People with the surname Heller:

• Heller (surname)

In fiction:

• James Heller, a character from the TV series 24
• Jettero Heller main character in the mission earth novels written by L. Ron Hubbard

Other:

• Heller, a defunct unit of money in some part of Central Europe. Currently 1/100 of the Czech koruna. (And, until 31 December 2008, the Slovak koruna).
• Heller SA, a French manufacturer of model kits
• Heller Home Appliances, appliance manufacturer
• a beer brewery in Bamberg, see also Schlenkerla
• The Heller (river) in Germany
• Heller School for Social Policy and Management, Brandeis University
• Heller, a Serbian and former Yugoslav thrash metal band
  • Heller, their debut album
• Gebr. Heller, a manufacturing firm in Germany. See also German article
• Heller Letter
• Heller myotomy
• Hedley Byrne v. Heller
• Heller in Pink Tights, western film starring Sophia Loren and Anthony Quinn
• Heller with a Gun, novel by Louis L'Amour
• Heller's syndrome, a neurological disorder
• Joseph Heller, author, most famous for his novel, Catch 22
• District of Columbia v. Heller, a United States court case regarding the application of the Second Amendment.

See also[link]

• Häller, Haeller
• Geller (Russianised form)

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

Prototype is an action-adventure open world video game developed by Radical Entertainment and published by Activision. The game was released in North America on June 9, 2009, and in southwestern parts of North America as well as Oceania on June 10, and was released in Europe on June 12.

The game is set in New York City, where a virulent plague known as Blacklight is spreading through Manhattan. Those infected are mutated into hideous monsters of varying form, with an uncontrollable urge to kill all uninfected life-forms. At the center of it is the protagonist, Alex Mercer, an incredibly powerful shapeshifter with no memory of his past. Parallel to the game's storyline is the ability to play the game as a sandbox-style video game giving the player freedom to roam Manhattan.

Many reviewers compared and contrasted it with Infamous, another action-adventure open world game released one month prior to Prototype, by Sucker Punch Productions which features a superpowered protagonist with developing powers in an urban world. However, the gameplay of Prototype is very similar to The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction, also by Radical Entertainment.^[4]

Gameplay[link]

Alex's primary superpower is his ability to shapeshift, changing his body to suit his needs. Going hand in hand with this power is his ability to "consume" others, absorbing them entirely. This process allows Alex to quickly regain health by absorbing the biomass of his enemies. This also allows him to take on the forms of the enemies he absorbs, thereby allowing the player to move about the enemy as one of them. The disguise will only last as long as Alex remains inconspicuous. Alex has incredible physical strength, and will kill most humans in a single punch. He can perform various melee attacks without shapeshifting, as well as more gymnastic moves such as air combos, sliding along the ground using any humanoid enemy's body, and a high-speed rolling cannonball attack.

Alex can also transform parts of his body into a selection of martial implements acquired over the course of the game, either as purchased upgrades or being given them. Offensive powers include the large and powerful Blade arm, fast razor-sharp Claws (which can also erupt large spikes from the ground), the telescoping Whipfist, Musclemass that augments his strength, and the slow but powerful Hammerfists. Defensive options consist of a large shield on Alex's left arm for blocking ballistic attacks that needs to regenerate after excessive damage, and full body armor that exchanges agility and speed for toughness in hand to hand combat; both will allow Alex to plow through most obstacles when active. Vision modes include thermal vision, which allows Alex to see enemies through smoke and other obstacles at the expense of a decreased vision range, and Infected vision, which highlights those infected with the BLACKLIGHT virus as well as military units. Both vision modes muffle all of Alex's other senses, such as hearing, in order to concentrate on his sight. One defensive and offensive power may be active at a time, and using either will negate Alex's current disguise. In addition to his own abilities, Alex can take the weapons from defeated or absorbed enemies. These include automatic rifles, machine guns, grenade launchers, and missile launchers. He can also seize control of military vehicles, such as tanks and helicopters.

Alex's most powerful attacks are the Devastators, which require Alex to be in Critical Mass - either a state of near-death or the exact opposite, having excess stored biomass and increased health. These include the Tendril Barrage, which fires impaling tendrils from his body in all directions, the Groundspike Graveyard, which erupts massive spikes from the ground all around Alex, and the Critical Pain, which fires a single beam of hardened biomass from his hands to severely damage a single target.

