Rex Murphy remembered as opinionated wordsmith, fierce Newfoundlander

Rex Murphy is being remembered as a polarizing but proud Newfoundlander, who had a way with words while delivering critiques and commentary like no other.

The longtime commentator died Thursday at the age of 77 after a battle with cancer. His death was first reported by his most recent employer, the National Post.

Murphy's career has taken him across the country, from private radio in Newfoundland to the public broadcaster in Toronto, and various speaking engagements with oil companies in Fort McMurray.

Bob Wakeham remembers him from his days with CBC's Here & Now in St. John's throughout the 1990s.

"He was an immediate hit," Wakeham said. "People just seemed to really gravitate towards him. Not everybody understood everything, all of his words. Sometimes it sounded like he had a thesaurus in his back pocket. Although he never did. Those words came straight from his brain onto his computer, or the typewriter back then."

Wakeham had just returned to the CBC for a second stint after getting sober. Murphy was in a similar situation — a free agent struggling with alcoholism in Toronto. Wakeham said he wanted to pay it forward, and he offered Murphy a job as a commentator if he promised to stop drinking.

With Murphy's quick wit and bounteous vocabulary, he became a fan favourite as Here & Now reached an audience of 220,000 people across the province each night.

Friend and coworker Deborah Collins said he struck a chord with Newfoundlanders and Labradorians — even the ones he was critiquing.

"Rex could skewer someone in his commentary and make them smile while he did it," she said.

Deborah Collins worked with Murphy on CBC's Here & Now. He had a way of connecting with people in Newfoundland and Labrador, she said, even if they were the subject of his scathing commentaries. (Peter Cowan/CBC)

Collins said Murphy told her a story years ago about an encounter at a grocery store in St. John's where a stranger came up to him and shook his hand.

"[She said,] 'So happy to see you Mr. Murphy, I don't understand one single word you say, but keep up the good work,'" Collins said with a laugh. "He just thought it was the funniest, the greatest thing he ever heard."

Countrywide success

Murphy started with the CBC in the 1970s but soon left for a political career. He ran for the provincial Progressive Conservatives in 1975, losing a race in Placentia by a narrow margin.

He switched teams in the 1980s, taking a job as the chief researcher for the province's Liberal Party. He'd run twice more for the Liberals, losing both times.

He returned to the CBC in the 1990s, first in Newfoundland, and then nationally.

Murphy added Cross Country Checkup to his workload in 1994, bringing in a reported 100,000 new listeners to the show. His weekly appearances on Definitely Not The Opera were also fan favourites, with a Maclean's article from 1996 positing that a poll showed two-thirds of the audience tuned in just to hear Murphy's voice.

WATCH | In 1995, Here & Now's Doug Greer profiled Rex Murphy and his national success:

Collins said it was hard to go places with him in Toronto, because people would flock to him to shake his hand or give him a hug.

"He had this unbelievable, God-given way with words," Wakeham said.

While he seldom changed a word in Murphy's monologues, Wakeham said getting them to air was sometimes a stressful endeavour. They'd tape them at 5 p.m., and there were days where Murphy didn't show up to the office until just before go time.

"You can't just throw in an ad for Dominion Ale or Crispy Crunch, you know. I mean, it's got to be Rex," he said. "He'd show up around 4:30, nod to me, sit down. The typewriter would be practically blowing smoke, he'd be banging it so hard."

Murphy remained with the CBC until 2017. He was a frequent critic of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and a vocal supporter of the country's oil and gas industry. His advocacy led to several ombudsman's complaints in 2014, when members of the public complained that Murphy was being paid to speak at oil and gas events while also criticizing climate change science on The National.

"Don't get me wrong, Rex was a very conservative man," Wakeham said. "He poo-pooed climate change for years and he was a real friend of … big oil and that sort of thing. But I didn't care. That was his point of view and he expressed it well."

Wakeham provided balance to Murphy's commentaries by hiring Memorial University professor Noreen Golfman to provide opposing views on Here & Now. 

"He didn't take umbrage," Wakeham said. "He thought of it as a bit of a challenge, I think. He got a kick out of the fact there was a right-winger on the show each week and there was a left-winger on the show."

No matter where his career took him, Wakeham said, Murphy always flew the flag for the people of his home province.

"He knew the soul of Newfoundland inside out. He knew us, he knew what we were all about and he took that to the mainland. He'd never go a week with Cross Country Checkup without making reference to Newfoundland."

Murphy was honoured Friday in the House of Commons, as members of Parliament held a moment of silence to mark his death. Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Andrew Furey also issued a statement calling Murphy a master of words and commending his coverage of the post-moratorium economy in the province.

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