best remembered for his leading roles in the films The Atomic City and The War of The Worlds and for his portrayal of the title character in the TV series Bat Masterson, among many roles.-Personal life:Barry was born...
, and Robert Stack
Robert Stack
Robert Stack was an American actor. In addition to acting in more than 40 films, he was the star of the 1959-1963 ABC television series The Untouchables and later served as the host of Unsolved Mysteries.-Early life:...
. From 1971 to 1973, he starred in Alias Smith and Jones
Alias Smith and Jones
Alias Smith and Jones is an American Western series that originally aired on ABC from 1971 to 1973. It stars Pete Duel as Hannibal Heyes and Ben Murphy as Jedediah "Kid" Curry, a pair of Western cousin outlaws trying to reform...
with Pete Duel
Pete Duel
Pete Duel was an American actor, best known for his role in the television series Alias Smith and Jones.-Early life:Peter Ellstrom Deuel was born in Rochester, New York, and grew up in nearby Penfield....
(1971–1972) and Roger Davis
Roger Davis
Roger Davis may refer to:*Roger Davis , American actor*Roger Davis , American actor in television series Dark Shadows and Alias Smith and Jones...
(1972–1973). After Alias Smith and Jones, Murphy joined Lorne Greene
Lorne Greene
Lorne Greene , was the stage name of Lyon Himan Green, OC, a Canadian actor.His television roles include Ben Cartwright on the western Bonanza, and Commander Adama in the science fiction movie and subsequent TV Series Battlestar Galactica...
in the 1973 ABC crime drama Griff
Griff (TV series)
Griff is a 13-episode ABC crime drama starring Lorne Greene and Ben Murphy, which aired from September 29, 1973, to January 4, 1974. Nine months after the expiration of his nearly 14-year role as Ponderosa Ranch patriarch Ben Cartwright on NBC's Bonanza western series, the Canadian native Greene...
. He played detective
Detective
A detective is an investigator, either a member of a police agency or a private person. The latter may be known as private investigators or "private eyes"...
S. Michael "Mike" Murdock, assistant to Greene's character, Wade "Griff" Griffin, a Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
retired police
Police
The police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...
officer turned private eye. The series had some notable guest stars but folded after thirteen weeks.
In the 1983-1984 season, Murphy co-starred with Marshall Colt
Marshall Colt
Marshall N. Colt is a marriage, family, and life enhancement therapist in San Diego, California, who was an actor of film and television from 1976 to 1995...
in the ABC drama series Lottery!
Lottery!
Lottery! is an American drama series premiered on ABC on September 9, 1983. The series aired for one season of 17 episodes and starred Ben Murphy as Patrick Sean Flaherty, and Marshall Colt as Eric Rush...
. Murphy played Patrick Sean Flaherty, the man who informed lottery winners of their stroke of fortune, and Colt, formerly with James Arness
James Arness
James King Arness was an American actor, best known for portraying Marshal Matt Dillon in the television series Gunsmoke for 20 years...
on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
's short-lived crime drama, McClain's Law
McClain's Law
McClain's Law is an American crime drama television series that aired on NBC during the 1981-1982 season. New episodes ended on March 20, and rebroadcasts continued until August 24, 1982.-Summary:...
, portrayed the Internal Revenue Service
Internal Revenue Service
The Internal Revenue Service is the revenue service of the United States federal government. The agency is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury, and is under the immediate direction of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue...
agent, Eric Rush, who made sure the winners pay the U.S. government up front.
In 1985, Murphy co-starred as department store heir, Paul Berrenger, on the short-lived drama, Berrenger's
Berrenger's
Berrenger's is an American primetime television soap opera created by Lynn Marie Latham and Bernard Lechowick that aired on NBC in 1985. The series revolved around the Berrenger family, a New York dynasty which owned the glamorous department store which bore their name.Following in the tradition of...
