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Bill Murray

Like his older brothers, Murray worked as a caddy to help pay for tuition to Loyola Academy, an all-boys Jesuit school. While there, Murray joined brother Brian in Chicago's Second City improvisational comedy group. He found joy in entertaining and performing, and moved to New York City to try his hand at the National Lampoon Hour on radio. Fellow radio comedians John Belushi, Gilda Radner and Dan Aykroyd left National Lampoon in 1975 to debut on the new Saturday Night Live sketch comedy show, but Murray instead was spotted by Howard Cosell and joined his variety program on ABC, entitled Saturday Night Live with Howard Cosell. Meanwhile, Saturday Night Live on NBC was becoming a big-time show and so, when Chevy Chase left the show to pursue a movie career, Bill Murray jumped at the chance of joining his former radio coworkers. From 1977 to 1980, Murray shone on SNL, gaining a reputation as a quick-witted, cynical comedic actor. Like many successful actors on SNL, Murray soon moved on to movies, making his big-screen debut in 1979's Meatballs. In 1980, Murray was quick to show off his nuttier and more dramatic side in Where the Buffalo Roam, as he played the semi-biographical role of druggy journalist Hunter S. Thompson. Murray's comedy was always his safety net, however,... Next

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