Born to Maleta Martin and Frederick MacMurray (concert violinist). Fred sang and played in orchestras to earn tuition. He was educated at Carroll College, Wis. Fred played with a Chicago orchestra for more than a year. Then he joined an orchestra in Hollywood where he played, did some recording and played extra roles. He then joined a comedy stage band, California Collegians, and went to New York. There he joined "Three's A Crowd" revue on Broadway and on the road. After this show closed, he returned to California and worked in vaudeville. He played the vaudeville circuits and night clubs until cast for major role in "Roberta". Signed by Paramount in 1935.
MacMurray was raised in Beaver Dam, Wisconsin from the age of 5, eventually graduating from Beaver Dam High School (currently the site of Beaver Dam Middle School), where he was a 3-sport star in football, baseball, and basketball. Fred retained a special place in his heart for his small-town Wisconsin upbringing, referring at any opportunity in magazine articles or interviews to the lifelong friends and cherished memories of Beaver Dam, even including mementos of his childhood in several of his films. In "Pardon my Past" (1945), Fred and fellow GI William Demarest are moving to Beaver Dam, WI to start a mink farm.
Movies
The Apartment
Jeff D. Sheldrake
Double Indemnity
Walter Neff
The Caine Mutiny
Lt. Thomas 'Tom' Keefer
Cafe Society
Crick O'Bannon
Pushover
Paul Sheridan
The Princess Comes Across
King Mantell
Hands Across the Table
Theodore Drew III
No Time for Love
Jim Ryan
The Happiest Millionaire
Anthony J. Drexel Biddle
Above Suspicion
Richard Myles
Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid
(in "Double Indemnity") (archive footage)
Follow Me, Boys!
Lemuel Siddons
Remember the Night
Jack Sargent
The Egg and I
Bob MacDonald
Good Day for a Hanging
Marshal Ben Cutler
The Miracle of the Bells
William 'Bill' Dunnigan
There's Always Tomorrow
Clifford Groves
Alice Adams
Arthur Russell
The Shaggy Dog
Wilson Daniels
Borderline
Johnny McEvoy, aka Johnny Macklin
The Swarm
Maj. Clarance Tuttle
Dive Bomber
Joe Blake
Face of a Fugitive
Jim Larsen (aka Ray Kincaid)
The Rains of Ranchipur
Thomas "Tom" Ransome
The Absent-Minded Professor
Ned Brainard
The Texas Rangers
Jim Hawkins
Son of Flubber
Ned Brainard
Invitation to Happiness
Albert 'King' Cole
The Lady Is Willing
Corey McBain
Singapore
Matt Gordon
The Gilded Lily
Peter Dawes
Callaway Went Thataway
Mike Frye
On Our Merry Way
Al
Maid of Salem
Roger Coverman
The Trail of the Lonesome Pine
Jack Hale
The Far Horizons
Cpt. Meriwether Lewis
Family Honeymoon
Grant Jordan
New York Town
Victor Ballard
Gun for a Coward
Will Keough
Honeymoon in Bali
Bill Burnett
Charley and the Angel
Charley Appleby
Bon Voyage!
Harry Willard
Too Many Husbands
Bill Cardew
The Bride Comes Home
Cyrus Anderson
Swing High, Swing Low
Skid Johnson
Take a Letter, Darling
Tom Verney
At Gunpoint
Jack Wright
Father Was a Fullback
George Cooper
Star Spangled Rhythm
Frank
Murder, He Says
Pete Marshall
Sing, You Sinners
David Beebe
The Moonlighter
Wes Anderson
Woman's World
Sid Burns
True Confession
Kenneth Bartlett
Quantez
Gentry
Flight for Freedom
Randy Britton
Suddenly It's Spring
Peter Morely
A Millionaire for Christy
Peter Ulysses Lockwood
Practically Yours
Daniel Bellamy
Grand Old Girl
Sandy
Kisses for My President
Thad McCloud
Smoky
Clint Barkley
Little Old New York
Charles Brownne
Standing Room Only
Lee Stevens
Virginia
Stonewall Elliott
Exclusive
Ralph Houston
Cocoanut Grove
Johnny Prentice
Men with Wings
Pat Falconer
And the Angels Sing
Happy Morgan
An Innocent Affair
Vincent Doane
Car 99
Trooper Ross Martin
13 Hours by Air
Jack Gordon
Where Do We Go from Here?
Bill Morgan
Never a Dull Moment
Chris Hayward
Fair Wind to Java
Captain Boll
The Forest Rangers
Don Stuart
Men Without Names
Richard Hood
Beyond the Bermuda Triangle
Harry Ballinger
Rangers of Fortune
Gil Farra
Pardon My Past
Eddie York / Francis Pemberton
One Night In Lisbon
Dwight Houston
Captain Eddie
Eddie Rickenbacker
Champagne Waltz
Buzzy Bellew
Hedda Hopper's Hollywood No. 1
Himself
The Oregon Trail
Neal Harris
Barbara Stanwyck: Fire and Desire
Self (archive footage)
Day of the Badman
Judge Jim Scott
Joys
Self
Show-Business at War
Self
The Chadwick Family
Ned Chadwick
This Is Bob Hope...
Self (archive footage)
A Star Is Born World Premiere
Self
Screen Snapshots (Series 16, No. 1)
Self
George Stevens: A Filmmaker's Journey
Self (archive footage)
Gala Day at Disneyland
Himself
Disneyland '59
Self
Breakdowns of 1942
Self
Shadows of Suspense
Self (archive footage)
The Movie Orgy
Self (archive footage)
Inside 'the Swarm'
Self
Happy Birthday, Bob: 50 Stars Salute Your 50 Years with NBC
Self (archive footage)
The Last Will and Testament of Tom Smith
Narrator Prolog (uncredited)
Tiger Rose
Rancher
Fred MacMurray: The Guy Next Door
Self (archive footage)
Inside 'The Apartment'
Self (archive footage)
The Shaggy Dog Kids
Self (archive footage)
Fred MacMurray: With Fondness
Self (archive footage)
Los Angeles Plays Itself
Walter Neff in Double Indemnity (archive footage)
Anthony Quinn: An Original
Self (archive footage)
Atomic Energy Can Be A Blessing
Self - Presenter
Shows
The Colgate Comedy Hour
Self
My Three Sons
Steve Douglas
The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour
Fred MacMurray
General Electric Theater
Richard Elgin
This Is Your Life
Self
The Hollywood Palace
Self - Host
The Steve Allen Show
Self
The Oscars
Self
Tony Orlando and Dawn
Self
December Bride
The Dinah Shore Chevy Show
Self
The American Film Institute Salute to ...
Self
What's My Line?
Self - Mystery Guest
General Electric Theater
Harry Wingate
The Ed Sullivan Show
Self
The George Gobel Show
Fred MacMurray
Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color
Self
The George Gobel Show
Self
Dinah!
Self
The Bob Hope Show
Self
People's Choice Awards
Self - Presenter
The 20th Century Fox Hour
Peterson
Lux Video Theatre
Self
Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color
Professor Ned Brainerd (archive footage)