CANDICE BERGEN
WITH BOOK CLUB AND THE MURPHY BROWN REBOOT, THE EMMY WINNER GETS BETTER WITH AGE
The actress is thrilled to be back on the big screen in Book Club and rebooting TV’s Murphy Brown.
Candice Bergen strode proudly onto the stage of NYC’s Carnegie Hall, flanked by her Murphy Brown co-stars, at CBS’ recent fall lineup announcement. “It’s so great to have the gang back together,” she said. “And to hear Americans cheering for a bunch of journalists.”
It’s the kind of timely wisecrack Murphy often made on the hit 1988– ’98 sitcom — and will continue to make on the upcoming reboot. And like her character, Candice always tells it like it is, whether addressing her youthful good looks (“People who don’t have it think beauty is a blessing, but actually it sets you apart”) or her later-in-life weight gain (“I am fat. I live to eat”). “She’s pretty low-maintenance,” a friend tells Closer. “She’s never been affected with an actor’s big ego.”
That’s all the more remarkable considering she was raised around celebrities as the daughter of ventriloquist Edgar Bergen. “My parents would have a party…I remember Rex Harrison singing at the piano, Fred Astaire dancing with all the ladies,” she says. “It was completely normal.”
FAMILY FIRST
Candice made a name for herself with sharp-witted performances in films (Starting Over) and TV (Saturday Night Live) and won five Emmys for Murphy Brown, which she started shooting shortly after giving birth to daughter Chloe, now 32. “It’s hard to have a marriage, a child and a career,” says Candice, whose first husband, French filmmaker Louis Malle, died of lymphoma when Chloe was 10. “I believe in putting the child first.”
She’s been happily remarried to real estate mogul Marshall Rose since 2000, and these days, Candice and Chloe are closer than ever. “Candice just revels in spending time with her,” an insider tells Closer. “She says her daughter truly is the biggest blessing in her life.”
At 72, Candice is experiencing an unlikely career renaissance. In addition to the new Murphy, she’s costarring in the big-screen comedy Book Club opposite a trio of other actresses of a certain age: Jane Fonda, Diane Keaton and Mary Steenburgen. “The studio wanted to cast it much, much younger,” says Candice. “But this population is not only underserved, it isn’t served at all.”
As for the revamped Murphy, “It feels very current and very fresh,” she says. And Candice hopes it will introduce her to a whole different audience. “She’s happy she’s having her moment again,” says the insider. “And that a new generation will be discovering her.” Adds her friend, “Candice is living the life she always dreamed of now — and returning to Murphy Brown is like the cherry on top.”
— Bruce Fretts