Brittany Murphy

Brittany Murphy
Murphy at the Sydney premiere of Happy Feet in 2006
Born	Brittany Anne Bertolotti (1977-11-10)November 10, 1977 Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.
Died	December 20, 2009(2009-12-20) (aged 32) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Cause of death	Pneumonia
Resting place	Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Hollywood Hills, California 34.14414°N 118.31979°W / 34.14414; -118.31979
Education	John Burroughs High School, Verne Fowler's School of Dance and Theater
Occupations	Actress singer
Years active	1991–2009
Spouse	Simon Monjack ​ (m. 2007)​

Brittany Anne Murphy-Monjack (née Bertolotti; November 10, 1977 – December 20, 2009) was an American actress and singer, known for playing Tai Frasier in the teen movie Clueless (1995), Alex Latourno in 8 Mile (2002) and Daisy Randone in Girl, Interrupted (1999).

Born in Atlanta, Murphy moved to Los Angeles as a teenager and pursued a career in acting. Her breakthrough role was as Tai Frasier in Clueless (1995), followed by supporting roles in independent films such as Freeway (1996) and Bongwater (1998). She made her stage debut in a Broadway production of Arthur Miller's A View from the Bridge in 1997 before appearing as Daisy Randone in Girl, Interrupted (1999) and as Lisa Swenson in Drop Dead Gorgeous (1999).

In the 2000s, Murphy appeared in Don't Say a Word (2001) alongside Michael Douglas, and alongside Eminem in 8 Mile (2002), for which she gained critical recognition. Her later roles included Riding in Cars with Boys (2001), Spun (2002), Just Married (2003), Uptown Girls (2003), Sin City (2005), and Happy Feet (2006). Murphy also voiced Luanne Platter on the animated television series King of the Hill (1997–2010). Her final film, Something Wicked, was released in April 2014.

On December 20, 2009, Murphy died at age 32 under disputed circumstances. The coroner's verdict was pneumonia, exacerbated by anemia.

Early life

Brittany Anne Bertolotti was born in Atlanta, Georgia, to Sharon Kathleen Murphy and Angelo Joseph Bertolotti, who divorced when she was two years old. Murphy was raised by her mother in Edison, New Jersey. Bertolotti was not named as her father on Brittany's first death certificate. Later in an interview she has stated that Sharon struggled financially, where she forced her to eat spaghetti every night and, on certain occasions, had to beg her mother to buy clothes at Kmart; this would later explain Murphy's marked social investment in homeless causes, as discussed in a February 2003 Glamour article.

Prior to her enrolling at Edison High School, the family moved to Los Angeles in 1991 so that Murphy could pursue an acting career. Murphy said her mother never tried to stifle her creativity, and she considered her mother a crucial factor in her later success: "When I asked my mom to move to California, she sold everything and moved out here for me. She always believed in me." Murphy's mother is of Irish and Slovakian descent, and her father is of Italian ancestry. She was raised a Baptist and later became a non-denominational Christian. She had two older half-brothers and a younger half-sister.

Career

1991–1999: child acting and first roles

Murphy attended Verne Fowler School of Dance and Theatre Arts in Colonia, New Jersey, in 1982. From the age of four, she trained in singing, dancing, and acting until her move to California at thirteen. Murphy made her Broadway debut in 1997, as Catherine, in a revival of Arthur Miller's A View from the Bridge opposite veteran actors Anthony LaPaglia and Allison Janney.

Murphy landed her first job in Hollywood when she was thirteen, 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 also guest-starred on several television series, including Parker Lewis Can't Lose, Blossom, seaQuest 2032, Murder One and Frasier. She also had recurring roles on Party of Five, Boy Meets World, and Sister, Sister.

Murphy's breakthrough role was in her second feature film, the teen comedy Clueless (1995), directed by Amy Heckerling, which developed a cult following. She followed this with roles in Freeway (1996), with Reese Witherspoon and Kiefer Sutherland, and the independent comedy Bongwater (1998). In 1999, she had a supporting role in James Mangold's Girl, Interrupted as a troubled psychiatric patient alongside Winona Ryder and Angelina Jolie; and as an aspiring beauty queen in Drop Dead Gorgeous. She also voiced the character Luanne Platter on Fox's animated sitcom King of the Hill for the entirety of the show's run from 1997 to 2009, and Joseph Gribble until the fifth season. She was nominated for an Annie Award for voice acting in the King of the Hill episode "Movin' On Up".

