Impractical Jokers’ Murr Talks About Book, Westfield Appearance

WESTFIELD, NJ — James “Murr” Murray is and will always be known as a jokester. Now Murr, of truTV’s Impractical Jokers, is opening to Patch about a new chapter in his career as he will be sharing his first published book with locals on Sunday at Westfield’s Festifall.

Murr will be at the festival at 100 Elm St. in the EJB Entertainment booth from noon to 4 p.m. where he will be signing copies of his book "Awakened: A Novel." A question and answer, meet and greet and photo opportunity will also be included.

Additionally, Murr said his infamous ferret tattoo located on his thigh might make an appearance as well.

Murr’s book “Awakened: A Novel” was 14 years in the making but finally came to fruition this year. The book’s journey is similar to Murr’s with Impractical Jokers.

“We knew each other for almost 30 years. But we were not discovered, we just worked really hard for a long time,” Murr said of his cast mates on the show. “It’s the same exact story with the book which I wrote 14 years ago. I had an idea for a really scary tale of New York City and sent it to every publisher. And they were all returned UNOPENED! Because I had no representation.”

“I had to get on TV to have someone look at it,” Murr said.

Now 14 years later, “Awakened” was published in June this past summer and he is already contracted to write two more books in the series over the next two years.

Some would say Murr’s book is completely different than what fans are used to. Instead of comedy, Murr delves into a story of mystery and thriller.

But to Murr it's not quite different. He notes that in his show “Impractical Jokers” that what his friends, Brian "Q" Quinn, Joe Gatto and Sal Vulcano, do to him is “a fine line of comedy and terror,” he said.

“People would say, ‘Murr you are a comedian. How can you write horror?!’ I would argue that what the guys do to me on the show is horror. They shave my eyebrows, have me swim with sharks,” Murr said.

Murr has always loved the genre. Growing up he was a huge fan of horror movies such as “Firestarter” by Stephen King, “Nightmare on Elm Street, and “Friday the 13th.”

“I like eliciting a reaction from the audience whether it is through comedy or terror,” Murr said.

The plot of the first book is set in the near future where New York City builds a new subway line called the Z train, which is a fast bullet train underwater. At one point a train arrives at a station and all the people on the train, including the mayor, are missing and there is only blood left on the walls. This leads to uncovering the secrets that have been going on underneath New York City for far longer than one can ever imagine.

Fans reading the book can also be on the lookout for secret references or Easter eggs, to the Impractical Jokers TV show, written within the story line, Murr added.

To get a copy of the book and meet Murr you can visit ejbevents.com or come to the tent on Sunday.

(Image via Getty Images / Mike Coppola / Staff: James "Murr" Murray)

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