The actor who entered our lives with the movie "Ghostbusters": Who is Bill Murray?

His real name is William James Murray, he was born on September 21, 1950, in Evanston, Illinois. He was born the son of his mother, Lucille Collins Murray, a mailroom clerk, and his father, lumber dealer Edward Joseph Murray II. Growing up in Wilmette, Illinois, in an Irish Catholic family, Murray has eight siblings, some of whom are deceased. Among his siblings, John Murray, Joel Murray and Brian Doyle-Murray are also actors. Additionally, he has a nun sister named Nancy.

Joseph's elementary school and then Loyola Academy, Murray worked as a golf club as a teenager to finance his education at a Jesuit high school. He has also appeared as the lead singer of a rock band called "Dutch Masters" and in high school and community theaters. After graduation, Murray enrolled at Regis University in Denver, Colorado, where he took pre-med courses. He dropped out soon after and returned to Illinois. Years later, in 2007, Regis University awarded Murray an honorary Doctor of Humanities degree.

Murray began his career by training in "Del Close," an improv comedy troupe called The Second City in Chicago. Later, he moved to New York in 1974 and was recruited as a featured actor on the comedy radio show "The National Lampoon Radio Hour." In 1975, he co-starred with Howard Cosell on the ABC variety show "Saturday Night Live" got his first television role. Cosell's program lasted only one season and was canceled in 1976. Murray rose to prominence that same year by joining the cast of NBC's Saturday Night Live for the show's runner-up, staying there for three seasons.

Murray made his lead role in the 1979 comedy "Meatballs". His success was followed by the role of Hunter S. Thompson in the semi-biographical comedy "Buffalo Roam" in the 1980s. Collaborating with writer-director Harold Ramis in the early 1980s, Murray produced several box office hits, including the sports comedy "Caddyshack" (1980), the war comedy "Stripes" (1981), and the satirical comedy "Tootsie" (1982). He was in the movie that broke records. All three of his films achieved great success both at the box office and critically and made Murray's name known. Murray was the first guest on NBC's talk show "Late Night with David Letterman" on February 1, 1982.

Murray starred and co-wrote the drama film "The Razor's Edge" based on the novel of the same name. The movie failed at the box office. He then signed on to star in the supernatural comedy film "Ghostbusters," a role originally written for John Belushi, to finance the film. After its release, the film became the highest-grossing film of 1984. It also made its name as the highest-grossing comedy movie of all time at the time.

After the failure of "The Razor's Edge", Murray stepped away from acting for four years. He used that time to study philosophy and history at the Sorbonne University, attend the Cinémathèque in Paris, and spend time with his family at their home in the Hudson River Valley. At the same time, his second son, named Luke, was born. Murray returned to acting with the Christmas fantasy comedy "Scrooged" directed by Richard Donner in 1988 and its sequel "Ghostbusters II" in 1989. The first was a box office success, despite mixed reviews. The latter was released to generally negative reviews, making it the eighth highest-grossing film of the year at the box office.

In 1990, Murray got his one and only directorial venture when he co-directed the crime comedy "Fast Change" with Howard Franklin. Although Murray's performance was praised, it did not do well at the box office. In 1991, Frank Oz directed the black comedy "What About Bob?" he also co-starred with Richard Dreyfuss. The movie was a box office hit and was critically acclaimed. In 1993, he starred in the fantasy comedy "Groundhog Day" directed by Harold Ramis as one of the leading roles. The film was an excellent critical success and was praised for its performance. That same year, he starred in "Mad Dog and Glory," a crime comedy-drama directed by John McNaughton, with Robert De Niro and Uma Thurman. It was a healthy success both at the box office and critically.

After his successes, Murray appeared in the biographical comedy-drama film "Ed Wood" (1994) directed by Tim Burton. The critically acclaimed film was a financial failure. He then appeared in the big sports comedy "Kingpin" (1996), directed by Peter Farrelly, which ended with moderate success. Also in 1996, he appeared with Michael Jordan as himself in the live-action sports comedy "Space Jam" directed by Joe Pytka. The film received mixed reviews from critics, making it the second highest-grossing basketball film of all time and the tenth highest-grossing film of 1996. In the same year, his lead roles in the road comedy "Bigger Than Life" and the spy comedy "The Man Who Little Knows" did not find success with both critics and audiences.

In 1998, he starred in Wes Anderson's coming-of-age comedy "Rushmore" with Jason Schwartzman and Olivia Williams to critical acclaim. He won Best Supporting Actor awards from the New York Film Critics Circle, the National Society of Film Critics, and the Los Angeles Film Critics Association for his performance.

Later, Murray appeared in the thriller "Wild Things" directed by John McNaughton. It was successful both critically and financially. He then appeared in the historical drama film "Cradle Will Rock"(1999) directed by Tim Robbins and the drama film "Hamlet"(2000) written and directed by Michael Almereyda. The following year, he had a career resurgence with a role in the comedy-drama film "The Royal Tenenbaums" directed by Wes Anderson. The film was successful both critically and at the box office.

In 2003, he appeared in the comedy-drama film "Lost in Translation" directed by Sofia Coppola. He won the Golden Globe Award, BAFTA Award and Independent Spirit Award for his performance, as well as Best Actor awards from various film critic organizations. He also made a cameo appearance in 2003 in the anthology film "Coffee and Cigarettes" directed by Jim Jarmusch, starring "hide" in a local cafe.

