Michael James Murphy was born on July 31, 1951 in Cape Elizabeth, Maine, where his parents Stephen (Steve) Joseph Murphy and Mildred (Millie) Anna Rice Murphy had bought a house off Route 77 near the Len Libby Chocolate Store. His father worked at First National Baker in Portland, Maine, and Millie cleaned houses to supplement their income. A neighbor farmer with his big tractor plowed a large swath of their yard so Millie could have a large vegetable garden. Anna Wingren, who had the first television cooking show in America, had a double kitchen, where Michael could sit on the counter and learned to cook. She took care of Michael when Millie was recovering from miscarriages. Once when Michael was ill with a high temperature, he was found naked trotting to the naked His parents rented a cabin on Higgins Beach, and three-year-old Michael, suffering from a high fever, was found trotting toward the ocean, naked except for his sun hat. Grammy Murphy often visited. Frank and Sue Noyce, and Bill and Marian McCarthy often came to house. Frank and Bill were part of a quartet, and everyone loved to be entertained by them. Once Bill put a sign up in front of the house that said “Canadian Bacon and Eggs Twenty Five Centers.” What a surprise to have all these strangers show up for breakfast.
STONEHAM, MASSACHUSETTS
In 1956, Steve was promoted to General Manager of the First National Stores in Somerville, Massachusetts, so when he was five, the family moved to 3 DeWitt Road, Stoneham, Massachusetts, across from the Corcorans. This was the first time he had neighbors with lots of kids. On his first day, he wandered across the sleep, entered the neighbor’s house, climbed the stairs, and introduced himself to the napping mother. Later that summer, Tommy Corcoran, convinced Michael to pull the fire alarm at the head of the street. The fire department came, read him the riot act, and Michael was petrified that he would be put in jail. Michael went to kindergarten at the First Congressional Church in Stoneham, Massachusetts.
ELEMENTARY AND MIDDLE SCHOOL
In first grade at Robin Hood Elementary School, Michael had Mrs. Zanni, who despite her reputation for being tough, and he loved her because she gave him books and taught him how to read. She gave him books every time he finished one. His brother Stephen Vincent Murphy was born on March 11, 1958. Millie lost 5 children in between the births of Michael and Stephen. In third grade, the teacher wanted the kids to bring a song from home to sing to the class. Steve gave Michael the song, “I loves to go swimming with bold legged women and swims between their legs.” When Michael performed it, there was consternation, and he was sent to the office. Mr. Marsh, the principal, called Steve to come in while Michael was left in the hallway with the secretary. Instead, Michael heard his father and the principle laughing. In sixth grade, Michael remembers competing against the other schools. Michael’s class had a great tug-a-war team, and they trounced the opposition.
After attending Robin Hood Elementary school, he went to seventh grade and eighth grade Stoneham Junior High School, an old building which is now condos. Michael grew ten inches between 7th and 8th grade. They attended half days because they were building a high school and had to share the school. He liked the Great Books Program.
HIGHSCHOOL
9th through 12th grade was at the Stoneham High School. Michael convinced his parents he could play football and joined the 9th grade team and 9th grade basketball team. He broke his ankle wicked bad and missed half the season. He was in a cast for 4 months. He was manager of the 9th grade baseball team. Every summer in the summer, the family went to Good Harbor Beach in Gloucester, Massachusetts with the Corcorans, the Doles, and the Bushmans. They went back to Maine to visit their friends there. By tenth grade, Michael was on the JV football game and occasionally dressed for varsity. He went to indoor and outdoor track winter and spring, doing shot put and discus. He took college prep courses. Junior year he was on varsity football, he played offensive and defensive line. The principle, William Hoyt, took Michael and three other kids to Hamilton College in Clinton, New York for an early college tour. They stayed in a fraternity, and Michael thought this old man’s college was fabulous.
SOUTH PORTLAND, MAINE: HIGH SCHOOL AND SUMMER WORK
In spring 1968, Steve lost his job with the First National Stores because it was sold to a bunch of investors and 34 years of service. The investors fired all the managers and mechanics and accountants (with senior positions) because their pension vested in 35 years, so they got nothing. Steve was forced to get a new job, so he worked for Nissen in Portland, Maine. To Michael’s dismay, they moved. The principle offered to let Michael stay with them and finish his high school in Stoneham. The parents refused. The family moved to 64 Gleckler Road in Portland, Maine. In the summer of 1968, Cullie Wingren got Michael a job at the E. M Noyes Moving Company as a general lifter, fetcher, toter. With great reluctance, in the fall, Michael attended Deering High School for his senior year. Throughout high school he played football and did winter and spring track, and his senior year took honors courses and AP Prep in English, Calculus AB, Chemistry, and Physics. He broke his wrist before the football, but he came back for the last four games. After he was cleared to go back, he got a leather brace foamed over, so his arm was almost clublike for defensive plays. He played either nose guard or middle linebacker. He got college credit and got early decision by December 9th for Hamilton College in Clinton, New York. He also got into University of Maine and Northeastern University of Boston but not Amherst College.
In the summer of 1969, Michael got a job at the First National Bakery and he worked the night shift form 10 PM to 6:30 AM: he unloaded freight cars with 50 pound bags of flour, he pulled hand trucks, he cleaned the donut machines with a power hose and steam gun. – grunt work. He made enough money to go to college. He had scholarships and a loan. In the morning he bicycled to the beach and napped.
