Before Ryan Murphy become a household name, he was just a regular boy from the Midwest trying to break into the entertainment industry. In his over 20-year career, Murphy has been a part of a handful of award-winning television shows and movies where he has written, directed, created, or produced the projects.
A six-time Primetime Emmy award and Tony award winner, Murphy continues to make a name for himself while juggling numerous projects and continuing to advocate for social issues. Although a lot of his private life is not as known, he has used his experiences as inspiration for many of his productions.
He Was Born And Raised In Indianapolis, Indiana
Born on November 9, 1965, Murphy was raised in an Irish Catholic family, although he has admitted to leaving the Catholic Church later in life.
He attended Catholic school until eighth grade, and later graduated from Warren Central High School in Indianapolis.
He Is An Indiana University Bloomington Alumni
While attended college, Murphy majored in journalism. His studies closely followed his parents’ footsteps, stemming from a mother who was a writer and a father who was a circulation director in the newspaper industry.
He was also a member of the Singing Hoosiers vocal ensemble, and it was his time in this ensemble that helped inspire ideas for the hit show Glee and other future projects.
He First Worked As A Journalist
After an internship in the style section at The Washington Post in 1986, Murphy began his career in journalism. His past places of employment include The Miami Herald, Los Angeles Times, New York Daily News, Knoxville News Sentinel, and Entertainment Weekly.
His experience in journalism led him to his interest in scriptwriting in the late 1990s, with one of his scripts being bought by Steven Spielberg.
He Was First Nominated For A Major Award In 2004
After creating a few programs in the early 2000s, Murphy saw a breakthrough with the FX show Nip/Tuck, which premiered in July 2003.
He earned his first Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Direction for a Drama Series the following year. Nip/Tuck, which found inspiration from an undercover report he was working at a plastic surgeon in Beverly Hills, ended in 2010 after six seasons.
The New Normal Was Based On His Real Life Experiences
Along with Glee co-executive producer Ali Adler, the duo created The New Normal as a half-hour comedy slate on NBC. The series was based on his experience having a child via surrogate with his husband, David Miller.
The main characters were named Bryan and David, respectively. The show was canceled after one season after premiering on September 10, 2012.
He Received ‘The Award Of Inspiration’ From amFAR
Murphy received The Award of Inspiration from amFAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research, for his contributions to television and film.
Their mission is to end the global AIDS epidemic through innovative research, which closely aligns with the messages he tries to convey in his projects. Also, he was recognized for his work in the fight against AIDS, which he is passionate about as a member of the gay community.
He Launched The Half Initiative in 2017
Murphy launched The Half Initiative intending to make Hollywood more inclusive by creating more opportunities for women and minorities behind the scenes of entertainment. After the company’s 1-year mark, the Ryan Murphy Television’s director slate hired 60% women directors and 90% met its women and minority requirement.
The Half Initiative also launched the Half-Director Mentorship program where every director on every Ryan Murphy Television production mentors emerging women and minority directors through pre-production and post-production along with a stipend for their work.
He Is Married To David Miller
Although their relationship is pretty private, Murphy has been married to photographer Miller since July 2012. Their first child, Logan Phineas, was born via surrogate on December 24, 2012.
Following Logan, their second son Ford was born on October 6, 2014, and their third son, Griffin Sullivan, was born on August 18, 2020.
Glee Was Based On His Love For Cabaret
After being a part of a darker program with Nip/Tuck, Murphy was approached about doing a show at Fox and shared that he wanted to create something more uplifting and optimistic for the channel, according to an interview with Deadline.
After expressing his love for Cabaret to the executives and his interest in creating a musical, he was approached by Michael Novick, who handed over his friend Ian Brennan’s movie script about a glee club. Glee was born after reworking the script to make it a television program and a less dark concept.
He Has Been A Part Of Many Famous Projects
On top of his fame for creating Glee and American Horror Story, Murphy has helped direct, produce, and write many well-known films and shows since the early 2000s.
Some of the projects on his resume include Eat, Pray, Love (2010), Ratched (2020), Hollywood (2020), American Horror Story, Glee: The 3D Concert Movie (2011), and Pretty/Handsome (2008).
