How much is Bill Murray worth?
| Net Worth: | $160 Million |
|---|---|
| Profession: | Professional Actor |
| Date of Birth: | September 21, 1950 (age 72) |
| Country: | United States of America |
| Height: | 6 ft 1 in (1.87 m) |
About Bill Murray
Willaim James Murray, Bill Murray for short, was born in 1950. He is one of the most beloved actors and comedians in the history of the USA. Life was hard in his childhood, his family was a large one, with eight siblings it was difficult for his parents to make ends meet. His mother worked as a mail-room clerk and his father Ed was a lumber salesman. Bill Murray spent most of his young life in the suburbs of Chicago. Murray suffered tragedy early on when his father passed away from diabetes complications. Bill was only 17 when it happened.
At an early age Murray liked to read biographies in his youth and was a studious and hard-working kid. He worked as a golf caddy throughout high school to help his family. He wanted to be a doctor early on in his life, so after he was done with high school he enrolled in a pre-med course at the Denver College. But that wouldn’t last and Bill Murry dropped out of college soon after. He did odd jobs for a while and got in trouble with the law on one serious occasion.
In 1970, Bill Murray was arrested while trying to smuggle ten pounds weed. He historically joked that he had a bomb in his suitcase. He did not do any time but was sentenced to probation.
After his probation was over, he started to do comedy under the influence of his brother. He joined The Second City in Chicago and became an important player in those circuits. Soon he moved to New York and befriended one of the biggest comedic talents of that age John Belushi. Belushi was behind the National Lampoon radio hour radio show, which had a large following at the time.
Through guest appearances on the radio show Bill Murray was given a gateway towards all kinds of variety late-night shows that were popular at the time. One such variety of TV show would change his life forever.
His big break happened in 1976 when he joined the cast and crew of Saturday Night Live. He would stay with the variety program for three whole seasons. He and others who joined the show at that time were under a lot of pressure since the show just lost its biggest star, Chevy Chase. Fortunately Bill turned out be a great success on SNL, one of the most beloved cast members they had.
The early 80s was a great time for Bill Murray. He landed a lot of great parts in films and the majority of those films were massive box office successes. Some of his best early roles in movies include parts in Meat Balls, Caddy Shack, Tootsie and Where the Buffalo’s Roam.
He was also the first guest on David Letterman’s late-night TV show. But, Bill Murray wanted to be more than just a goofball comedic actor, he strived for serious roles and got his first dramatic part in the film Razor’s Edge which he co-wrote and co-produced.
To get enough funding for the movie, he accepted a role in the now epic and classic comedy sci-fi adventure film Ghost Busters (1984). To say that Ghost Busters was a hit would be an understatement. It was the biggest film of the year and one of the most profitable comedies of all time. It made $295.2 dollars at the box office. If we adjust for inflation that is $798.8 million, in 2020 dollars. That was a huge achievement for the time and similar to what major Marvel Studios movies on average earn. Plus, Ghost Busters (1984) was made on a small budget of only $25–30 million dollars.
It spawned a few sequels, reboots, cartoon and toy lines. Including Ghostbusters: Afterlife which was released in 2021 and earned $196.9 million at the global box office from a budget of $75 million. Bill Murray appeared again as Dr. Peter Venkman.
Murry stepped away from acting for 5 years to study philosophy and theology. His first film after the hiatus was Ghostbusters 2. Following that he starred in Groundhog Day, one of the most acclaimed comedies of all time. But he would get his due for his talents as a dramatic actor as well. In Sofia Coppola’s film Lost in Translation, he played a role that would get him his one and only Oscar nomination.
He failed to win the Oscar, even if he was a huge favorite. But he did win a Golden Globe and Independent Spirit Award for it. He also won an Emmy for his performances in his Saturday Night Live days.
Bill Murray was kind of a wild child but he also seemed very precocious. That precociousness may also be the reason however, that Murray landed in trouble.
Maybe there’s some kind of speed limit even for stars in the making that dictates when someone gets ahead, or goes up, there are other factors that bring them back down? In Murray’s case he was bright and thoughtful and that put him ahead, but he was also inexperienced and that combination put him in handcuffs.
His father died young, Bill was just 17 when he passed away from complications of diabetes at just 46 years old. This likely took a toll on Bill and his behavior began to get out of hand.
On his 20th birthday he was arrested at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport with ten pounds of cannabis in his suitcase. As the story goes he was caught after joking to another passenger that he “had a bomb in his luggage”. He was convicted and sentenced to probation and hasn’t broken a law since.
This is a trend we have seen studying the lives of many highly successful men and women. Often when they are young they can appear to be completely feral with wacky ideas that get them into trouble and experimenting early with drugs and alcohol.
After suffering a tragedy with his father dying and a shocking wake up call being arrested by the police. Bill was scared straight and after snapping out of his bad habits, he dealt effectively with his troubles and went on to lead a far more successful life.
Developed skills, charisma, effort and the ability to take risks are core reasons for Murray’s monumental success. You can’t be the star of some of the biggest comedies of all time without effort and comedic skills. Bill honed those abilities working with comedy troupes around the country, both in his home town of Chicago but also in New York. It was those skills that would bring him his first big break, becoming a cast member of Saturday Night Live in 1976.
Soon he would transition to film and become one of the greatest comedic actors of his generation. But Bill Murray was an all-round actor or at least had the ambition to be one. His first serious role, that in Razor’s Edge was a massive flop and disappointment. But that didn’t stop him, he studied and worked hard to improve his craft. Later in life, he would be recognized for that work with multiple Golden Globe nominations, one Golden Globe win and an Oscar nomination.
Summing-Up
A poor kid from a struggling family with a lot of siblings, to an iconic comedic superstar, the life of Bill Murray is a fantastic tale. If it were a movie, people would struggle to believe it. But, as we know it to be a real-life story we can only watch in awe. He was able to fuse his unique charm and charisma into irresistible screen presence and sense of humor. With his comedic genius and talent for dramatic acting, he was able to carry classic films such as Lost in Translation and Ghostbusters.
