Researching John Murphy

Born the son of John Murphy and Gertrude Wadden in St. John's, Newfoundland, he was educated at Saint Bonaventure's College. He worked for a time as a radio announcer with VOCM, but, following his 1951 marriage to Marjorie Halley, joined Halley and Company, a dry goods wholesale and retail firm.

Following the death of his father-in-law, Patrick Halley, in 1956, Murphy became president of the company and expanded its retail chain, The Arcade, to nine stores in the St. John's and Conception Bay South region. As of 1990, only two of the stores were still operating.

Murphy ran unsuccessfully as a Liberal candidate in the 1966 provincial election and again in a by-election in 1970. Elected to St. John's City council in 1973, he became deputy mayor. In 1977, he ran unsuccessfully against incumbent mayor Dorothy Wyatt, but defeated her in 1981. He won by acclamation in 1985, did not run in the 1990 election, but was elected for again in 1993, and retired from city politics in 1997 after losing his bid for re-election as Mayor.

During his tenure on council Murphy was successful in restoring downtown residential properties by lobbying federal and provincial governments for home improvement funds. The city also began a housing program which won several national awards. In 1990 Murphy tried to convince the provincial government to expand the city's boundaries to include Mount Pearl, Paradise, Conception Bay South and Wedgewood Park.

On June 24, 1985, Murphy was appointed a Member of the Order of Canada and in May 2005, Murphy received the honorary degree of Doctor of Laws, honoris causa from the Memorial University of Newfoundland.

Murphy gained recognition in the film industry while working with Guy Ritchie on his film Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Michael Mann's Miami Vice, Matthew Vaughn's Kick-Ass and scoring various films by Danny Boyle. His instrumental tracks "In the House – In a Heartbeat" from 28 Days Later and "Adagio in D Minor" from Sunshine have been featured in a variety of TV shows, commercials and film trailers.

Born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Murphy became a Liberal party candidate for the Annapolis Valley—Hants electoral district in the 1988 federal election. He lost to Progressive Conservative candidate Pat Nowlan.

His second attempt for the riding succeeded in 1993 as he defeated incumbent Nowlan (now an independent) and new Progressive Conservative candidate Jim White. In the 1997 federal election, Murphy would campaign in the riding now restructured as Kings—Hants, only to be defeated by Progressive Conservative candidate Scott Brison. Murphy has not attempted to return to Parliament since his term in the 35th Canadian Parliament.

Murphy currently resides in Los Alamos, New Mexico, and serves as a youth swim team coach.

Over the course of his career he was renowned as a surgeon, a clinician, a teacher, an innovator, and an author. In addition to general surgical operations, such as appendectomy, cholecystostomy, bowel resection for intestinal obstruction, and mastectomy, he performed and described innovative procedures in neurosurgery, orthopedics, gynecology, urology, plastic surgery, thoracic surgery, and vascular surgery. He also ventured into techniques such as neurorrhaphy, arthroplasty, prostatectomy, nephrectomy, hysterectomy, bone grafting, and thoracoplasty.

Murphy was first elected to Parliament at the general election in October 1900 when he was returned unopposed as a candidate of the Irish Parliamentary Party. He was re-elected at the 1906 general election, with a narrow majority of 54 votes over rival nationalist candidate Eugene O'Sullivan. However, at the next general election, in January 1910, O'Sullivan won the seat with a majority of 489 votes (10%).

Murphy then launched an electoral petition, claiming that the vote had been rigged and that O'Sullivan had only won through violence and intimidation. The court cleared O'Sullivan of vote rigging but found him guilty of intimidation. The election was declared void, unseating O'Sullivan and creating a vacancy, but no by-election was called before the December 1910 general election. Murphy did not stand again.

He was born in Birkenhead on the Wirral Peninsula on 21 December 1905, and ordained a priest for the Diocese of Shrewsbury on 21 March 1931. He was appointed Coadjutor Bishop of Shrewsbury and Titular Bishop of Appia on 7 February 1948. His consecration to the Episcopate took place on 25 February 1948, the principal consecrator was Cardinal William Godfrey, Archbishop of Westminster, and the principal co-consecrators were John Edward Petit, Bishop of Menevia and Henry Vincent Marshall, Bishop of Salford. On the death of Ambrose James Moriarty on 3 June 1949, Murphy automatically succeeded as Bishop of Shrewsbury. Twelve years later, he was appointed Archbishop of Cardiff.

Murphy adjusted to the ecumenical climate of Vatican II, for example by accompanying the Abbot of Caldey on a visit to the Llandaff residence of Bishop Glyn Simon, who subsequently as Archbishop of Wales spoke at the Installation (1969) of the Catholic Lord Mayor, Sir Lincoln Hallinan,

He retired on 25 March 1983 and assumed the title Archbishop emeritus of Cardiff. He died on 18 November 1995, aged 89.

After his retirement from playing, he worked in the bakery of an Acme Markets store in Philadelphia.