For movement around the city, the player uses extreme parkour, enhanced heavily by Alex's increased physical abilities. When sprinting, he will automatically hop over cars, barriers and other obstacles without losing momentum. Alex will also scale any wall he comes into contact with and simply knock aside any humanoids that get in his way without stopping. He can jump great heights and distances, enough to clear five-story buildings, and can sprint at extreme speed indefinitely. Falls cause no damage to the player even from the greatest heights. Even small jumps are enough for Alex to dent the ground beneath him, and falls from sufficient heights will create shockwaves at the point of impact which will kill most humans nearby and send objects as large as cars flying. Falling height also factors into several of Alex's melee attacks.

Enemies in the game are the Infected: those infected with the BLACKLIGHT virus, and the Military. The Infected consist of ordinary civilians infected with the virus that are generally not a threat to Alex. However, the Hunters, huge creatures created from Infected water towers, are one of the main enemies in the game. Evolved Hunters referred to as Leaders are one of the most powerful creatures in the game and are incredibly hard for Alex to kill. The Military consist of ordinary soldiers which are usually not a threat to Alex, although they are capable of operating weaponry that is extremely dangerous to Alex, such as tanks and heavily armed helicopters. The Military also consists of BLACKWATCH, an agency dedicated to combating biological and nuclear warfare. BLACKWATCH is one of the intricate parts of the game's story and create some of the most deadly biological weaponry to combat Alex, including viral detectors capable of detecting Alex even in his disguise, and, introduced later in the game, the deadly poison Bloodtox, capable of slowly killing Alex and the Infected. Introduced later in the game are heavily armored and durable soldiers referred to as Super Soldiers, capable of fighting against Alex and some of the strongest Infected.

In order to gain more advanced upgrades, Alex is capable of sneaking into Military Bases using a disguise and stealthily consume various officials within the base. He can also set off an alert within the base, in which the only way to escape is to slaughter whoever is in the base. Alex can also gain upgrades from the Infected by collecting genetic data. Infected Hives, like Military Bases, are located all over the city, and produce genetic data constantly. Alex can destroy the Infected Hives or simply absorb the data on the outside as it is being produced. At the start of the game, only small factions of the Infected and Military are present in the city. However, as the game progresses, the Military and the Infected begin to expand. Territory in the city is made out of three distinct zones. Blue Zones are in Military control and are relatively clean of the Infection. Red Zones thrive with the Infection, although there still remains a strong Military presence. In some areas of the city, a Blue Zone and a Red Zone might converge, creating a new and distinct Purple Zone. In these Zones, the Military and the Infected are in a constant battle for control. How the player decides to act in these Zones determine which faction seizes the territory.

Plot[link]

The game follows Alex J. Mercer (voiced by Barry Pepper) who wakes up in a morgue in the basement of Gentek, a genetic engineering company based in Manhattan, sending a pair of scientists that were just about to perform an autopsy running. Alex escapes, and witnesses the scientists being gunned down by military operatives. Alex is discovered and attacked. He survives bullets being fired into his chest, and leaps over a wall to safety. He soon discovers he now possesses powerful shapeshifting abilities, superhuman strength, speed, agility, durability, endurance, weaponry and the ability to "consume" people to gain their memories, skills and appearance. With no memory of his previous life, Alex decides to find and consume those related to the conspiracy in order to uncover the truth. During his quest, Alex faces two factions: the United States Marine Corps and Blackwatch, a Fort Detrick special forces unit dedicated to combating biological warfare; and the Infected, monsters created by a virus known as BLACKLIGHT that is overrunning Manhattan. Captain Robert Cross (voiced by Jeffrey Pierce), a Blackwatch officer, is given orders to find and contain Alex.

Alex makes contact with his sister, Dana, who assists him in tracking down targets, leading to the infiltration of Gentek headquarters. He finds a young woman called Elizabeth Greene contained in the building. Greene is a host for BLACKLIGHT and upon her escape unleashes it upon Manhattan. Dana directs Alex to Karen Parker, his ex-girlfriend. She agrees to aid him in stopping the virus, but leads him into a trap where he is confronted by Cross. During their battle, Alex is injected with a parasite that threatens to kill him. Alex seeks help from Dr. Ragland, a pathologist linked to Gentek. Ragland helps Alex remove the parasite and turn it into a weapon against Greene. However, using it on Greene only serves to create a monstrous being, the Supreme Hunter, which Alex kills.

