Signing Off, Quietly

There was a jumble of emotions at the filming of the last half-hour of the once-formidable “Murphy Brown”--and an unintended sadness to its final lines.

After 10 seasons, 18 Emmys and 245 episodes, the CBS series that intermingled laughter with serious, smart story lines--and was, at its 1992 ratings peak, the talk of the nation and more than a footnote to a presidential campaign--is coming to a close.

Not with a bang as “Seinfeld” is doing but rather like some other series, petering out at the end of a long and, in this case, honored run.

In the last scene, there is Candice Bergen as the indomitable Murphy, standing on an inner balcony in her Washington townhouse, saying proudly that 30 million viewers “tune in to see me every week,” as she anchors the weekly newsmagazine “FYI.” Yet in its ninth season “Murphy Brown” averaged less than half that--14.4 million viewers. And thus far this year, it has averaged 10.5 million viewers, placing it in a tie for 76th place among prime-time series.

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The series returns to the air Monday nights for five more half-hours, beginning April 6 at 9:30, and for the hourlong finale May 18 at 9.

An audience of family and friends, including CBS Television President Leslie Moonves, watched Friday night as the “Murphy Brown” core cast was introduced before the final taping at Warner Bros. Studios--the actors all appearing to work hard at self-restraint.

Faith Ford--the ever-perky Corky Sherwood--walked out head held high, tissue in hand.

Charles Kimbrough--the team’s stuffy veteran anchor Jim Dial--bowed his head.

Joe Regalbuto--Frank Fontana, Murphy’s best buddy, the investigative reporter with lousy self-confidence--fairly jumped out onstage, then turned and hugged Kimbrough.

Lily Tomlin--”FYI’s” acerbic executive producer, Kay Carter-Shepley, for the last two seasons--clapped hands high over her head, then blew kisses to the audience.

And finally there was Bergen-- who is so identified with her eponymous role as the fearless, wisecracking newswoman that people sometimes slip and call her Murphy. In this last season, Bergen gave new dimension to Murphy’s persona as her character battled breast cancer.

The actress bowed and was suddenly shaking. It first appeared that she was laughing--until Tomlin put her arm about her shoulders and Bergen dabbed at her eye.

But that blip of emotion was quickly over, and the actors went to work.

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Appropriately, the last episode was written by Diane English, the series’ creator and its executive producer during its first four seasons. English has a cameo role as a nurse who talks to Murphy as she comes out of anesthesia. Suffice to say, Murphy undergoes surgery.

Others in the hourlong finale--the first half-hour was shot a week earlier--include Julia Roberts as herself; Bette Midler as Murphy’s 93rd secretary; Frances Bergen, who is Candice’s mother, as Murphy’s mother; reporter Mike Wallace as himself; executive producer Marc Flanagan; Robert Pastorelli reprising his role as house painter Eldin; a grinning, wordless George Clooney; and Alan King in the role of God. Murphy gets her dream wish--she interviews God.

The sharp political humor for which the series was so noted is there in the finale. Murphy comes into the newsroom with a wig of big hair--dark, with bangs. Shades of Paula Jones.

“Put something like this on your head,” Murphy quips, “and all of a sudden you want to get a job in the Arkansas governor’s office.”

At one point, English, standing off to the side, was asked whether she thought then-Vice President Dan Quayle’s attack on Murphy for having a baby out of wedlock was the series’ high point.

“No,” she replied, “it was the low point.”

When their work was done, cast members did marathon quick-take interviews with print and TV reporters. Cake and champagne went untouched as they sat close to one another on Murphy’s living room couch.

“The last show was very hard,” Kimbrough said. “We all wanted it to be special. It’s our last chance to get everything right.”

“We were all kind of emotional basket cases for a while today,” Ford said. “We didn’t think we could get through it. We kept rehearsing, rehearsing, rehearsing today. We actually did a little rehearsal all by ourselves in the dinner break.”

Part of the problem, she said, was that the actors didn’t receive the penultimate scene in the newsroom bullpen, in which their characters share their feelings toward one another, until 7 p.m. Thursday.

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The other issue, Tomlin explained, was that what they were saying before the cameras mirrored their personal feelings: “In the context of the show, we were going to continue ‘FYI.’ In reality, we were saying the same kinds of things” they were feeling as the series ended.

Said Regalbuto: “When Candice says that last line in the bullpen”--that she thanks God for the gift of giving her “FYI”--”that was the killer. It was hard looking at her when we were sitting around the table. Because we all [feel that way]. This has been a life-changing experience. It’s been a joy beyond words.”

Bergen, who seemed content to let the others do the talking, called “Murphy Brown” a gift and said the scene was so “beautifully written” in summing up their feelings that the “challenge was just to get through it.”

Asked what she would be doing the next day, Bergen said she planned to take her 12-year-old daughter, Chloe, to a track meet and probably a movie. Then she’d go to the cast wrap party Saturday night--”and I’ll probably be in a coma on Sunday.”