﻿Actor Bill Murray has enjoyed a long Hollywood career that has made him a comedic icon.
However, while the actor has a fantastic success story, his love life took a different
turn. From two failed marriages, an affair, and allegedly threatening to kill his second wife,
it's safe to say that Murray has not been very lucky in love.
Murray decided he was ready to become a family man when he first met
Margaret Kelly during the filming of "Stripes" at the beginning of 1981. Margaret was no stranger
to the entertainment industry when she was introduced to the famous "Ghostbusters"
actor. At the time, she was a talent coordinator on "The Tonight Show" and "The Dick Cavett Show."
When the couple decided to get married, it was more of an impulsive and last-minute decision.
Rather than having a lavish ceremony to celebrate their marriage, Murray and Kelly decided to get
hitched in a Las Vegas Chapel at 4.30 in the morning! According to The New York Times, Murray
took Kelly on a ride through California's San Fernando Valley in search of a Mexican restaurant.
However, they ended up taking a detour and found themselves at the chapel.
It was Super Bowl Sunday - a day that Murray supposedly views as a national holiday.
As it turns out, the impromptu wedding was all Bill's idea, according to Kelly.
She shared, "I really was gonna pick a fight, and then I thought,
'Let's just do it.' He had this thing planned out. I thought, 'Aaaaah, go with it.'"
The next year, they welcomed a baby boy, Homer Murray. Just a few years later,
they had another son they named Luke Murray. However, while the family was putting on smiles
for the media, behind closed doors, it was a different story. In 1988,
Billy was working on the film "Scrooged," which was where he met costume designer Jennifer Butler.
Murray and Butler began having an affair. Their secret romance continued for years, and by 1993,
Jennifer fell pregnant with their first child together, Cal Murray. Bill's wife,
Margaret, was heartbroken by the news and soon filed for divorce.
It's unclear exactly when she filed, but the divorce was only finalized in 1996.
By then, Bill and Jennifer had another child together, Jackson Murray. Which technically meant
that the actor had two children with another woman while he was still married to Margaret.
The scandal didn't bode well for Bill, but if he felt any guilt about the affair, he didn't
show it. It was only a year after the divorce was official that he went on to marry Jennifer.
He and his second wife had another two children together, Cooper Murray,
born in 1997, and Lincoln Murray in 2001. As the years went by, Murray starred in some of his most
critically acclaimed movies, including Lost in Translation, which earned him an Oscar nomination
and Golden Globe Award for Best Actor. However, despite their growing family and
the rise of Bill's career, the couple's marriage soon derailed. In 2007, Murray was arrested in
Stockholm for driving a golf cart through the city at 3 am while under the influence.
Perhaps it was after this incident that Jennifer felt like she couldn't handle her
husband's behavior anymore because After more than a decade together, she filed for divorce.
When she filed, she made shocking claims that Bill had been abusive during their marriage, that he
had been unfaithful, and that he was struggling with an addiction to alcohol, drugs, and sex.
In addition to the divorce, Jennifer requested a restraining order against her husband. Jennifer
also alleged that she and their four children were forced to leave their home in Charleston
because of Bill's behavior. She had explained that his behavior had gotten completely out of hand,
and she no longer wanted their kids to be exposed to Bill when he went on one of his rampages.
Butler also claimed that Murray would "often leave the state or country"
without telling his wife of his whereabouts, adding that Bill
"travels overseas where he engages in public and private altercations and sexual liaisons."
Jennifer even expressed a fear for her life. In her six-page court filing, Jennifer said Murray
"hit her in the face and then told her she was 'lucky he didn't kill her.'"
The restraining order aimed at restricting Murray from "interfering with, intimidating, or making
abusive or threatening phone calls" to Butler or their children. But, she offered proper visitation
for the actor so long as he behaved appropriately. The actor never publicly commented on the divorce,
but his attorney shared that Bill was "deeply saddened" by the split.
