Brian Murray

Although this wonderfully witty, enormously talented, classically-trained theatre actor was unable to transition his award-winning theatre stardom to major twilight screen notice, South-African thespian Brian Murray nevertheless did receive late-blooming adulation for several stirring performances. Born Brian Bell on September 10, 1937, in Johannesburg, the stage actor/director attended King Edward VII School. It must have been a sign as he became a Shakespearean titan in later years.

Making his stage bow in 1950 as "Taplow" in "The Browning Version," he continued on the South African stage in such roles as "Bus Stop' and "The Diary of Anne Frank" until 1957.

Though he made his film debut fairly early in his career with The League of Gentlemen (1960) and showed strong promise and presence in The Angry Silence (1960) and as a radio announcer, editor and director, his first passion was the theatre and instead chose to join the Royal Shakespeare Company where his impressively youthful gallery of credits included those of "Romeo" in Romeo and Juliet, "Horatio" in Hamlet, "Cassio" in Othello, "Edgar" in King Lear and "Lysander" in A Midsummer Night's Dream. "Developing an international reputation, Broadway (off- and on-) took notice of this mighty thespian and utilized his gifts luxuriously well over the years in such plays as "All in Good Time" (debut), "Noises Off," "Ashes," "Da," "A Small Family Business," "Uncle Vanya," "Sleuth" and "The Rivals," earning three Tony Award nominations for his sterling perfs in "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead," "The Little Foxes" and "The Crucible. " Two of Brian's later stage roles, that of "Sir Toby Belch" in "Twelfth Night" and "Claudius" in "Hamlet", were taken to TV/film.

Was considered for the role of Roper in director Fred Zinnemann's film of A Man for All Seasons (1966).

Has been nominated three times for Broadway's Tony Award: as Best Supporting or Featured Actor (Dramatic), in 1968 for Tom Stoppard's "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead;" and as Best Actor (Featured Role - Play), in 1997 for a revival of Lillian Hellman's "The Little Foxes" and in 2002 for a revival of Arthur Miller's "The Crucible."

He was nominated for a 1975 Joseph Jefferson Award for Best Director of a Play for "The Cherry Orchard" at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago, Illinois.

He was nominated for a 1976 Joseph Jefferson Award for Actor in a Supporting Role in Play for his role in "The Devil's Disciple" at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago, Illinois.

He was nominated for a 1977 Joseph Jefferson Award for Actor in a Principal Role in a Play for "Design for Living" at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago, Illinois.

Into the millennium, Brian enjoyed a nice change of pace and in the voicing of the flamboyant role of "John Silver" in the animated feature, Treasure Planet (2002).

The actor/director also appeared in 70's and 80's radio drama for the National Radio Theater and was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame in 2004.

He was subsequently featured in such films as Dream House (2011) and In the Family (2011), and made guest appearances on such TV shows as "Law & Order: Criminal Intent," "30 Rock," "The Good Wife" and "Person of Interest.

Millennium stage roles would include "Me, Myself and I," "A Song at Twilight," "The Importance of Being Earnest" and his last, "Simon Says," in 2016.