Murphy at the Australian premiere of Happy Feet in 2006.

2000–2009: acting success and final works

She began the 2000s with a leading role in Don't Say a Word (2001) alongside Michael Douglas; the TV adaptation of the novel The Devil's Arithmetic (2001); 8 Mile (2002), for which she received critical acclaim; and Uptown Girls (2003). In 2003, she starred in the romantic comedies Just Married and Little Black Book (2004) and the critically acclaimed Sin City (2005). Film critic Roger Ebert frequently acclaimed Murphy's acting talent and comedic timing, giving good reviews to several of her films and comparing her to Lucille Ball:

As for Brittany Murphy, for me, it goes back to the 2003 Independent Spirit Awards [where] Murphy was assigned to present one of the awards. Her task was to read the names of the five nominees, open an envelope, and reveal the name of the winner. This she turned into an opportunity for screwball improvisational comedy, by pretending she could not follow this sequence, not even after the audience shouted instructions and the stage manager came to whisper in her ear not once but twice. There were those in the audience who were dumbfounded by her stupidity. I was dumbfounded by her brilliance.

Murphy followed with several independent films, including as Spun (2002), Neverwas (2005), and Karen Moncrieff's The Dead Girl (2006), as well as two Edward Burns films: Sidewalks of New York (2001) and The Groomsmen (2006). She returned to voice acting with the critically acclaimed 2006 animated feature Happy Feet, as Gloria Penguin. In 2009, she was cast in the Lifetime TV movie Tribute, as the main character, Cilla. Murphy completed the thriller/drama Abandoned in June 2009 and it was released in 2010, after her death. In November 2009, Murphy left the production of The Caller, which was being filmed in Puerto Rico, and was replaced by Rachelle Lefevre. Murphy denied media reports that she had been fired from the project after being difficult on set, and cited "creative differences". Something Wicked, her final film, was released in 2014.

Music

Murphy performing for the crew during a USO show aboard USS Nimitz on June 19, 2003

Murphy's career also included work as a singer. She commented: "My singing voice isn't like my speaking voice...I've just always kept it a secret and never taken credit because I wanted to learn how to work behind the microphone in a recording studio, and some of the singers don't even know it was me recording on their albums."

She was in a band called Blessed Soul with fellow actor Eric Balfour in the early 1990s. On June 6, 2006, Murphy and Paul Oakenfold released the single "Faster Kill Pussycat", from the album A Lively Mind. The song became a club hit and hit number one on Billboard's Hot Dance Club Play chart. It also hit number seven in Oakenfold's native United Kingdom in June 2006.

She dabbled in music again with the release of the film Happy Feet, in which she covered Queen's "Somebody to Love" and Earth, Wind & Fire's "Boogie Wonderland". Murphy said about her character, Gloria, "Oddly enough, of all the characters I've played, Gloria is the most like me. And she's a penguin! George Miller always wanted one person to do both [the speaking and the singing]. I said, 'I can sing,' and I asked him to give me a shot. I don't think he took me very seriously, because most actors say they can do most things."

Personal life

Relationships

In late 2002, she began dating Ashton Kutcher, her co-star in Just Married, where they met while filming the same film. The director of the production, Shawn Levy, has commented on the relationship saying: "From the minute they met, they were together, they laughed all the time, they made jokes and they looked happy". It was later revealed that they had been engaged, due to both Kutcher and Murphy wearing rings, although it was never officially confirmed. She was engaged to talent manager Jeff Kwatinetz, but their relationship only lasted four months. She was subsequently with Joe Macaluso in December 2005, a production assistant she met while working on the film Little Black Book. Four months after the filming of The Ramen Girl, which was in April 2006, they broke up.

Months after her relationship with Macaluso, she met Simon Monjack, a British screenwriter. Murphy and Monjack were married in a private Jewish ceremony in Los Angeles in May 2007.