The origins of the virus and Elizabeth Greene are uncovered through a contact: in 1969 the government tested the virus' predecessor in Hope, Idaho, designed to target predetermined races. The virus mutated into something far more deadly, and the whole population was infected. Elizabeth Greene was the sole survivor; an anomaly in her body's biology accepted the virus, rewriting her genetic code along with that of her unborn son, codenamed PARIAH. The remaining population of Hope, Idaho, was liquidated by Blackwatch. Greene and PARIAH were kept in captivity for further research.

Alex discovers his own past: Blackwatch shut down the Gentek project due to leaks and ordered all project personnel eliminated. Alex Mercer took a sample of BLACKLIGHT as "insurance". Eventually pinned down by Blackwatch in Penn Station, he decides to kill as many as he can, releasing the virus before being killed. The virus entered Mercer's body through the bullet holes and re-purposed itself at the cellular level.

The contact and Alex pump a new "BLOODTOX" biological agent underground in order to drive the virus above ground where it can be fought directly, causing Greene to emerge, encased in a towering monstrosity. Greene falls from the monster in human form once she is defeated, and is consumed by Alex. Through her memories, it becomes apparent that General Randall, head of Blackwatch, is prepared to destroy Manhattan with a nuclear weapon. The contact, revealed to be Cross, and Alex infiltrate the USS Ronald Reagan to stop him. Once Alex consumes Randall, Cross is revealed to be a Supreme Hunter, who assumed Cross' identity after consuming him, and attacks Alex. He defeats the Supreme Hunter and moves the weapon out into the Atlantic Ocean, where it detonates and catches him in the blast. His remains float back to the city and regenerate after consuming a crow.

During the credits, it is revealed that the public considers the military to have been the one who stopped the infection; a US Senator is heard telling the media that the events in Manhattan were a case of nuclear and biological terrorism, and promises retribution upon those responsible, Alex claims himself to be 'something less than human, but also something more'. After the credits, Manhattan is shown to be slowly recovering, the virus has been almost completely eradicated. Alex, standing on top of the Reuters Building in Times Square, comments that his work is almost done. He sets out on a quest to achieve his full potential, and eventually completes this task. From then on, Alex roams the city, dealing with Infected and military forces as needed.

Reception[link]

Prototype was released on Steam as well as in retail stores and topped the Steam sales on the week of its release.^[17] The Xbox 360 version of Prototype was the top selling game of June 2009 in North America, with over 419,900 units sold.^[18] This made the game a Platinum Hit. As of March, 2012, the game had sold 2.1 million copies worldwide.^[19] GameSpot gave the game a 8.5/10, praising the game for its "intriguing storyline and protagonist" and "massive arsenal of moves and abilities", but criticized the game for its "occasionally fiddly controls" and "dull scenery".^[20] The Escapist said the game was a perfect "summer fling," praising the combat and movement systems as well as the unique mechanic of the Web of Intrigue.^[21] The Onion A.V. Club gave the game an "A" ranking, calling the movement style "exhilarating" and saying it was a "mature, science-fiction superhero fantasy that somehow makes players feel simultaneously powerful and vulnerable." ^[22] SPOnG.com's Marcus Dyson awarded the game 84%, stating that "The complex controls can be daunting, but once mastered, unveil a huge array of dramatic moves and impressive weapons."^[23]

Prototype was released two weeks after Sucker Punch Productions' Infamous, a game with many similar concepts including a character with superpowers, and a large open world environment that can be traveled by climbing up buildings and gliding about the city.^[24][25] This led many game critics to compare and contrast the games.^[26][27][28] In his Zero Punctuation review of Prototype, Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw compared the two games point for point, and determined that he could not tell which was the better game - Prototype won on open world gameplay and combat, while Infamous won on story and side missions.^[29] To decide which one was better, he jokingly stated that he'd award the best game to the team which created the best picture of the other main character wearing "a woman's bra". To his surprise, both development teams rose to the challenge, producing said images, and forcing Croshaw to call it a near-tie, edging out in favor of Infamous, though he still noted that, like their games, both images created independently were nearly equal in the themes that they included.^[30]

Soundtrack[link]

Sequel[link]

On December 6, 2010, a trailer of a sequel, Prototype 2 was revealed in the website www.murderyourmaker.com.

