Audie L. Murphy Memorial Website Message Boards

If he were alive today he would have been 82 years old (on the date of this posting). There are those of you who wish to dispute the year Audie was born saying it was 1924 as it is engraved of his headstone in Arlington and not 1925.

Audie was born in 1925! The leather wallet Audie was carrying when he was killed was so badly burned that little was left of it. However, his driver's license was found in the middle of the charred remains.

The driver's license issued June 19, 1970, less than a year before the tragic accident, answers some questions people have had regarding Audie's height, weight and appearance at the time. But most interesting is the date of birth Audie was using: June 20, 1925 and NOT June 20, 1924 as the official records show.

As far back as the mid 50's Audie began explaining the discrepancy in his birth dates. When working with Audie on a treatment sequel to “TO HELL AND BACK”, tentatively titled “HELMETS IN THE DUST”, Spec McClure wrote: "Audie Murphy joined the army on his seventeenth birthday, having falsified his age to be eligible for enlistment.”

Thomas B. Morgan, who interviewed Audie in 1967, later wrote: "Murphy acknowledged that he had been nineteen years old at the end of his combat career, not twenty as the army records showed. At age seventeen, in 1942, he had lied about his age, enlisting one year before he should have been eligible for service." *

Needing a birth certificate in order to enlist, Audie's oldest sister Corinne assisted him in filing a falsified birth certificate March 25, 1942. **

* ESQUIRE Magazine, December l983 and the book “FIFTY WHO MADE THE DIFFERENCE". l984 both carried the article “The War Hero” By Thomas B. Morgan

** Mrs. Larryann Willis, Executive Director, The Audie Murphy Research Foundation – Santa Clarita, California 91351

About Audie's actual age...In "G.I. in Hollywood" written by Al Stump it states Audie
lied about his age and joined at 17. And when Audie was awarded the MOH
the Major General asked him his age and Audie replied 20. So it seems Audie
did all his fighting as a teenager.

As for Audie's height, no way he was 5' 10".

Many actors and athletes fudge their heights. That might be the case here.

The debate goes on and that makes reading about Audie all the more fun.

Concerning Murphy's height, here is what I wrote in A Myth in Action, "From 'Duel to Destry,' The Camelot Years: Retelling the Arthurian Legends Onscreen"



I don't think this is an either/or situation. There is evidence that indicates malnutrition can effect a growing child's height, and, until he entered the army, he couldn't afford to eat well or regularly. Added to that is the evidence that many people, especially young males, do not reach their full height until well into their twenties, and you have an explanation for the discrepancy.

As to his age, I tend to agree with the later date. I go with those who say Corrinne helped him to lie about his age so he could get away from those hopeless living conditions.

Ann

_________________
"He endured the shame of being sent home a living trophy to the blood and death of too many friends"
A Myth in Action: The Heroic Life of Audie Murphy
http://www.annjoiner.com

Thomas B. Morgan also said in the same Esquire article that Muprhy had small hands.

Could it be Thomas drank while he interviewed?

Small hands can mean different things. We all know that he had long, slender fingers. We have seen in flims that his hands were slim and graceful - not a working man's hands. Perhaps that was what Thomas meant.

Ann

_________________
"He endured the shame of being sent home a living trophy to the blood and death of too many friends"
A Myth in Action: The Heroic Life of Audie Murphy
http://www.annjoiner.com

Seems like you are interpeting what Thomas B. Morgan wrote to fit what you
believe to be true.

It has been written more than a few times Audie had large hands. Photos show this.
Also, there are not many 5'10" men who are called short like Murphy was by many
people who worked with him and knew him well. Even Col. Etheredge who knew Audie
well relayed this information during his remarks at an Audie Murphy days I attended.
Not that it matters one bit as Audie was way bigger than just about anyone I can
think of in so many ways. My guess is he was about 5'8" and still, nobody wanted to mess
with him. One of a kind, for sure.

Hi All,
I agree with Vic regarding Audie's height. No way could he have been 5' 10'' in later years. Not unless he wore lifts in his cowboy boots, which was entirely possible. I know this is kind of morbid
but does anyone have a copy of the autopsy report? Isn't it a "usual practice" to height and weight
a person undergoing an autopsy? Just wondering. Anyway, my money is on Vic's guestimate of
5' 8" maybe even 5' 9".

Shirley Jean.