In the 2021 documentary What Happened to Brittany Murphy?, several of Monjack's colleagues and friends accused him of being responsible for Murphy's physical changes and also of not letting her connect with her family. According to the testimony of his ex-fiancée, Elizabeth Ragsdale, Monjack "was a disturbed individual who was used to conning people and Brittany was one of his latest victims."

Health

In the early 2000s, Murphy lost a large amount of weight, which led to rumors of a cocaine addiction. In 2005, Murphy disputed such claims to Jane magazine, saying: "No, just for the record I have never tried it in my entire life." In turn, from an early age she began to be addicted to tobacco, she appeared smoking both in movies and in the making-ofs in which she appeared. A Rolling Stone journalist remarked that "she smelled of vanilla and apricots. She had a cigarette in her hand. .... After a while, she pointed out that this was only her third cigarette of the week and that, consequently, 'I don't smoke, and I'm not smoking!' But you are smoking. 'Oh, now', she said, as if only a dullard could think otherwise. ... even though she doesn't smoke and wasn't smoking, she lit her fourth cigarette of the week and began smoking it avidly, passing time in the bathroom until it was yummy time for her again". Despite her excessive consumption, she has tried to quit her addiction and was against the use of marijuana, even appearing in an anti-smoking campaign on NBC alleging how harmful nicotine is, saying "If you want to look smokin', don't start smoking - it's one ugly habit".

Death

At 8:00 a.m. on December 20, 2009, the Los Angeles Fire Department responded to "a medical request" at the Los Angeles home Murphy and Monjack shared. She had apparently collapsed in a bathroom. Firefighters attempted to resuscitate Murphy on the scene. She was transported to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, where she died at 10:04 a.m. after going into cardiac arrest.

An autopsy was performed the day after she died. The Los Angeles County Coroner's Office, in a report issued February 2010, said that the manner of death was accidental and that the cause of death was pneumonia, with secondary factors of severe iron-deficiency anemia and multiple drug intoxication. The coroner found a range of over-the-counter and prescription medications in Murphy's system, with the most likely reason being to treat a cold or respiratory infection. These included "elevated levels" of hydrocodone, acetaminophen, L-methamphetamine, and chlorpheniramine, all of which are legal. The report observed: "the possible adverse physiological effects of elevated levels of these medications cannot be discounted, especially in her weakened state."

Grave of Brittany Murphy at Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills

On December 24, 2009, Murphy was buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Hollywood Hills.

In January 2010, Murphy's husband, Simon Monjack, and her mother, Sharon Murphy, claimed that she did not use alcohol or other drugs, and that drugs did not cause her death; instead they attributed it to a heart condition, mitral valve prolapse.

On May 23, Monjack was found dead at the same Hollywood Hills residence. The coroner's report attributed his death to acute pneumonia and severe anaemia. It was reported that the Los Angeles County Department of Health had considered toxic mold in their house as a possible cause of the deaths, but this was dismissed by Los Angeles Assistant Chief Coroner Ed Winter, who stated that there were "no indicators" that mold was a factor. Sharon Murphy described the reports of mold contributing to the deaths as "absurd" and went on to state that inspecting the home for mold was never requested by the Health Department. In December 2011, Sharon Murphy changed her stance, announcing that toxic mold was indeed what killed her daughter and son-in-law, and filed a lawsuit against the attorneys who represented her in an earlier suit against the builders of the home where her daughter and son-in-law died.

In January 2012, Murphy's father, Angelo Bertolotti, applied to the Superior Court of California requesting that the Los Angeles County Coroner's Office be required to hand over samples of his daughter's hair for independent testing. The suit was dismissed seven months later, after Bertolotti failed to attend two separate hearings.

In November 2013, Bertolotti claimed that a toxicology report showed that deliberate poisoning by heavy metals, including antimony and barium, was a possible cause of his daughter's death. Sharon Murphy described the claim as "a smear".

Brittany Murphy Foundation

In January 2010, Murphy's mother, Sharon, and her widower, Simon Monjack, established the Brittany Murphy Foundation, a charitable fund for children's arts education, as well as supporting the USO and cancer research.

