Brittany Murphy (born November 10, 1977) is an American
actress and
recording artist. She has starred in films such as
Just Married;
Clueless;
Girl, Interrupted;
8 Mile;
Sin City;
The Dead Girl;
Uptown Girls;
Happy Feet;
Riding in Cars with Boys and
Spun.
Early life
Born in
Atlanta, Georgia,
Murphy's parents divorced when she was two. She was raised by her single mother, Sharon Murphy, in
Edison, New Jersey, and later
Los Angeles (her father, Angelo Bertolotti, is a convicted mobster).
Murphy's mother is of Irish and
Eastern European descent, and her father is
Italian American.
[; Mr. Showbiz website long defunct; transcript now availabe at www.brittanymurphy.8m.com/mrshowbiz.html] She was raised a
Baptist and attended a
Lutheran school, but is now a
non-denominational practicing
Christian.
When she was nine years old, Murphy landed a singing role in a musical version of
Les Misérables, and had signed on with a manager by the time she turned thirteen. Her mother, Sharon was diagnosed with breast cancer when Murphy was 15. She survived after having a double
mastectomy.
[Legacy of Strength by Yahoo.com]
Acting
Murphy landed her first job in
Hollywood when she was 14, starring as Brenda Drexell in the series
Drexell's Class. She then went on to play Molly Morgan in the short-lived
The Torkelsons spinoff
Almost Home. Murphy has also guest starred on several television series including
Parker Lewis Can't Lose,
Blossom, and
Frasier. She has also had recurring roles on
Sister, Sister,
Party of Five, and
Boy Meets World. In 1997, she began voicing the character of
Luanne Platter (as well as the younger version of
Joseph Gribble) on the long-running animated series
King of the Hill.
Murphy has also starred in many successful films, including
Clueless (1995),
Girl, Interrupted (1999),
Don't Say a Word (2001), the TV adaption of the novel
The Devil's Arithmetic (2001),
8 Mile (2002) and
Uptown Girls (2003) as well as many lesser-known films, such as
Spun (2003). In 2004, she starred in the
romantic comedy Little Black Book, and the critically acclaimed
Sin City (2005). In 2009, she was cast in the
Lifetime TV movie,
Tribute, as the main character, Cilla.
Music
In Spring 2006, Murphy, along with
Paul Oakenfold, released the single "
Faster Kill Pussycat", from the album
A Lively Mind which was released on June 6 in the United States. The song has become a club hit, and hit number one on
Billboard's Hot Dance Club Play chart.
It also hit number seven in the
UK singles chart in June 2006.
She dabbled in music again with the release of her movie
Happy Feet, in which she covered
Queen's "
Somebody to Love" and
Earth, Wind & Fire's "
Boogie Wonderland".
Personal life
In 2003, Murphy dated
Ashton Kutcher, who was her co-star in
Just Married.
Once engaged to talent manager Jeff Kwatinetz, in December 2005, Murphy became engaged to Joe Macaluso, a production assistant she met while working on her film,
Little Black Book.
In August 2006, they ended their engagement.
In May 2007, Murphy married screenwriter Simon Monjack in a private
Jewish ceremony.
[Brittany Murphy Marries Writer-Director - Weddings, Brittany Murphy : People.com]
In 2005, Murphy signed on as the spokesmodel for
Jordache jeans.
In 2006, Murphy was voted 36th in
FHM's 100 Sexiest Women List, and in May of the same year,
Maxim named Murphy #49 on its annual Hot 100 List.
Filmography
See also