He voiced the character of Garfield in 2004, "Garfield: The Movie" and its sequel, "Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties" in 2006. Both films in the series were a great success at both the box office and the critical. That same year, he appeared in "The Life Aquatic" with Steve Zissou, directed by Wes Anderson. The film received mixed reviews and failed to do well at the box office. However, it gained a cult following within a decade of its release and is now more positively received by critics and fans alike. The following year, he starred in the comedy-drama film "Broken Flowers" directed by Jim Jarmusch. It grossed more than four times its production budget at the box office. That same year, Murray announced that he was taking a break from his acting career.

In 2007, he made a comeback in her career with the comedy-drama film "Darjeeling Limited" directed by Wes Anderson. The film, which received generally positive reviews from critics, also achieved moderate success at the box office. The following year, he starred as Agent 13, the agent in the tree, in the action spy comedy movie "Get Smart" directed by Peter Segal. Despite its financial success at the box office, the film received mixed reviews. Later that year, he appeared in a major role in the post-apocalyptic science fanstastic movie "City of Ember." The movie was a box-office hit as well as mixed reviews.

In 2009, Murray appeared alongside Robert Duvall and Sissy Spacek in the independent film "Get Low" directed by Aaron Schneider. Murray and Duvall received critical praise for their performances. Also in 2009, Murray starred with Woody Harrelson, Emma Stone, and Jesse Eisenberg as Frank Quinn in the zombie comedy "Zombieland." The film, which received positive reviews after its release, was also successful at the box office. Murray voiced Mr. Badger in Wes Anderson's 2009 animated comedy "Fantastic Mr. Fox," which was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.

In 2012, Murray portrayed the role of Franklin D. Roosevelt in the historical comedy film "Hyde Park on Hudson" directed by Roger Michell, with Laura Linney and Olivia Williams. The film and its performance received praise from critics. He also won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Musical or Comedy Film nomination for his performance. Since 2010, Murray has appeared in the coming-of-age comedy "Moonrise Kingdom" (2012) directed by Wes Anderson, with Bruce Willis, Edward Norton, Frances McDormand and Tilda Swinton. The film was both a box office and critical success. In 2016, the film was added to the list of the "best films of the twenty-first century" by the BBC.

Murray played M.Ivan in the comedy-drama film "The Grand Budapest Hotel" (2014), written and directed by Wes Anderson. The film received rave reviews and grossed $172 million worldwide. In addition to this, it earned 9 Academy Award nominations including Best Picture. Murray, along with the cast, also won the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture.

In 2014, Murray appeared in the war movie "The Monuments Men" directed by George Clooney, with a cast including George Clooney, Matt Damon, John Goodman, Jean Dujardin, Bob Balaban, Hugh Bonneville and Cate Blanchett. The film received mixed reviews from critics and was a modest box office success. Later that year, Murray appeared with Melissa McCarthy and Naomi Watts in the comedy-drama "St.Vincent" written and directed by Theodore Melfi. He was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for his performance. Also in 2015, he acted as a music manager in the comedy movie "Rock the Kasbah".

He later voiced the character of Baloo in Disney's live-action adaptation of "The Jungle Book" directed by Jon Favreau. The film, which received great acclaim after its release, became the fifth highest-grossing film of 2016. Murray earned a People's Choice Award nomination for Favorite Animated Feature Voiceover for his performance.

In 2019, Murray starred in the cast of the zombie comedy movie "The Dead Don't Die" directed by Jim Jarmusch. The following year, he co-starred with Rashida Jones in the comedy-drama film "On the Rocks" written and directed by Sofia Coppola. Many critics gave critical acclaim praising Murray's performance, and he was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor - Motion Picture.

Murray reprized the role of Peter Venkman in the sequel "Ghostbusters: Afterlife" directed by Jason Reitman. The film received positive reviews and praise from critics. It also earned a successful revenue against its production budget. In October 2021, Murray joined the cast of "Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania," the upcoming superhero movie set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Released on February 17, 2023, the film received mixed reviews from critics. At the same time, it became the fifth highest-grossing film of 2023.

Private life

Murray married Margaret Kelly on January 25, 1981. The couple has two sons, Homer and Luke, and the couple divorced in 1996. Later, Murray started a relationship with Jennifer Butler. The couple married in 1997 and they have four sons named Caleb, Jackson, Cooper and Lincoln. The couple divorced on June 13, 2008.

Murray is known for his mood swings, and his eccentric comedy style, both on screen and in his private life, has led to him being viewed by many as a folk hero. In 2016, he was honored by the Kennedy Center with the Mark Twain Award for American Humor.

Murray opened a restaurant "Murray Bros. Caddy Shack" in partnership with his brothers and has two different branches. In 2016, Murray launched a clothing line called "William Murray Golf" with his brother Joel. In 2022, Murray sang and recited poetry with cellist Jan Vogler in the recorded production of "New Worlds: The Cradle of Civilization", which was released in theaters. Murray is a fan of the Chicago Cubs, Chicago Bears, and Chicago Bulls in particular. He also takes part in campaigns and funds for many institutions and organizations in various fields.