Tootsie

"Tootsie" (1982)

The character: Jeff Slater

What about him: The roommate of an actor (Dustin Hoffman) who's trying to pass as a woman.

Murray moment: "I don't like when somebody comes up to me the next day and says, 'Hey, man, I saw your play. It touched me; I cried.' I like... more it when a guy comes up to me a week later and says, 'Hey, man, I saw your play ... what happened?'"

Analysis: Legend has it that Murray's dialog was all improvised and that he refused an up-front screen credit because he didn't want his fans to expect a zany "Bill Murray" comedy. But would "Tootsie" even be watchable anymore if it wasn't for Murray? He's absolutely necessary to deflate the sanctimonious self-absorption of Hoffman (and Hoffman's character, too), zinging, "You slut." And another tenet of the Murray philosophy is beautifully expressed in the line quoted above: He'd rather confuse than appease.

(Everett Collection)