On July 20, 2011, a statement was released on Activision's website, stating that a sequel will be released on April 24, 2012.^[31][32]

Prototype 2 was released on April 24, 2012 for the Sony Playstation 3 and the Microsoft Xbox 360, it is set to be released on July 24, 2012 (North America) and July 30, 2012 (Europe) for the PC (Microsoft Windows)

Comic book[link]

A comic book series made by DC Comics Wildstorm was a spin-off as a prequel to the game and released alongside. It reveals more about Hope Idaho, Elizabeth Greene, and the viral outbreak. There are a total of 6 issues of the comic.

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Prototype (video game)

• Official website
• Prototype at the Internet Movie Database

Eddie Murphy
Murphy at the Tribeca Film Festival for Shrek Forever After in 2010.
Birth name	Edward Regan Murphy
Born	(1961-04-03) April 3, 1961 (age 51) Brooklyn, New York, United States
Medium	Film, television, stand-up, music, books
Nationality	American
Years active	1976–present
Genres	Observational comedy, musical comedy, black comedy, satire, physical comedy, Dance Pop
Subject(s)	African American culture, race relations, racism, marriage, everyday life, current events, pop culture, human sexuality
Influences	Bill Cosby,[1] Richard Pryor,[1] Peter Sellers, Redd Foxx[1] Robin Williams,[1]
Spouse	Nicole Mitchell (1993–2006) (divorced) 5 children Tracey Edmonds (2008) (unofficial)
Domestic partner(s)	Melanie Brown (2006–07) 1 child
Notable works and roles	Axel Foley in Beverly Hills Cop Various on Saturday Night Live Shrek series

Edward Regan "Eddie" Murphy (born April 3, 1961) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, singer, director, and musician.

Box office takes from Murphy's films make him the second-highest grossing actor in the United States.^[2][3] He was a regular cast member on Saturday Night Live from 1980 to 1984 and has worked as a stand-up comedian. He was ranked #10 on Comedy Central's list of the 100 Greatest Stand-ups of All Time.^[4]

He has received Golden Globe Award nominations for his performances in 48 Hrs, Beverly Hills Cop series, Trading Places, and The Nutty Professor. In 2007, he won the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor and received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of soul singer James "Thunder" Early in Dreamgirls.^[5]

Eddie Murphy's work as a voice actor includes Thurgood Stubbs in The PJs, Donkey in the Shrek series and the dragon Mushu in Disney's Mulan. In some of his films, he plays multiple roles in addition to his main character, intended as a tribute to one of his idols Peter Sellers, who played multiple roles in Dr. Strangelove and elsewhere. Murphy has played multiple roles in Coming to America, Wes Craven's Vampire In Brooklyn, the Nutty Professor films (where he played the title role in two incarnations, plus his father, brother, mother, and grandmother), Bowfinger, Norbit, and Meet Dave.

Early life[link]

Murphy grew up in the Brooklyn neighborhood of Bushwick.^[6] His mother, Lillian, was a telephone operator, and his father, Charles Edward Murphy, was a transit police officer and an amateur actor and comedian.^[1][7][8][9] His father died when he was young. When Murphy's single mom became ill, the eight-year-old Eddie Murphy and his older brother lived in foster care for one year.^[10] In interviews, the actor and comedian says that his time in foster care was influential in developing his sense of humour. Later Murphy and his older brother Charlie were raised in Roosevelt, New York by his mother and stepfather Vernon Lynch, a foreman at an ice cream plant.^[1] Around the age of 15, Murphy was writing and performing his own routines, which were heavily influenced by Bill Cosby and Richard Pryor.^[1]

Career[link]

Stand-up comedy[link]

Murphy performed stand-up at the same Bay Area Comedy Club as Robin Williams and Whoopi Goldberg. His early comedy was characterized by frequent swearing and sketches lampooning a diverse group of people (including WASPs, African Americans, Italian Americans, overweight people, and gay people). This racy content was akin to that of Richard Pryor, whom Murphy has credited as his inspiration to enter comedy;^[1] however, in his autobiography, Pryor Convictions, Pryor wrote that he found Murphy's comedy at times excessively insensitive. Murphy later apologized for insensitive jokes about gay people and HIV. The stand-up shows Delirious and Raw have been recorded and released.

