BEN MURPHY BIDS GOODBYE TO "KID CURRY"?

SPEC 16 Magazine, July 1972

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SOMETIME IN LATE SEPTEMBER, as the sun sets over "Kid Curry's" west, it just might be setting for the last time. 'Yep, cowpokes, the word is out that ABC-TV's Alias Smith And Jones might not be with you regularly on your TV screen next season. It looks like "Kid" was able to stay out of trouble for a year and the governor pardoned him, so he won't be running from the law anymore. But don't worry, kiddies--you don't really have to say goodbye to this handsome guy! Although "Kid", alias "Thaddeus", may not be hitting the TV trail much longer, Ben Murphy will take many roads before he hangs up his boots.

But before we bid goodbye to "Kid Curry," let's review sigh guy Ben Murphy's beginnings and rise to stardom.

Benjamin Edward Murphy was born in Jonesboro, Arkansas. His family soon moved to Memphis, Tennessee, and then to Chicago--where your boy Ben grew up. From Chicago, Ben went to the University of Illinois in Champaign, Illinois, and it was in college that his acting career began. Ben carried a spear in the University's production of Julius Caesar and then he played a young man in Edward AIbee's The American Dream. Later, while performing at the Pasadena Playhouse, a talent agent saw Ben, liked him (who wouldn't!), signed him and sent him to Mike Nichols for a one-line part in The Graduate--which Ben played magnificently!

Your guy Ben has been acting ever since--in summer stock, in guest shots on The Virginian and It Takes A Thief, in a couple of movies and as a regular on The Name Of The Game. But lightning really struck Ben in November, 1970, when he won the role of "Kid Curry" in ABC-TV's Alias Smith And Jones. With the very first segment of this great series, you took to Ben the way a duck takes to water!

The question is: What will Ben do now if "Alias" is cancelled? Although Ben really likes the show and particularly digs the chance to meet you regularly, he will--no doubt--be glad to take a rest from his very tiring schedule. And he'll be delighted with the opportunity of doing different kinds of parts. Cos your Ben really is a perfectionist--and challenge is what he likes best of all! So this will enable him to grow and expand in many different and groovy directions. Guess you could say ABC's loss could be your gain! Think of beautiful Ben in the movies on a great big screen! Wow--even more of him to love! Bounteous Ben will still be the same outasite fellow he always is--he'll just be donning different garbs and singing a different tune. But the one tune he'll always sing is dedicated to you--it's all about how very much you mean to him.

What will your Ben do with his new "freedom" if he gets it? He'll probably relax for a little while and do the things he likes most--like skiing, tennis, karate. practically anything that keeps him exercising and his body in shape. On quiet nights, Ben might write and strum on his guitar. These are two of his fav ways to relax. Maybe one-time cowboy Ben will cut a record someday. In the meantime. Ben has been in Chicago, visiting his old friends and his family. When he returns to Los Angeles. he'll probably take it easy for a while before he starts reading scripts and writing scripts (yep, your Ben likes to write screenplays, so who knows?--the next film he stars in might be one he wrote himself!) and, of course, starts acting again.