Gene Murrell

Gene Murrell was born in Winter Haven, Florida. He was very active in theater there and also supported himself by working at several radio stations. At 21 he moved to Southern California to pursue acting and music. Gene worked in films and theater, but mostly earned his living as a musician playing 4-6 nights a week in area clubs. In 1988 he started playing his summers on Hilton Head Island, South Carolina and did so for 10 years, splitting his time between LA and South Carolina. In 1998, he moved full time to Hilton Head to front "The Lawn Jockeys", a popular touring party band. When the Lawn Jockeys broke up in 2000, he returned to California and planned on moving back the following fall. After the events of 9/11 and some interest in a management deal for the Lawn Jockeys to regroup, Gene decided to stay on Hilton Head. The management deal fell through, but in the meantime, Gene became a program director/ on air personality at WWVV-FM and WLOW-FM. During the summer of 2004, Gene made a return to the big screen with in "Come Away Home". The crew and cast bonded so well that Gene describes the experience as "2 minutes of screen time and 6 weeks of partying". Gene continued to play music and work in radio on Hilton Head until the spring of 2006 when accepted the position of Program Director of WZEW in Mobile, Alabama. While in Mobile, Gene became involved with the local theater scene and won numerous awards for his portrayals on stage including Judas in "Jesus Christ Superstar" and Psuedolus in "A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum". He also appeared in the feature film "The Saints Of Mt Christopher". In the spring of 2012, Gene left WZEW and went on the road as the Tour Manager for singer songwriter Laura Warshauer. After the tour ended, he relocated back to Southern California to resume his acting and music career. He returned to WZEW and Mobile in August of 2013. Since returning he appeared in film "Vice" starring Bruce Willis. In 2014-2015, Gene played the title role in "Shrek The Musical" and Tevye in "Fiddler On The Roof". Both roles earned him "Outstanding Performance by an Actor" awards.