. His character was at odds with his former wife, Gloria (Andrea Marcovicci
Andrea Marcovicci
Andrea Louisa Marcovicci is an American actress and singer.- Biography :Marcovicci was born in Manhattan, New York City, the daughter of Helen , a singer, and Eugen Marcovicci, a physician and internist of Romanian descent. In her teens, she decided that she wanted to be a singer, but instead...
) and his own father, Simon (Sam Wanamaker
Sam Wanamaker
Samuel Wanamaker was an American film director and actor and is credited as the person most responsible for the modern recreation of Shakespeare's Globe Theatre in London...
) due to his romance with executive, Shane Bradley (Yvette Mimieux
Yvette Mimieux
Yvette Carmen Mimieux is a retired American movie and television actress.-Early life and career:Yvette Mimieux was born in Los Angeles, California, to a French father and Mexican mother, Carmen Montemayor...
).
Murphy starred in in his own series Gemini Man
Gemini Man
Gemini Man is an American action/adventure drama series that aired on NBC in 1976. This is the third of four weekly television series based on the H. G. Wells science fiction novel, The Invisible Man.-Synopsis:...
, in which he played a character who could become invisible through the use of a watch. However, the show did not run beyond a single season. Murphy has since appeared in guest-starring parts, including having been a murder suspect in CBS's Cold Case.
Filmography
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1967 | The Graduate The Graduate The Graduate is a 1967 American comedy-drama motion picture directed by Mike Nichols. It is based on the 1963 novel The Graduate by Charles Webb, who wrote it shortly after graduating from Williams College. The screenplay was by Buck Henry, who makes a cameo appearance as a hotel clerk, and Calder... |
Shaving Student | uncredited |
| 1968 | The Virginian The Virginian (TV series) The Virginian is an American Western television series starring James Drury and Doug McClure, which aired on NBC from 1962 to 1971 for a total of 249 episodes. Filmed in color, The Virginian became television's first 90-minute western series... |
Mike Bradbury | 2 episodes |
| It Takes a Thief | King Pineau | Episode: "A Matter of Royal Larceny" | |
| Yours, Mine, and Ours Yours, Mine and Ours (1968 film) For the remake of this film starring Dennis Quaid and Rene Russo see Yours, Mine and Ours Yours, Mine and Ours is a 1968 film, directed by Melville Shavelson and starring Lucille Ball, Henry Fonda and Van Johnson... |
Larry | ||
| The Outsider | Patrick Forrester | Episode: "Tell It Like It Is... and You're Dead" | |
| 1968–1971 | The Name of the Game The Name of the Game (TV series) The Name of the Game is an American television series starring Tony Franciosa, Gene Barry, and Robert Stack that ran from 1968 to 1971 on NBC, totaling 76 episodes of 90 minutes. It was a pioneering wheel series, setting the stage for the likes of The Bold Ones and the NBC Mystery Movie in the 1970s... |
Joseph Sample | 6 episodes |
| 1969 | The Thousand Plane Raid The Thousand Plane Raid The Thousand Plane Raid is a 1969 film directed by Boris Sagal. It stars Christopher George and Laraine Stephens... |
Lt. Archer | |
| Anatomy of a Crime | Patrick Forrester | TV film | |
| 1970 | Medical Center Medical Center (TV series) Medical Center is a medical drama series which aired on CBS from 1969 to 1976.-Synopsis:The show starred James Daly as Dr. Paul Lochner and Chad Everett as Dr. Joe Gannon, surgeons working in an otherwise unnamed university hospital in Los Angeles. The show focused both on the lives of the doctors... |
Jerry Lambert | Episode: "His Brother's Keeper" |
| The Mod Squad The Mod Squad The Mod Squad is a television series that ran on ABC from September 24, 1968, until August 23, 1973. This series starred Michael Cole, Peggy Lipton, Clarence Williams III, and Tige Andrews... |