The Foundation was launched on February 4, 2010, at a fundraising event at the Saban Theatre in Beverly Hills. After a records search revealed that the foundation's not-for-profit status had not been filed, the foundation refunded any donations received. In an official letter on the foundation's website, they stated that in an effort to get the foundation set up as quickly as possible, they had established it as a private foundation with plans to apply for nonprofit status later. However, they said that they had decided to wait until the foundation's nonprofit status was approved before going any further in order to truly honor Murphy and the foundation's charitable goals.

On November 10, 2013, the Brittany Murphy Foundation was officially relaunched by her father Angelo Bertolotti, according to a press release posted at the foundation's website.

As of September 2018, the Brittany Murphy Foundation appears to be defunct. GuideStar USA, Inc., an information service specializing in reporting on US nonprofit companies, reports that the Brittany Murphy Foundation has not appeared on the IRS Business Master File in a number of months, which may indicate that it has ceased operations.

Legacy

After her death, a wide variety of friends have dedicated words to her in interviews, recognizing her legacy and work within the film industry. Dakota Fanning, her co-star in the film Uptown Girls (2003) who maintained a friendship with her, said she appreciated the time they spent together both on the set of the film and at events they attended together, and that she was "very grateful to have had the opportunity to work together". The song "Faster Kill Pussycat", by British DJ Paul Oakenfold performed by Murphy, re-entered at number seven on the UK Dance Chart. It also entered the UK Indie Chart in the same week, peaking at number 13.

In October 2021, HBO Max aired a documentary titled What Happened, Brittany Murphy?, covering the mystery surrounding Murphy's death. In the documentary, Murphy's 8 Mile co-star Taryn Manning remembered her as "free-spirited, whimsical and full of laughter". After the documentary premiere, Daniel Fienberg wrote for The Hollywood Reporter that the documentary was "20 percent a reminder of Murphy's transcendent talent, 30 percent a dead-ended investigation into the mystery of her death, and 50 percent an unenlightening examination of Murphy's late husband", and concluded his review saying that "[Murphy] deserved better than the treatment she received in the media, which probably contributed to [Monjack's] ability to control her in the way he did."

In 2023 Alicia Silverstone, who was also her co-star in Clueless (1995) and one of her friends, commented on what it was like working with Murphy during the filming of the film:

I always remember when she auditioned for the part. It was the first time I was in a casting room where I was not auditioning. I was just there to help them facilitate chemistry reads. I just remember when she came in and did hers, because when she walked out of the room, I was like, "You guys! Did you see that?" As if they wouldn't know. They were like, "Yes, we saw that!" They were excited too, but it was my first time. She was just so good.

— Alicia Silverstone

Filmography

Films

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1993	Family Prayers	Elise	Alternative title: A Family Divided
1995	Clueless	Tai Frasier
1996	Freeway	Rhonda
1997	Bongwater	Mary
	Drive	Deliverance Bodine
1998	Falling Sky	Emily Nicholson
	The Prophecy II	Izzy	Direct-to-video release
	Phoenix	Veronica
	Zack and Reba	Reba Simpson
1999	Drop Dead Gorgeous	Lisa Swenson
	Girl, Interrupted	Daisy Randone
2000	Trixie	Ruby Pearli
	Angels!	Nurse Bellows
	Cherry Falls	Jody Marken
	The Audition	Daniella	Short subject
2001	Sidewalks of New York	Ashley
	Summer Catch	Dede Mulligan
	Don't Say a Word	Elisabeth Burrows
	Riding in Cars with Boys	Fay Forrester
2002	Spun	Nikki
	Something in Between	Sky	Short subject
	8 Mile	Alex Latourno
2003	Just Married	Sarah McNerney
	Uptown Girls	Molly Gunn
	Good Boy!	Nelly	Voice role
2004	Little Black Book	Stacy Holt
2005	Sin City	Shellie
	Neverwas	Maggie Paige
2006	The Groomsmen	Sue
	Love and Other Disasters	Emily "Jacks" Jackson
	Happy Feet	Gloria	Voice role
	The Dead Girl	Krista Kutcher
2008	The Ramen Girl	Abby	Producer credit
	Futurama: The Beast with a Billion Backs	Colleen O'Hallahan (voice)	Direct-to-video release
2009	Across the Hall	June
	Deadline	Alice	Direct-to-video release
2010	Abandoned	Mary	Direct-to-video; posthumous release
2014	Something Wicked	Susan	Posthumous release (final film role)

