Time Machine: Eddie Murphy, blind shoeshine man

Edward R. Murphy was born on August 22, 1909, the only son of Edward B. and Elizabeth Murphy. The elder Murphy had owned a moving and storage company, the Murphy Transfer Co., in Cedar Rapids, but when he could no longer take care of the business, he and his wife moved in with their son, who lived with his wife and children in Otterville, Iowa.

In the early 1950s, 'Eddie” Murphy, as he was known, began to develop cataracts. By 1955, he was 46, and nearly blind.

Murphy was determined to provide for his family. He began a shoeshine business, setting up in the Montrose Hotel in downtown Cedar Rapids.

He could just make out the shape of the shoes he was working on, but he couldn't determine colors. His clients had to tell him what color of shoe polish to use.

To be sure that the shoes he was working on were shined to perfection, Murphy concentrated on his task longer than most shiners.

'I can see the shape of your shoe,” he would say, 'but I can't tell the color. I can't see how well the polish is shining. For that reason, I work on it a little extra and use a little more soap and polish - to make sure it's done well.”

He used his little finger to determine where he was polishing and to avoid getting the brush too close to a customer's socks.

He told a Gazette reporter the best compliment he ever had came from a naval officer.

'He told me I gave him the best shine he'd ever had,” he said. 'I figure that's a pretty good compliment because you know how those boys keep their shoes shined.”

Murphy also was responsible for keeping the nearby men's room clean. He got the job by offering to do it free for a week to show the hotel manager he could do it. He was as meticulous there as he was with his shoeshines.

Murphy walked with a white cane but just missed qualifying for state blind relief. His goal was to build up enough business to bring his family to Cedar Rapids when his wife, Evelyn, could quit working at the Mental Health Institute in Independence.

An industrious man, Murphy petitioned the Iowa Executive Council in Des Moines for a permit to shine shoes for employees in the Iowa state office buildings. The council was doubtful that there would be enough business to be profitable.

When the Cedar Rapids Lions Club learned of Murphy, they offered to send him to Rochester, Mich., near Detroit, to train with a guide dog.

Murphy met his dog, a collie named Sport, in May 1956. After an intensive six weeks of training, the pair returned home by bus. They were met at the Union Bus Depot at 328 Second St. SE by Murphy's wife and Lions Club members, including Art Jahr, activities chairman, and Edward Lee, chairman of the blind-sight committee.

Sport went through his paces at the depot, showing how well he could maneuver in traffic, how he could avoid pedestrians and how he could obey three critical commands: 'forward,” 'right” and 'left.”

From that point, Murphy's life changed. He was no longer limited to the kiosk at the Montrose. The Iowa State Commission for the Blind gave him a portable shoeshine kit and a uniform with a white top and gray trousers.

Beginning Monday, Sept. 24, 1956, Murphy, dressed in his new uniform, and Sport took the portable kit to businesses around downtown. He added another permanent location at the Roosevelt Hotel.

Eventually, he established his own storefront at 207 Third St. SE.

Murphy's success depended on the honesty of his customers. Unfortunately, some took advantage. In 1959, a customer twice said he was paying with a $5 bill and took change. When Murphy took his money to the bank, he was told the bills were actually one-dollar bills.

In his later years, Murphy became a vocal advocate for the blind, especially those who used guide dogs. He was an active member of REACT No. 3038 and Dog Guide Users of America.

By 1976, Murphy had his fourth dog from the Leader Dog school, a black Labrador named Merfy.

In a Gazette interview, he offered tips to the general public about guide dogs and their blind handlers.

Murphy recommended people not pet a dog while it is working, never grab a handler or dog to try to guide them, resist offering food to the dog, let the dog and handler open their own doors and find their own stair railings and not treat the dog as a pet.

'My life depends on her,” he said, referring to Merfy. 'I cannot have her spoiled. These are not pet dogs. They are very fine working tools.”

When the Iowa Commission of the Blind in 1978 denied residency training at the Des Moines office to blind people using dogs as guides, Murphy pointed out that the Iowa Code clearly outlined the right of blind people to be accompanied by their dog guides.

In 1984, Murphy lobbied the Cedar Rapids City Council for audible signals at traffic lights to let the vision-impaired know when lights had changed. After two years of debate, the plan was rejected.

Murphy was 83 when he died in 1993.