HAMILTON COLLEGE, UTICA, NEW YORK Michael took his first flight from Boston, Massachusetts to Utica/Rome Airport. He started varsity football as left defensive guard. Hamilton was a division three college. He lived in Dunham Hall, the newest building on campus, the freshman dorm. He worked in the dining hall commons cleaning and bussing and washing dishes. Then he did winter and spring track. Michael was tapped to join DEKE fraternity house in the winter: a general source of social events where he learned how to play bridge, do fund raisers. He barely survived freshmen year academically and socially. In those years if you flunked out, you went to Vietnam. He had a student deferment. His number about 151. The drinking age was 18 in New York.
On May 1, 1970, Cambodia was bombed, four students were killed at Kent State University, and most students and colleges went on strike. During the summer, Michael again worked the night shift, doing scut work, at the First National Bakery in Portland, Maine with Gary Noyce.
Sophomore year he lived at 211 North Dorm with Bruce Rinker, a fellow DEAK jock. Junior year, Michael roomed with Chip Dickson, who was his preppy passport. Michael was his pagan passport. Junior year, he took a road trip from New Hampshire to California to see his buddy’s sisters. Senior year, Michael was a resident advisor back at Dunham Hall, where the freshmen resided. Michael tried majoring in physics, but the competition was overwhelming, so he designed his own major, the first ever American Studies at Hamilton College. He was class president his senior year, was chapel monitor on Monday mornings giving out information and issues, almost standup comedy. He studied education courses and student taught at Clinton High School in history and English department. He got certified in social studies in 9-12 grades. He got accepted at Brown University Master of Arts in teaching but chose to work instead.
TEACHING & MARRIAGE
During his first teaching job (1973-1976) at Poly Prep Country Day School in Brooklyn, New York while teaching English to high schoolers and history to middle schoolers and coaching football and track, he lived first with Fred Axelrod in Manhattan and then with Paul Razo in Brooklyn Heights. His second teaching job (1976-1978) was at Kingswood-Oxford School in West Hartford, Connecticut, where in addition to teaching English and History at the high school, he coached football, track, and cross country skiing. At nights he worked at a wine store.
He met his wife Cathy Eaton at Texas Falls in 1975, Cathy, after jumping the falls, Cathy climbed out of the water, volunteered to drink the beer he was holding, and Michael was smitten. Both of them were teachers and were first year students at Breadloaf School of English in Breadloaf, Vermont, an English graduate program they attended from 1975-1980 -- 4 years in Vermont and two years at Lincoln College, Oxford University, England. At Texas Falls, While in England, Cathy and Michael traveled to Scotland, Ireland, Wales, and France. For two years they lived in a log cabin on Lake Garda in Burlington, Connecticut.
Their first son, Colin Eaton Murphy, was born on November 26, 1982, and their second son, Devon Eaton Murphy, was born on September 3, 1985.
CLEVELAND HEIGHTS, OHIO & CAREERS REALESTATE & SALES OF SCIENTIFIC EQUIPMENT
After moving to Randolf Road in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, he worked as a realtor at Smythe Cramer before switching careers again and working for A.O. Rule at Environmental Growth Chambers in Chagrin Falls, Ohio. Next Cathy and Michael bought a house on 3605 Washington Blvd, Cleveland Heights. Michael continued his career at Lab Repco in Weaverville, North Carolina working for Dan Dawley, ? in Annapolis, Maryland, ? in Salem, New Hampshire, ? in ?, and Laprep in Winchester, Massachusetts with Paul Collins. NEED YEARS. He was a sales rep for scientific equipment (plant growth chambers, freezers, test tubes, containers) and worked with scientists and medical researchers. In the early years he traveled extensively around the United States while in his final job he concentrated primarily in Boston and somewhat in New England. During a perfect storm of circumstances, after Michael’s best friend, Chip Dickson, died of Lou Gering’s Disease, and after having driven the terrible commute to Boston for too many years, Michael had a heart scare and chose to retire in 2016 when he almost 65.
RETIREMENET
In his retirement, Michael continued his golf, and he played four or five times a week at Intervale Golf Course, a nine-hole golf course in Manchester with down-to earth players and good comradery. In 2018, Michael hurt his back, a pars five defect, had to put golf on hold while getting treatment and therapy. For their fortieth anniversary, Michael and Cathy went to Oahu with Al and Teresa Todd. The couple traveled around PEI, Nova Scotia, and Maine.
The family lived at ? Kimberly Knoll in Asheville, North Carolina (1986 to 1992), Wintersweet Court, Annapolis, Maryland (1992-1993) and 286 Joppa Hill Road, Bedford New Hampshire starting in 1993. They spent many summers at Conway Lake in Conway, New Hampshire vacationing with the Wally and Daryl Wilson and Al and Teresa Todd. Michael thoroughly enjoyed playing golf initially in North Carolina, then in Massachusetts, and finally in Manchester, New Hampshire.
FRIENDS
Particular friends of Michael were Chip Dickson, Paul Razo, Chuck Henry, Fred Axelrod, Jackie Donevan, the Bate family, Melanie and David West, Al and Teresa Todd, Liz and Mike Duck, Jeff and Jan Brown, Jon and Cathy Leer, Scott and Robyn Pollock, Bob and Susan Murphy, Ann Worthington and Susan Hobb. His golf buddies were Jeff Brown, Michael Pishatoli, Monte, and Bill Schnars. Cathy and Michael had many fun holidays with Al and Teresa Todd and their family, with Ann Worthington in St. Petersburg, Florida.