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1991	Murphy Brown	Frank's sister	Episode: "On Another Plane: Part 1"
	Drexell's Class	Brenda Drexell	18 episodes 1991/2
1992	Kids Incorporated	Celeste	Episode: "Lay Off"
	Parker Lewis Can't Lose	Angie	Episode: "The Kiss"
1993	Almost Home	Molly Morgan	13 episodes
	Blossom	Wendy	Episode: "Blossom in Paris: Part 1"
1994	Frasier	Olsen	Episode: "Give Him the Chair!"
	Party of Five	Abby	2 episodes
	Sister, Sister	Sarah	6 episodes, 1994/5
1995	Boy Meets World	Trini Martin	2 episodes
	The Marshal	Lizzie Roth	Episode: "These Foolish Things"
	seaQuest DSV	Christine VanCamp	Episode: "Second Chance"
	Murder One	Diane "Dee-Dee" Carson	Episode: "Chapter Nine"
1996	Double Jeopardy	Julia	TV movie
	Nash Bridges	Carrie	Episode: "Night Train"
	Clueless	Jasmine	Episode: "Driving Me Crazy"
1997– 2009	King of the Hill	Luanne Platter (voice) Various characters (voice)	226 episodes
1998	David and Lisa	Lisa	Movie
1999	The Devil's Arithmetic	Rivkah	Showtime film
	Pepper Ann	Tank the 8th grader (voice)	3 episodes, 1999/2000
2000	Common Ground	Dorothy Nelson	Movie
2005	I'm Still Here	Voiceover	Documentary about The Holocaust
2009	Tribute	Cilla McGowan	Movie
	Megafault	Dr. Amy Lane	Movie
2021	What Happened, Brittany Murphy?	Herself	TV Posthumous release; archive footage

Video games

Year	Title	Voice role	Notes
1995	My First Encyclopedia	Space floor guide	Live action
2006	Marc Eckō's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure	Karen Light
	Happy Feet	Gloria

Music videos

Year	Song	Artist	Notes
1995	"Here"	Luscious Jackson
2001	"A Little Respect"	Wheatus
2004	"Closest Thing to Heaven"	Tears for Fears
2006	"Faster Kill Pussycat"	Paul Oakenfold	Also provided vocals on song

Stage work

Year	Production	Role	Location
1997	A View from the Bridge	Catherine	Broadway

Awards and nominations

Awards Circuit Community Awards
Year	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
1995	Best Supporting Actress in a Supporting Role	Clueless	Nominated

Satellite Awards
Year	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
2002	Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture	Don't Say a Word	Nominated

Spike Video Game Awards
2006	Best Supporting Female Performance	Marc Eckō's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure	Nominated

Teen Choice Awards
2003	Choice Movie Actress—Comedy	Just Married	Nominated
	Choice Lip Lock (shared with Ashton Kutcher)		Nominated
	Choice Movie Actress—Drama/Action-Adventure	8 Mile	Nominated
	Choice Lip Lock (shared with Eminem)		Nominated
2005	Choice Movie Actress—Drama	Little Black Book	Nominated

Young Artist Awards
1996	Best Professional Actress/Singer	—	Nominated
	Best Young Supporting Actress in a Feature Film	Clueless	Nominated
1999	Best Performance in a TV Movie/Pilot/Mini-Series or Series—Leading Young Actress	David and Lisa	Nominated
2000	Best Young Leading Actress in a Feature Film	Girl, Interrupted	Nominated

References

Sources

• What Happened, Brittany Murphy?. HBO Max (Documentary). October 14, 2021.{{cite AV media}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  • Episode 1.
  • Episode 2.

External links

• Brittany Murphy at IMDb
• Brittany Murphy at the TCM Movie Database
• Brittany Murphy discography at Discogs