Welcome back to Character Insight! This week, we review Ensign Murphy, a background recurring character from several episodes of Voyager.
We've covered many other characters from Voyager who are purely background, but still hold more than ten appearances in view of the need to re-use extras often to fit the story of a small stranded crew in the Delta Quadrant. Murphy is one of those characters, showing up as a security officer in 11 total episodes.
Murphy appears to be a trusted top level security officer under Tuvok's guidance, as he often covers for Tuvok at the bridge security station when Tuvok is unavailable. Furthermore, Tuvok brings Murphy along on several important security teams and away missions. These include when a security team must storm main engineering after Neelix defeats Michael Jonas in the episode Investigations, and when Tom Paris and Harry Kim must be rescued from a maximum security prison in the episode The Chute.
Murphy gets his high point and his name from another episode called False Profits. In this episode, he is ordered to escort a couple Ferengi to secured quarters, but they knock him unconscious on the way. It's a tough life being a rarely-named security officer on a starship.
QUOTE
Chakotay: Ensign Murphy, take these...men...to secured quarters.
Ferengi: This is outrageous! We'll hold you responsible for all lost profits. We'll sue!
Ferengi: This is outrageous! We'll hold you responsible for all lost profits. We'll sue!
As with similar such characters we've profiled in the past, he is also seen on occasion off duty in social settings. This includes taking part in Tom Pari's radiogenic sweepstakes in a holodeck episode, and being in the mess hall for a couple celebrations. Murphy may not be the most important character from Voyager, but he adds consistency to the background which is vital over a long seven year run.
Background actor Shepard Ross played ensign Murphy. Ross played a couple of alien characters as well during Voyager's run, and he is a background Enterprise crewman in Star Trek First Contact and Insurrection as well. Around the same time, he did some stand in work for movies like Liar Liar and Bio-Dome. He has retired to Houston, Texas, where he is a wine connoisseur and owner/operator of two restaurants called Glass Wall and Pax Americana. Check them out next time you're down south.
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