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Quick Facts
Best Known For
Actor and comedian Eddie Murphy began doing stand-up as a teenager. He became a popular Saturday Night Live cast member and starred in several box-office hits.
Videos see all videos
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Eddie Murphy - Child Comic (1:02)
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Eddie Murphy - Admiration for Bruce Lee
Eddie Murphy describes his admiration for Bruce Lee's ability to reach an audience.
Eddie Murphy - Child Comic
Eddie Murphy describes sneaking out of the house to head to comedy clubs in hopes of getting a spot.
Eddie Murphy - Helping Fellow Comics
Chris Rock talks about being encouraged and helped by Eddie Murphy.
Richard Pryor - Comedy Pioneer
Actress-Director Rain Pryor talks about how her father Richard Pryor was a comedy pioneer with his raw stand-up performances and honest critiques of race.
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Play NowEddie Murphy. (2013). The Biography Channel website. Retrieved 03:05, May 23, 2013, from http://www.biography.com/people/eddie-murphy-9418676.
Eddie Murphy. [Internet]. 2013. The Biography Channel website. Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/eddie-murphy-9418676 [Accessed 23 May 2013].
"Eddie Murphy." 2013. The Biography Channel website. May 23 2013, 03:05 http://www.biography.com/people/eddie-murphy-9418676.
"Eddie Murphy," The Biography Channel website, 2013, http://www.biography.com/people/eddie-murphy-9418676 [accessed May 23, 2013].
"Eddie Murphy," The Biography Channel website, http://www.biography.com/people/eddie-murphy-9418676 (accessed May 23, 2013).
Eddie Murphy [Internet]. The Biography Channel website; 2013 [cited 2013 May 23] Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/eddie-murphy-9418676.
Eddie Murphy, http://www.biography.com/people/eddie-murphy-9418676 (last visited May 23, 2013).
Eddie Murphy. The Biography Channel website. 2013. Available at: http://www.biography.com/people/eddie-murphy-9418676. Accessed May 23, 2013.
They pushed Murphy before the camera, and told him to do his stand-up routine. His improvised performance was called "masterful" by Rolling Stone, and Murphy became one of only two cast members (along with Joe Piscopo) asked back for the next season.
Murphy became Saturday Night Live' s strongest comedic presence, creating such memorable characters as Mister Robinson, an urban version of TV's Mister Rogers; an older version of the Little Rascals character,
Contents
Buckwheat; and an illiterate convict and poet named Tyrone Green. He also continued his skillful impersonations, adding Bill Cosby, Muhammad Ali, James Brown, Jerry Lewis, and Stevie Wonder to his repertoire. Murphy received criticism for his satirical characterizations based on black stereotypes. He defended his performances, claiming that his characters were far too absurd and abstract to be taken seriously.
On the Big Screen
In 1982, Murphy received a Grammy nomination for a live album of fresh stand-up material called Eddie Murphy: Comedian. The album eventually went gold. That same year, at the age of 21, he also landed his first major motion picture role alongside Nick Nolte in 48 Hours (1982). He approached the role with confidence and ingenuity, convincing director Walter Hill to adjust some of the dialogue to more genuinely depict a black speaker. His charming and inspired performance as the fast-talking convict stole the film, and 48 Hours grossed over $5 million in its first week.
Murphy followed this success with the 1930s style farce Trading Places (1983). Playing alongside fellow SNL alumnus Dan Aykroyd, Murphy's street-wise Billy Ray Valentine becomes the victim, then the victor, of two Wall Street moguls' short-sighted bet. Paramount Pictures proceeded to sign the 23-year-old to a $25 million contract for six pictures.
Murphy's next film, Beverly Hills Cop (1984), hit No. 9 on the list of all-time box-office hits. He played bad boy/good cop Axel Foley, a role originally slated for Sylvester Stallone. His performance was a hit with fans, and earned the actor a Golden Globe nomination. Taking advantage of his status as a hot commodity, Murphy released his first album How Could it Be?, which was produced by music legend Rick James. The first single off the album, "Party All the Time," peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Murphy went on the make Beverly Hills Cop II in 1987, which received mixed reviews from critics, but major rewards from the box office. His other efforts of this period—including The Golden Child (1986) and his directorial debut, Harlem Nights (1989)—were deemed failures by critics and audiences alike.
A highlight of his career during this time was the romantic comedy Coming to America (1988), co-starring Arsenio Hall. In the film, both Murphy and Hall were able to demonstrate their comedic versatilty by playing multiple characters within the film. Audiences loved Murphy's performances and the movie became a box-office smash, grossing more than $128 million in the U.S. alone.
Prostitution Incident
In 1990, Murphy starred in a sequel to his popular film, 48 Hours called Another 48 Hours.
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View groupLearn more about the cast of Saturday Night Live, including old-timers such as John Belushi, Billy Crystal, Jane Curtin, Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Chevy Chase, Eddie Murphy and David Spade, as well as newer stars of the series, including Tracy Morgan, Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Maya Rudolph, Andy Samberg, Jason Sudeikis and Seth Meyers.
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View groupFrom the early comedy of Nipsey Russell, Richard Pryor and Bill Cosby to the contemporary routines of Steve Harvey, Mo'Nique, Chris Rock, Wanda Sykes and Dave Chappelle, black comedians have often used their wit to become the voice and face of the African-American experience. These legendary comedians have also set a very high bar—not only for African Americans, but for all comics trying to make it in show business. Learn more about these famous jokesters, from their early days to their comic beginnings, to their side-splitting performances and more.
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