1980s acting career[link]

Murphy in 1988

Murphy first earned attention as a regular actor at Saturday Night Live, and was credited with helping revitalize the series during its first true slump in quality in the early 1980s.^[11] Some of his notable characters included a grown version of the Little Rascals character Buckwheat,^[12] impoverished but street-wise children's show host Mr. Robinson (a spoof of Fred Rogers, who found it amusing),^[13] and Gumby,^[12] a harshly cynical version of the animated character; Murphy's take on the latter character spawned one of SNL's many catchphrases, "I'm Gumby, dammit!" Although Buckwheat was his most popular character, Murphy asked that he be retired because the actor grew tired of people asking him to "Do Buckwheat! Do Buckwheat!"; the character was assassinated on camera in front of 30 Rockefeller Plaza.^[14]

In 1982, Murphy made his big screen debut in the film 48 Hrs. with Nick Nolte.^[1] 48 Hrs. proved to be a hit when it was released in the Christmas season of 1982. Nolte was scheduled to host the December 11, 1982 Christmas episode of Saturday Night Live, but became too ill to host, so Murphy took over. He became the only cast member to host while still a regular. Murphy opened the show with the phrase, "Live from New York, It's the Eddie Murphy Show!" The following year, Murphy starred in Trading Places with fellow SNL alumnus Dan Aykroyd.^[1] The movie marked the first of Murphy's collaborations with director John Landis (who also directed Murphy in Coming to America and Beverly Hills Cop III) and proved to be an even greater box office success than 48 Hrs. In 1984, Murphy starred in the successful action comedy film Beverly Hills Cop.^[1] The film was Murphy's first full-fledged starring vehicle, originally intended to star Sylvester Stallone (who later tweaked the script as his own starring vehicle Cobra in 1986).^[1] Beverly Hills Cop grossed over $230 million at the box office and is 40th in the list of all-time total U.S. box office grosses (4th-highest amongst "R" rated films), after adjusting for inflation, as of March 2011^[update].^[15]

In 1984, Murphy appeared in Best Defense, co-starring Dudley Moore. Murphy, who was credited as a "Strategic Guest Star", was added to the film after an original version was completed but tested poorly with audiences. Best Defense was a major financial and critical disappointment. When he hosted SNL, Murphy joined the chorus of those bashing Best Defense, calling it "the worst movie in the history of everything". Murphy's Trading Places co-star Dan Aykroyd had originally written the character of Winston Zeddemore in Ghostbusters specifically for Murphy, but he was unable to commit at the time due to the Beverly Hills Cop shooting schedule. The part ultimately went to Ernie Hudson. Murphy was also offered a part in 1986's Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, a role that, after being heavily re-written from comic relief to love interest, ultimately went to future 7th Heaven star Catherine Hicks. By this point^[16] Murphy's near-exclusive contract with Paramount Pictures rivaled Star Trek as Paramount's most lucrative franchise.

In 1986, Murphy starred in the supernatural comedy, The Golden Child.^[1] The Golden Child was originally intended to be a serious adventure picture starring Mel Gibson. After Gibson turned the role down, the project was offered to Murphy as it was subsequently rewritten as a partial comedy. Although The Golden Child (featuring Murphy's "I want the knife!" routine) performed well at the box office, the movie was not as critically acclaimed as 48 Hrs., Trading Places, and Beverly Hills Cop. The Golden Child was considered a change of pace for Murphy because of the supernatural setting as opposed to the more "street smart" settings of Murphy's previous efforts. A year later, Murphy reprised his role of Axel Foley in the Tony Scott-directed Beverly Hills Cop II. It was a box office success, grossing over $150 million. Producers reportedly wanted to turn the Beverly Hills Cop franchise into a weekly television series. Murphy declined the television offer, but was willing to do a film sequel instead.

Murphy was one of the last movie actors to sign an exclusive contract with a studio. In this case, it was Paramount Pictures, which released all of his early films.