Episode: "A Far Away Place So Near" | ||
| 1971–1973 | Alias Smith and Jones Alias Smith and Jones Alias Smith and Jones is an American Western series that originally aired on ABC from 1971 to 1973. It stars Pete Duel as Hannibal Heyes and Ben Murphy as Jedediah "Kid" Curry, a pair of Western cousin outlaws trying to reform... |
Jed 'Kid' Curry (Thaddeus Jones) | 50 episodes |
| 1973 | The Letters | Joe Randolph | TV film |
| Runaway! Runaway! (1973 film) Runaway! is a 1973 film made for ABC television directed by David Lowell Rich. It is an action thriller involving skiers trapped on a runaway train speeding down a mountain.- Cast :* Ben Johnson - Holly Gibson* Ben Murphy - Les Reever... |
Les Reever | TV film | |
| Love American Style | segment "Love and the Postal Meeter" | ||
| 1973–1974 | Griff Griff (TV series) Griff is a 13-episode ABC crime drama starring Lorne Greene and Ben Murphy, which aired from September 29, 1973, to January 4, 1974. Nine months after the expiration of his nearly 14-year role as Ponderosa Ranch patriarch Ben Cartwright on NBC's Bonanza western series, the Canadian native Greene... |
Mike Murdoch | |
| 1974 | Heatwave! | Frank Taylor | |
| This Is the West That Was | Wild Bill Hickok | ||
| 1975 | Sidecar Racers | Jeff Rayburn | |
| Marcus Welby, M.D. Marcus Welby, M.D. Marcus Welby, M.D. is an American medical drama television program that aired on ABC from September 23, 1969, to July 29, 1976. It starred Robert Young as a family practitioner with a kind bedside manner, and was produced by David Victor and David J. O'Connell... |
Alan Peterson (1 | Episode: "Four Plus Hot" | |
| 1976 | Riding with Death | Sam Casey | TV film |
| Gemini Man Gemini Man Gemini Man is an American action/adventure drama series that aired on NBC in 1976. This is the third of four weekly television series based on the H. G. Wells science fiction novel, The Invisible Man.-Synopsis:... |
Sam Casey | 11 episodes | |
| Bridger | Kit Carson | ||
| 1979 | Fantasy Island Fantasy Island Fantasy Island is the title of two separate but related American fantasy television series, both originally airing on the ABC television network.-Original series:... |
Billy Blake | 2 episodes - 1979 and 1983 |
| 1979–1980 | The Chisholms The Chisholms The Chisholms is a CBS western miniseries starring Robert Preston, which aired thirteen episodes from March 29, 1979, to April 19, 1979, and from January 19, 1980, to March 15, 1980. The 1979 episodes showed the family moving from Virginia to Wyoming... |
Will Chisholm | |
| 1979–1984 | Love Boat Love Boat The Overseas Compatriot Youth Formosa Study Tour to Taiwan, informally known as the Love Boat, is currently a four-week summer program for about 400–600 college-aged Overseas Chinese. In Chinese, it is also colloquially referred to as mei-jia-ying - America and Canada Camp, a reference to where... |
Gregory King | 5 episodes |
| 1980 | Secret War of Jackie's Girls | Buck | TV film |
| 1982 | Trapper John, M.D. Trapper John, M.D. Trapper John, M.D. is an American television medical drama and spin-off of the film MASH, concerning a lovable surgeon who became a mentor and father figure in San Francisco, California. The show ran on CBS from September 23, 1979, to September 4, 1986.... |
Ned Travers | Episode: "Medicine Man" |
| Time Walker | Prof. Douglas McCadden | star | |
| 1983 | Uncommon Valor Uncommon Valor Uncommon Valor is a 1983 action/war film written by Joe Gayton and directed by Ted Kotcheff, about a Marine officer who puts together a team to try to rescue his son, who he believes is among those still held in Laos after the Vietnam War... |
Jim Merritt | TV film |
| The Winds of War The Winds of War The Winds of War is Herman Wouk's second book about World War II, the first being The Caine Mutiny . Published in 1971, it was followed up seven years later by War and Remembrance; originally conceived as one volume, Wouk decided to break it in two when he realized it took nearly 1000 pages just to... |
