THE TIGER BEAT INTERVIEW, PART 2: AN IN-DEPTH TALK WITH BEN MURPHY
Tiger Beat, October 1971

Picture this: a tiny, beautiful park early in the morning. The grass is still a bit damp from the morning dew.., and the sunshine filtering through the tree branches gives the entire park a sparkling, diamond-like glow. Almost a perfect scene isn't it? Now add handsome Ben Murphy, star of "Alias Smith and ]ones," and the scene is absolutely perfect!

Ben chose the park as the place for this exclusive Tiger Beat interview because he loves being outdoors, and he believes one of the most gorgeous times of the day is early, early in the morning. As he comes walking happily up to the picnic table, one can tell that Ben enjoys brisk walks in the beginning hours of the day. He often looks up at the sun, and in his right hand he's twirling a thin twig!

In Part I of this T.B. interview, Ben delighted everyone with his refreshing and honest answers. This month, he reveals his feelings about his childhood, his future dreams, and his most favorite subject of all-girls!

TIGER BEAT: WHAT IS YOUR FONDEST CHILDHOOD MEMORY?
BEN:
I've got to admit that I thought childhood was a bore! Especially adolescence... that was really a bore! Adolescence, for my purpose of explanation, was from the time I was 12 until the day I left home at 18! I can't explain it! I was usually alone a lot. I didn't have any brothers or sisters during my growing up years. Timmy, my little brother, is 14 now, but there is quite an age difference between us! Both my parents worked... it was just boring! So, I can't say that I have a fondest childhood memory because, as far as I'm concerned, my real good times and fond memories happened afterwards!

TIGER BEAT: DO YOU HAVE ANY NICKNAMES?
BEN: My family, when I was small, used to call me Benny or Benjy sometimes! In fact, they still do! I guess my family, just like everyone else's, still likes to think that time has stood still for awhile and that I'm still a little boy!

TIGER BEAT: DO YOU BELIEVE IN ASTROLOGY?
BEN: No, I don't believe in astrology. I'm not involved in it at all! I guess I shouldn't really say that I don't believe in it--because I really don't disbelieve it either! It's just that I don't read anything about it and I don't know anything about it! I don't even know what symbol or sign I am!

TIGER BEAT: WHAT BORES YOU?
BEN:
I dislike chit-chatty conversations! You know, when people come up to you and say, "Hi, how are you, how's the weather been, and what have you been doing?" All of that is wasted words and a useless conversation! Why don't they just leap in and ask the questions they really want to know about the person?

TIGER BEAT: IF YOU COULD HAVE THREE WISHES GRANTED, WHAT WOULD THEY BE?
BEN:
I would wish that my mate would come along fairly soon. You know, that my woman would be there. Someone who would help me grow as a person.. that's my number one wish! Number two is that all during my career, I would have the ability to have a creative outlet.. by having the right picture at the right time! Something that could help me express how I feel at that time! And number three I would wish for a long life and a happy one!

TIGER BEAT: WHAT KIND OF FASHIONS DO YOU LIKE TO SEE GIRLS WEARING?
BEN:
Very casual... a simple blouse and sandals. Girls who dress up too much make me feel a bit uncomfortable!

TIGER BEAT: WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE HOT-PANTS AND MIDIS?
BEN:
I love the hot-pants... because I love legs! I really don't know what the midis are! Really, I like all kinds of different fashions. I like the minis, of course, and sometimes I like the maxis. I like them all, but for my personal preference, I'd like to see all girls in something short! There's just one thing I'd like to make clear, different girls look better in some things than others. So all girls just have to find their style or type of fashions and stick to it. Every girl just has to find the things she looks best in... not dress for her best friend, or for her maiden aunt, or for anybody else. Everyone should dress in what they look good in!

TIGER BEAT: WHAT DO YOU CONSIDER THE MOST IMPORTANT QUALITY A GIRL SHOULD HAVE?
BEN:
Her positiveness! A girl's outlook about herself and about her life should be positive! If she loves herself and she loves life... then she's got a very valuable and important possession! Girls who have a positive attitude seem to have more confidence in their every move, thought, and action. It's not a conceited or snobbish attitude... just an assured, happy, poised aura!

TIGER BEAT: WHAT ABOUT ESP DO YOU BELIEVE IN THAT?
BEN:
Oh yeah, ESP! I believe there are things in this world and in this life that haven't been totally explained and that may never be explained! And I also believe that there are many strange, wonderful, unexplainable things that the mind can do!

TIGER BEAT: IF YOUR HOME WAS BURNING, WHAT WOULD YOU RUN INSIDE TO SAVE?
BEN:
After making sure that every living thing was safe, I would try very hard to save my business papers! I'd like to save my stock certificates, the deeds to my land, all the business papers that are very hard to replace and represent a lot of different things to me!

TIGER BEAT: CAN YOU DESCRIBE A PARTICULARLY SPECIAL DAY ON THE SET?
BEN:
I don't know if they were very special to anybody else, but I remember them because they were such funny days! There are two days that really stick out in my mind! One day, Peter and I were on a hillside and they were shooting a scene of us watching some rustlers! They put one of those fake bushes on the hillside for us to kneel behind. We were spying out and the cameras were facing us. We had some dialogue and Peter was supposed to pass the binoculars to me, tap me on the back so I'd know when we were leaving! Peter, joker that he is, hands me the binoculars and remember we're on this hillside--looking down--and Peter taps me on the back just hard enough to make me go through the fake bush and all the way down the hill! Peter laughed all the time I picked dirt and rocks out of my hair... it was funny!

TIGER BEAT: YOU MENTIONED TWO DAYS AS BEING "SPECIAL". WHAT WAS THE OTHER ONE?
BEN:
Oh, there was the day Peter and I could not get on our horses! We had very tall horses that day and they had these very tall horses standing on a rise... and Peter and I were mounting from downhill! We had take, after take, after take, and we could not get on our horses! Peter and I were so weak from trying to pull ourselves up on those animals! Of course, it didn't help when we both started laughing... you know how very weak you can get when you're having a giggling attack! They finally had to get us something to stand on! We got so tired!


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