Singing career[link]

Murphy is also a singer and musician, having frequently provided background vocals to songs released by The Bus Boys, which their song "The Boys Are Back in Town" was featured in 48 Hrs. and Murphy's comedy special Eddie Murphy Delirious. As a solo artist, Murphy had two hit singles, "Party All the Time" (which was produced by Rick James) and "Put Your Mouth on Me" in the mid-1980s (although he actually started singing earlier in his career, with the songs "Boogie In Your Butt" and "Enough Is Enough", the latter being a parody of Barbra Streisand and Donna Summer's 1979 song, "No More Tears (Enough Is Enough)". They both appear on his 1982 self-titled comedy album.) "Party All the Time" was featured on Murphy's 1985 debut album How Could It Be, which included a minor follow-up R&B hit in the title track, a duet with vocalist Crystal Blake. This track was written by Rusty Hamilton and was produced by Stevie Wonder's cousin Aquil Fudge after a brief falling out and bet with Rick James. In 2004, VH-1 and Blender voted "Party All the Time" number seven among the "50 Worst Songs of All-Time." Sharam used a sample of the song for the UK #8 hit "PATT (Party All The Time)" in 2006.

Murphy recorded the album Love's Alright in the early 1990s. He performed in a music video of the single "Whatzupwitu", featuring Michael Jackson. He recorded a duet with Shabba Ranks called "I Was a King". In 1992, Murphy appeared in Michael Jackson's "Remember the Time" alongside Magic Johnson and Iman.

Though uncredited, Murphy provided vocal work on SNL castmate Joe Piscopo's comedy single, "The Honeymooners Rap."^{[citation needed]} Piscopo impersonated Jackie Gleason on the single, while Murphy provided an imitation of Art Carney.

In Coming to America, he imitated Jackie Wilson when he sang "To Be Loved", but because the character he was playing had a thick accent, he had to sing it in character. In later years, Murphy performed several songs in the Shrek film franchise. In the first film, he performed a version of "I'm a Believer" in the film's final scene; in Shrek 2 he performed Ricky Martin's hit "Livin' La Vida Loca" along with co-star Antonio Banderas.

Murphy's all-time favorite singer is Elvis Presley.

Early 1990s career[link]

From 1989 until the mid 1990s, box office results and reviews for Murphy's films dropped, hitting a low point with the critically panned Beverly Hills Cop III (1994),^[17] a movie Murphy would ultimately denounce during an appearance on Inside the Actors Studio,^[1] although he did find box office success with Boomerang and Another 48 Hrs. Harlem Nights featured Murphy, who had previously been known only as a performer, as director, producer, star, and co-writer, with his brother, Charlie Murphy, as well as supporting roles for Murphy's comic idols Redd Foxx and Richard Pryor.^[1]

During this period Murphy was criticized by filmmaker Spike Lee for not using his show business stature to help black actors break into film, despite Murphy's films (especially those he produced) often being populated with predominantly black casts (Coming To America, Harlem Nights, Boomerang, Vampire In Brooklyn, Life). Many black actors who would later gain wider recognition make early appearances in Murphy films such as Damon Wayans in Beverly Hills Cop, Halle Berry and Martin Lawrence in Boomerang, Samuel L. Jackson and Cuba Gooding Jr. in Coming to America, Dave Chappelle in The Nutty Professor and Chris Rock in Beverly Hills Cop II.

Although Murphy has enjoyed commercial success since Saturday Night Live, he has never attended cast reunions or anniversary specials, nor did he participate in the making of the Live From New York: An Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live retrospective book by Tom Shales and James Andrew Miller (2002).

Comeback and image makeover[link]

Murphy's box office results began to recover in 1996, starting with The Nutty Professor. He followed with a series of very successful family-friendly movies like Mulan, Dr. Dolittle and its sequel, the Shrek series, Daddy Day Care, and The Haunted Mansion, along with Nutty Professor II: The Klumps. However, most of his movies meant for more adult audiences performed moderately; Metro, I Spy, and Showtime all ended to gross less than $40 million domestically, Holy Man performed poorly, grossing less than $13 million, and The Adventures of Pluto Nash is on record as one of the biggest theatrical money-losers of all time, grossing just $7 million worldwide on a reported $110 million budget. A notable exception to this run of poorly received adult-themed films was the Frank Oz comedy Bowfinger, also starring Steve Martin. The film garnered generally positive critical reviews, and grossed $98 million at the box office.

In 2006, he starred in the motion picture version of the Broadway musical Dreamgirls as soul singer James "Thunder" Early. Murphy won a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor, as well as a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Broadcast Film Critics Association Award in that category. Several reviews for the film highlighted Murphy's performance while he received some pre-release Academy Awards buzz.^[18] Murphy was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor on January 23, 2007, but lost to Alan Arkin for his performance in Little Miss Sunshine. Dreamgirls was the first film distributed by Paramount Pictures to star Murphy (who once was on an exclusive contract with the studio) since Vampire in Brooklyn in 1995.