Warren Henry | 7 episodes | |
| Matt Houston Matt Houston Matt Houston is an American crime drama series that aired on ABC from 1982 to 1985. Created by Lawrence Gordon, the series was produced by Aaron Spelling.-Synopsis:... |
Terry Noble | Episode: "The Beverly Hills Social Club" | |
| The Cradle Will Fall | Dr. Richard Carroll | ||
| Lottery! Lottery! Lottery! is an American drama series premiered on ABC on September 9, 1983. The series aired for one season of 17 episodes and starred Ben Murphy as Patrick Sean Flaherty, and Marshall Colt as Eric Rush... |
Patrick Sean Flaherty | ||
| 1984 | Finder of Lost Loves Finder of Lost Loves Finder of Lost Loves is an American drama series aired by the ABC network during the 1984-1985 season.-Synopsis:After Cary Maxwell's wife Kate dies, he decides to set up a private detective agency specializing in reuniting clients with a former loved one... |
David Carson | Episode: "Losing Touch" |
| Hotel Hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. The provision of basic accommodation, in times past, consisting only of a room with a bed, a cupboard, a small table and a washstand has largely been replaced by rooms with modern facilities, including en-suite bathrooms... |
Robbie Joe Carson | Episode: "Fantasies" | |
| 1985 | Berrenger's Berrenger's Berrenger's is an American primetime television soap opera created by Lynn Marie Latham and Bernard Lechowick that aired on NBC in 1985. The series revolved around the Berrenger family, a New York dynasty which owned the glamorous department store which bore their name.Following in the tradition of... |
Paul Berrenger | 11 episodes |
| Gidget's Summer Reunion Gidget's Summer Reunion Gidget's Summer Reunion is a 1985 television film produced by Columbia Pictures Television for television syndication. It was written by Robert Blees and George Zateslo and directed by Bruce Bilson and starred Caryn Richman as Gidget.-Plot:... |
Ron Levering | TV film | |
| Scarecrow and Mrs. King Scarecrow and Mrs. King Scarecrow and Mrs. King is an American television series that aired from October 3, 1983, to May 28, 1987 on CBS. The show starred Kate Jackson and Bruce Boxleitner as divorced housewife Amanda King and top-level "Agency" operative Lee Stetson who begin a strange association, and eventual romance,... |
Alan Chamberlin | Episode: "A Lovely Little Affair" | |
| Murder She Wrote | Scott Lodge | Episode: "Reflections of the Mind" | |
| 1986 | Stark: Mirror Image | Steve Graves | TV film |
| 1988 | Dirty Dozen, The Series | Major Danko | 6 episodes |
| 1989 | The Twilight Zone | Jack Haines | Episode: "Love Is Blind" |
| 1990 | Shades of L.A. | Chuck Yellin | Episode: "Shades of L.A." |
| 1991 | Life Goes On Life Goes On (TV series) Life Goes On is a television series that aired on ABC from September 12, 1989 to May 23, 1993. The show centers on the Thacher family living in suburban Chicago: Drew, his wife Elizabeth, and their children Paige, Rebecca, and Charles, who is known as Corky... |
Jordan Parnell | Episode: "Proms and Prams" |
| In the Heat of the Night In the Heat of the Night (TV series) In the Heat of the Night is a television series based on the motion picture and novel of the same name. It was broadcast on NBC from 1988 until 1992, and then on CBS until 1995... |
Tom Dalton | Episode: "The More Things Change" | |
| 1992 | FBI: The Untold Stories FBI: The Untold Stories F.B.I.:The Untold Stories was a police drama anthology series which was aired in the United States by ABC from 1991 to 1993.Unlike ABC's The F.B.I., which was one of the network's major successes of the late 1960s and early 1970s, F.B.I.:The Untold Stories had no ongoing characters or storylines;... |
Agt. Jack Simpson | Episode: "Colonel Penn" |
