Actor and alumnus W. Earl Brown delivered the Centennial Presidential Lecture in Lovett Auditorium on Tuesday, Feb. 28 following the postponement of the event in 2022 because of winter weather.

Brown, a native of Golden Pond, Kentucky, chronicled his acting career from its beginnings at Murray State in the lecture he titled “A Racer Success Story.” He was involved in the theater and journalism departments before graduating in 1986.

He said he was glad to have the opportunity to speak in Lovett 

Auditorium, which was under renovation at the time the lecture was supposed to take place.

“Don’t get me wrong,” Brown said. “I love the CFSB Center, but it lacks the history and the gravitas of these walls.”

Brown said he enjoyed watching movies at the Cheri Theatres growing up, particularly “Animal House,” “Halloween” and the “Star Wars” films.

“Now, this was a time before even VHS tapes,” Brown said. “If you saw a movie, you saw it in the theater, and I went back time and again for those three.”

Brown said his high school speech and debate coach Larry England had an influence on his life and career.

“Larry pushed me to achieve,” Brown said. “During my time here on this campus, I learned to push myself. I opened myself up to a bigger world and challenged myself … and the world rewarded me.”

Despite attending Murray State, Brown said he never completed his education.

“I spent five years here, I got a diploma, but I did not complete my education because true education never ends,” Brown said. “Every day offers something new to learn, something new to explore, and that I learned right here, so I guess you could say Murray State is where my education began.”

Brown’s interest in acting began in an introductory English class at Murray State, where his professor talked about improvisational theater.

“I was a ‘Saturday Night Live’ fanatic,” Brown said. “I idolized those people, and that’s where they all started. He would pull kids up to the stage to do improv, and I desperately wanted to be one of those kids he called, but I didn’t throw up my hand, of course.”

Though Brown found volunteering too intimidating, he said the class planted a seed for him.

“When I came to sign up for the next semester, I said, ‘I’m going to take an acting class,’” Brown said.

On the first day of the class, students introduced themselves by listing their recent productions and achievements. When it was Brown’s turn to speak, he told the class he had never been in a play except for an eighth grade class production called “It’s Cold in Them Thar Hills.” The class laughed in response.

“They laughed at me,” Brown said. “Not with me, at me. I eventually became friends with several people who were in that class, but on that day, I was humiliated.”

One of the assignments for the class was performing a soliloquy from Shakespeare, with whom Brown said he had little prior experience.

“I chose ‘To be, or not to be’ from ‘Hamlet’ because I remembered it from a ‘Gilligan’s Island’ episode,” Brown said. “I sat down to read Shakespeare. ‘Hamlet’ spoke to me. I understood it … I connected with the longing, the youthful angst and depression of Hamlet.”

After receiving a master’s degree at DePaul University in Chicago, Brown went on to act in films as diverse as “Scream,” “There’s Something About Mary” and “Black Mass,” among several others. Currently, he plays roles in the TV streaming series “The Mandalorian,” “Hacks,” “Five Days at Memorial” and “Paul T. Goldman.” 

He has also appeared in the shows “Preacher,” “True Detective” and “Deadwood,” among others. In addition to his work in television and film, Brown voiced the supporting character Bill in the video game “The Last of Us,” now a hit HBO series.

As a Presidential Lecture speaker, Brown joins the ranks of luminaries like Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Bill Nye and Admiral William McRaven.

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