In 2007, Murphy was invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.^[19] As a result of Viacom's acquisition of Dreamworks SKG, Paramount distributed his other 2007 releases: Norbit and Shrek the Third. He starred in the 2008 film Meet Dave and the 2009 film Imagine That for Paramount Pictures.

Murphy co-starred in Tower Heist, directed by Brett Ratner. Murphy played a thief who joins a group of hardworking men who find out they have fallen victim to a wealthy businessman's Ponzi scheme, and conspire to rob his high-rise residence. Ben Stiller, Matthew Broderick, and Casey Affleck also starred in the film, released on November 4, 2011.^[1][20][21]

It was reported in late 2011 that Murphy would host the 84th Academy Awards in 2012. However, he dropped out of his hosting duties on November 9, 2011, in the wake of the Brett Ratner scandal.^[22]

Personal life[link]

Family[link]

Eddie Murphy in Hollywood Walk of Fame

Murphy began a longtime romantic relationship with Nicole Mitchell (born January 5, 1968) after meeting her in 1988 at an NAACP Image Awards show. They lived together for almost two years before getting married at the Grand Ballroom of The Plaza Hotel in New York City on March 18, 1993.^[23] Murphy and Mitchell had five children together: Bria L. Murphy (born November 18, 1989), Myles Mitchell (born November 7, 1992), Shayne Audra (born October 10, 1994), Zola Ivy (born December 24, 1999) and Bella Zahra (born January 29, 2002). In August 2005, Mitchell filed for divorce, citing "irreconcilable differences". The divorce was finalized on April 17, 2006.^[24]

He also has a child by Tamara Hood: son Christian Murphy (born on 29 November 1990).^[25]

Murphy as of 2008 resided in Long Island, New York.^[26]

Following his divorce from Mitchell, in 2006, Murphy began dating former Spice Girl Melanie Brown, who became pregnant and stated that the child was Murphy's. When questioned about the pregnancy in December 2006 by RTL Boulevard, Murphy told Dutch reporter Matthijs Kleyn, "I don't know whose child that is until it comes out and has a blood test. You shouldn't jump to conclusions, sir". Brown gave birth to a baby girl, Angel Iris Murphy Brown, on Murphy's 46th birthday, April 3, 2007. On June 22, 2007, representatives for Brown announced in People that a DNA test had confirmed that Murphy was the father.^[27] Brown has stated in an interview that Murphy has not sought a relationship with Angel.^[28][29]

Murphy exchanged marriage vows with film producer Tracey Edmonds, former wife of Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, on January 1, 2008, in a private ceremony on an island off Bora Bora.^[30] On January 16, the couple released a statement saying, "After much consideration and discussion, we have jointly decided that we will forego having a legal ceremony as it is not necessary to define our relationship further," and called the Bora Bora wedding a "symbolic union". The two had planned on having a legal ceremony upon their return to the U.S. but did not, and their wedding was never official.^[31]

Legal problems[link]

According to Murphy's childhood friend Harris Haith in his book, Growing Up Laughing With Eddie, long before Murphy did any writing for Coming to America, Art Buchwald had approached Paramount Pictures with the idea for a similar film. His material was rejected, but the information was retained by Paramount. They liked Buchwald's idea but did not see fit to pay him and saved it for use later down the road. Some years later, Paramount presented the idea of Coming to America to Eddie and gave him the contract. Murphy wrote a screenplay that came to light exactly as it aired on the silver screen. In 1988, Buchwald sued Murphy and Paramount Pictures, but Murphy was not found liable because Paramount had received the material.

Philanthropy[link]

Murphy has donated money to the AIDS Foundation, and cancer, education, creative arts, family/parent support, health and homeless charities. He has donated to the Martin Luther King Jr. Center, various cancer charities and $100,000 to the Screen Actors' Guild's strike relief fund.^[32]

Filmography[link]

Television[link]

Discography[link]

Studio albums[link]

Compilation albums[link]

Singles[link]

Awards/nominations[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Eddie Murphy

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Eddie Murphy

• Eddie Murphy at the Internet Movie Database
• Eddie Murphy at Allmusic
• Eddie Murphy on Discogs
• Maxim Rated Top SNL performer