However, that same year, a neighbor called the police on St. Patrick's Day because Jennifer
had "allegedly got drunk and two of her kids ran over to a neighbor's house for help."
Neither Bill nor Jennifer were ever formally charged with anything,
and by June 2008, their divorce was finalized. It was reported that she was "granted primary
custody of their four children," along with homes in California and South Carolina.
Murray also paid her child support and a lump sum of $7 million. The actor told The Orange
County Register that the collapse of his second marriage was "the worst thing that
ever happened to me in my entire life." After two marriages that ended in a fair
amount of drama, it makes sense that Bill is no longer interested in tying the knot with anyone
anytime soon. He told talk show host Howard Stern that he's been working on himself. When asked if
that gets lonely, Murray said, "I don't think I'm lonely," while admitting that it would "be nice
to go to some of these things and have a date." However, despite being unlucky in his marriage,
the actor continues to have a close relationship with all of his kids. Murray's first child with
Kelly, Luke, is an assistant men's basketball coach at the University of Louisville in Kentucky.
His second son, Homer, owns a popular restaurant in Brooklyn called 21 Greenpoint.
While Bill's kids with Butler have done their best to maintain private lives,
their oldest son, Caleb, ran into a bit of trouble with the law in 2020.
While Caleb attended a Black Lives Matter protest, he was accused of breaking a truck
window and being uncooperative with the police. Caleb allegedly spat on and bit a police officer,
attacked sheriff's deputies, and threatened arson, according to a police report. He was
released from custody but charged with several counts of assault and battery.
Bill never publicly commented about his son's arrest, but we can assume that it was a difficult
situation for their family to have to go through. Sadly, in 2021, Jennifer Butler, famous for her
work in costume design, passed away. Her cause of death was never revealed to the public,
but it was an incredibly painful loss for Bill and their four children.
Although the actor seemed happy with his single state, he once admitted feeling lonely many
times in his life especially following the loss of his own mother. During an interview,
while speaking about the loneliness he experienced after his mother died.
The actor confessed, "There is also that little-discussed subject -- loneliness.
That is a great taboo, isn't it? No one really wants to admit they are lonely...But
I have felt lonely many times in my life." However, Bill never commented on how the
passing of his second wife affected his life. On the other hand, he shared that his kids have
helped him not feel lonely anymore. He shared, "I have kids that I'm
responsible for. I don't think I'm lonely." Murray also stole the show at an American's
bachelor party with his love and relationship theory. The actor was at a gathering filled with a
male audience when a person spontaneously invited him to say something to the soon-to-be groom.
He said that Bachelor parties aren't for the grooms but for the unmarried.
His statement drew a lot of laughter from other guests, but that wasn't all he said.
Bill gave some dating advice too. In fact, he said that before a couple decides they're going to get
married, they should travel around the world together, and if they still love each other at
the end of the holiday, they can get married. Perhaps his relationship advice was a bit of an
insight into his own love life. Bill never really took his time to ease into a relationship. His
marriage to Margaret Kelly was pretty impulsive, and his marriage to Jennifer Butler came after an
affair. Maybe the actor was expressing some regret for not having taken his romances a little slower.
As for now, it doesn't seem like Murray is determined to get married again.
Bill shared that he's more focused on himself. He explained that his reasons were,
"Not to diminish a relationship with a woman ... I can't take on another relationship if
I'm not taking care of the things I really need to take care of the most." He added, "It's not a
selfish thing ... it's sort of an obligation." Bill has always been pretty good at making us
laugh. It's fair to say that he's taken the drama he's had to face in his life with stride.
He's continued to hold his head high no matter what people have thought about him. At the same
time, he knew he had to work on himself, which shows that he did take some accountability
for why his marriages came to an end. While his marriages didn't work out,
he remained focused on being a father, making sure that he's always there for his boys and,
of course, trying to be the best version of himself that he can be for them.