| 1994–1995 | Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman | Ethan Cooper | 3 episodes |
| 1995 | High Sierra Search and Rescue | Roger Harmon | Episode: "Past, Present" |
| 1996 | Silk Stalkings Silk Stalkings Silk Stalkings is a TV crime drama originally shown on CBS in 1991 as part of the network's late-night Crimetime After Primetime programming package, and rebroadcast on the USA Network. After CBS ended the Crimetime experiment in 1993, the series ran exclusively on USA until its finale in the... |
Senator Grant Hemmings | Episode: "Family Values" |
| Baywatch Nights Baywatch Nights Baywatch Nights was an American police and science fiction drama series that aired in syndication from 1995 to 1997. Created by Douglas Schwartz, David Hasselhoff, and Gregory J. Bonann, the series is a spin-off from the popular television series, Baywatch.-Synopsis:The original premise of the show... |
Robert Houston | Episode: "Epilogue" | |
| 1997–2004 | JAG JAG (TV series) JAG is an American adventure/legal drama television show that was produced by Belisarius Productions, in association with Paramount Network Television and, for the first season only, NBC Productions... |
Lt. Col. John Farrow Captain Neilsen |
3 episodes Episode: "Ghosts of Christmas Past" |
| 1998 | Air America Air America (TV series) Air America is an American action/adventure television series starring Lorenzo Lamas, and premiering on October 4, 1998. The series is not based on the 1990 film Air America.-Plot:... |
Cornelius Stratton | Episode: "Hostage Situation" |
| 1999 | E! Mysteries and Scandals | Himself | Episode: "Peter Duel" |
| Pacific Blue Pacific Blue (TV series) Pacific Blue is an American crime drama series about a team of police officers with the Santa Monica Police Department who patrolled its beaches on bicycles. The show ran for five seasons on the USA Network, from March 2, 1996 to April 9, 2000, with a total of one hundred and one episodes... |
Chief Frank Swerdlow | Episode: "Swimming in the Dead Pool" | |
| Seven Days Seven Days Seven Days is a science fiction television series based on the premise of time travel. It was produced by UPN from 1998 to 2001.The television channel Sleuth started syndicating all of the episodes as of August 2, 2009.... |
Col. Seth Mattinger | Episode: "HAARP Attack" | |
| 2000 | Hanging Up Hanging Up Hanging Up is a 2000 American comedy-drama film about a trio of sisters who bond over their ambivalence toward the approaching death of their curmudgeonly father, to whom none of them were particularly close... |
Richard | (scenes deleted) |
| 2001 | To Protect and Serve | Officer Friendly | |
| The District The District The District is a television police drama which aired on CBS from October 7, 2000 to May 1, 2004. The show followed the work and personal life of the chief of Washington, D.C.'s Police Department .-Premise:... |
Congressman Phillip Hallett | Episode: "Lost and Found" | |
| 2003 | The Drew Carey Show The Drew Carey Show The Drew Carey Show is an American sitcom that aired on ABC from 1995 to 2004. The show was set in Cleveland, Ohio, and revolved around the retail office and home life of "everyman" Drew Carey, a fictionalized version of the actor.... |
Reverend Henderson | Episode: "Two Girls for Every Boy" |
| Navy NCIS | Capt. Veitch | Episode: "Sub Rosa" | |
| 2004 | Judging Amy Judging Amy Judging Amy is an American television drama that was telecast from September 19, 1999, through May 3, 2005, on CBS-TV. This TV series starred Amy Brenneman and Tyne Daly... |
Brad Vickers | Episode: "My Little Runaway" |
| 2005 | Freezerburn | General Dwight Rourke | |
| 2006 | Cold Case | Travis Whitman - 2006 | Episode: "Debut" |
| The Uniform Motion of Folly | Vincent | ||
| 2007 | McBride Semper Fi | General Dwight Rourke | TV film |
| 2010 | The Genesis Code | Professor Campbell | (post-production) |