Bill Murray: ‘You know, being famous is obviously not a Devil’s deal’

Bill Murray

Bill Murray covers the November issue of Vanity Fair to promote (to a lesser degree) Rock the Kasbah and (to the greatest degree ever) A Very Murray Christmas, his Netflix special with Sofia Coppola. This interview, which is lengthy, could restore your faith in the world. Hanging out and having a bloody mary with Bill Murray on Christmas morning would be the greatest gift one could ever receive. The journalist obviously adores him, as do most people and the whole interview so endearing that I’d hurl if we weren’t talking about This Man. The Murricane. Bill Ghostbustin’ A** Murray.

Many topics come up, including how he loves working with Coppola, the time he spent in North Africa, and that he loves Charleston. They discuss how he drives aimlessly when he needs to think and his status as a legend. He also explains why he decided to make a holiday special, but you’ll have to read the full piece because it’s so life affirming. Bill Murray is a real-life Santa Claus, you know? Here’s some excepts, including the reason why he decided to step away from his run of serious movies (like Broken Flowers):

Film critic Elvis Mitchell made Murray turn to funny movies again: “Well, it was very generous of him to say, ‘Look, your life is very melancholy right now and you’re doing melancholy movies. So what do you think’s gonna happen? It’s just gonna get worse.’ Which is what was happening. For years I’d been thinking, ‘Gosh, I’d really like to be funny again.’ You know? ‘I’d really like to go and be funny again.’ Because it’s like writing. If you can write, you need to write. And if you can be funny, you need to be funny.”

His response when offered extra onion rings: “No, thank you. I’m an athlete.”

On fame: “You know, being famous is obviously not a Devil’s deal. I love the opportunity to work. It’s the thing I do best. I’m a much better person when I’m working. I’m at my absolute best, because it’s the ultimate terror. It’s the ultimate terror that I will not arrive, the ultimate terror that I am not. You know? That I am not. But I don’t feel that needy for the celebrity part of it. You have your inside voice, and you have your outside voice, like little kids. Well, my outside voice is the ‘Bill Murray’ that people know. And my inside voice is—is me. And sometimes that voice is heard. I can speak it aloud, when I’m really at my best. You can hear my inside voice.”

[From Vanity Fair]

There’s so much more to discover in the piece, including a special Bill Murray Christmas tale about how he bought Christmas presents as a kid with no money. He tried to buy gifts that were both practical and functional, and it didn’t quite work out, but Christmas is a time when all the dreadfulness of the previous year is forgotten. Murray then goes off on a tangent about his inner self and how he feels “shallow” most of the time but tries to overcome it. He encounters fans and behaves gregariously to their delight. There’s also a discussion of how John Belushi used to introduce him as “the new kid,” Billy Murray. Go read the interview!

Bill Murray

Bill Murray

Photos courtesy of Vanity Fair & WENN

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20 Responses to “Bill Murray: ‘You know, being famous is obviously not a Devil’s deal’”

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  1. mia girl says:

    I am so happy right now I think I might cry!

    • mimif says:

      *honks horn, laces up roller skates and prepares to boogie*

    • mia girl says:

      OMG mimif, can you imagine if Murray were actually on roller skates in his Christmas special I might literally die of happiness.

      I really wish kiddo and taterho would visit and share in our joy. Like the rest of us here, they understand that Murray is EVERYTHING!

  2. Kitten says:

    He’s the best. I’ll read the full piece later (my dad got me a subscription to VF because it was free lol) but these excerpts are great.

  3. aims says:

    Bill’s awesome. He’s just amazing, still so funny and smart. He’s the best!!

  4. Patricia says:

    A friend of mine was in a deli in NYC, about ten years ago. She was on the phone with her mom. She suddenly looked up and realized Bill Murray was standing in line in front of her. She was sputtering into the phone and said “Mom! Mom! I’m standing in line with Bill Murray!”. She was being so awkward and flustered (according to her when she told me the story lol). Well he was the sweetest. He leaned in toward her phone and smiled and said “hi mom!!” loud enough for her mom to hear .
    Such a down to earth and funny guy. Love him.

  5. GoodNamesAllTaken says:

    Bill Murray is the best. *raises Bloody Mary glass*

  6. ninal says:

    I’ve always loved him,all the way back since I was a kid and saw him in “Caddyshack.” He’s amazing!

    • belle de jour says:

      And anyone who could carry Groundhog Day when faced with Andie MacDowell’s ‘acting’ is a comic superhero:)

  7. Lilacflowers says:

    Really hoping that the Bill Murray Christmas special is like the production of The Christmas Carol in Scrooged.

    • mia girl says:

      That would be perfect. I swear I could recite that movie. So many funny scenes. One of my favorites…
      “Excuse me Lumpy?”
      “Around here they call me Mr. Cross”
      “I’m sorry, I’m new here and I have a problem”
      “I bet. What?”
      “The problem is this little fella (points to mouse). I can’t get the antlers glued on to this guy. We tried crazy glue but it don’t work”
      “Have you tried staples?!”

  8. iheartgossip says:

    Love you Bill Murray. Don’t ever change!

  9. Katija says:

    “No thank you, I’m an athlete.”

    *dead*

  10. antipodean says:

    This man should be framed and put in a shrine. My dream Christmas would be to wake up and find him at the end of the bed. We would drink eggnog, and chat, and laugh, and laugh, and laugh, ALL DAY. Please let it be so.

  11. tealily says:

    Aw, Bill, thank you for being you.

  12. paranormalgirl says:

    I was at a concert once at Madison Square Garden. It was in 1987 and it was a benefit for Big Blue 2, which was a mobile medical unit. It was part of the Paul Simon Graceland tour. My friend knew someone in the box office, so we got tickets that were “will call” but not picked up in time. Turns out we were sitting in the celeb section, most notably in the same area as the old SNL cast members. Dan Aykroyd, Laraine Newman, Chevy Chase were sitting all around us, and Bill Murray was sitting right behind us. He was so incredibly funny. He bought us beer (many beers) and pretzels and it was so awesome. I will never forget it.

  13. MB says:

    If you want to read about more Bill Murray stories, just go to Reddit.com and search for Bill Murray. You’re welcome!

  14. Lindy says:

    I love your guy. A fabulous actor, and he gives great interview.

  15. pinetree13 says:

    Love him!