PHYSICAL EXAMINATION – AUDIE MURPHY - June 30, 1942

Height: 65-1/2”
Weight: 112 lbs
Color of hair: brown
Frame: slender
Color of eyes: hazel
Complexion: ruddy

PHYSICAL EXAMINATION – AUDIE MURPHY - October 17, 1944

Height: 67-1/2”
Weight: 138 pounds

PHYSICAL EXAMINATION – AUDIE MURPHY - August 17, 1945

Height: 68”
Weight: 139 pounds

PHYSICAL EXAMINATION – AUDIE MURPHY - July 14, 1950

Height: 68-1/2”
Weight: 145 pounds

PHYSICAL EXAMINATION – AUDIE MURPHY - October 31, 1955

Weight: 160 pounds

DRIVER’S LICENSE - Issued June 19, 1970

Hair: Brown
Eyes: Hazel
Height: 5’ – 10”
Weight: 165 lbs

The autopsy report stated that because of massive body injuries, Audie's weight could not be determined.

I never had the chance to stand Audie against a door jamb and mark his exact height so all I can contribute to this discussion is the impression I had of him.

When I first saw Audie in that doorway, one of my impressions was "But he isn't short; why is he always referred to as short?" I am 5' 8" and he was definitely taller than me. Of course he was wearing his cowboy boots and I was in flat shoes, but still, I feel that the 5' 10" is pretty much on the mark.

Yeah, his hair was brown, but with a reddish tone. Not a carrot top by any means, but a dark, muted brownish red; pretty much what I expected.

_________________
Eva Danø

Here we are again discussing Audie's birth date. David Williams and his family went to see Nadine this year before AM Days (as posted by David on the board). He point blank asked Nadine what year Audie was born because of all the discussion again on the message board.

Nadine said 1924. It's possible that she's just going along with what is already on his headstone, but David said, and I quote, "Nadine said Audie was born in 1924, and that's good enough for me".

***Teri

I am going with 5' 8".

The year of birth, I just do not know.

Hi Folks,
I am going with the driver's license. 1925. Audie said on several occasions after the war that
he changed his birth certificate to enter the military ASAP. And in 1970, when he was issued a
renewal of his driver's license, his birth date was listed as June 20, 1925. What would be the reason
for falsifying his birth year anymore? It does not make sense to me. Shirley Jean.

If you notice in the old movies, most of the stars were short. I remember going to a drive-in movie where George Peppard was going to appear. I had a chance to ask for his autograph, and we were eye-to-eye and I'm 5'6". I was really surprised.

I think seeing stars appear in the theaters on a huge screen make them seem larger than life. In fact, I'll bet most of them were short.

Whatever Audie's height, he was a giant of a man.

_________________
Betty

I believe Audie was born in 1925 because that is the year he put as the year of his birth on a passport application and it was the year listed on his driver's license. Also, Audie and his siblings were extremely malnourished. I believe that is why he was short until after he got into the Army and had regular meals. People change over time. It is possible that he started out a certain height and weight and grew taller and heavier as time went on and he ate better.

Georgana

GEORGANA I AGREE WITH YOU ABOUT THE DATE OF AUDIE'S BIRTHDAY. I ALSO AGREE WITH WHAT IS ON HIS DRIVER'S LICENSE ABOUT HIS WT. AND HT. THIS IS JUST MY THOUGHTS BUT IF YOU DON'T THINK HIS DRIVER'S LICENSE IS ACCURATE THEN IT IS LIKE YOU ARE CALLING AUDIE A LIAR. I JUST DON'T BELIEVE AUDIE WOULD LIE ABOUT HIS HT. OR WT. I DON'T BELIEVE HE WAS THAT VAIN AND INSECURE. MY SON WHEN HE WAS A TEENAGER GREW SO FAST HE GOT STRETCH MARKS ON HIS BACK JUST LIKE A PREGNANT WOMAN DOES. I TOOK HIM TO A DR. ONE TIME AND WHEN THE DR. SEEN THE STRETCH MARKS HE THOUGHT MY SON HAD BEEN ABUSE UNTIL HE REALIZE WHAT THEY WERE. MY SON STILL HAS THE STRETCH MARKS ON HIS BACK AND HE IS 33. ALSO SOMETIMES EVEN A SISTER CAN GET CONFUSED ABOUT A BROTHER'S BIRTHDAY. MY SISTER WAS SENDING ME BIRTHDAY CARDS IN MAY EVERY YEAR. I ASK HER ABOUT IT SINCE MY BIRTHDAY IS IN JAN. AND SHE THOUGHT MAY WAS MY BIRTHDAY. I TOLD HER NO THAT MAY WAS OUR SISTER'S BIRTHDAY WHO HAD DIED. FROM THEN ON SHE SENDS ME ONE IN JAN. TAKE CARE. BETTY LOU