Night At The Museum — Tampa Bay Bucs’ WR Louis Murphy Locked In Palm Beach’s Flagler Gallery


Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Louis Murphy has learned the hard way to never fall asleep at a museum.

According to the Palm Beach Daily News, the 29-year-old — by his own admission — drank too much at a wedding at the famed Flagler Museum in Palm Beach, Florida, passing out in a stairwell and unintentionally living out his own version of the Ben Stiller classic Night at the Museum movie franchise.

Actor Ben Stiller poses at the premier for his movie ‘Night at the Museum.’ This week, Bucs’ WR Louis Murphy lived the horror of a real life version of this comedy when he fell asleep – and was locked inside – Palm Beach’s Flagler Museum. [Photo by Ben Gabbe/Getty Images]

Murphy’s night at the museum, unfortunately, did not include cameo appearances by Dick Van Dyke or Robin Williams.

The Bucs’ third-year wide receiver had been in attendance at the wedding of his close friend and former championship-winning Florida Gators teammate — and current Chicago Bears receiver — Deonte Thompson when he fell asleep in one of the massive museum’s stairwells.

Murphy, upon awakening alone in the dark museum in the middle of the night, was forced to break a small glass portion of a museum door to call for help.

“No one [was] around,” Murphy said, defending his actions when later recounting his story to the Tampa Bay Times.

He added that his unplanned night at the museum “a series of small unfortunate incidents.”

Despite apologetically causing damage to the property, Murphy did note that police officers and museum staff acknowledged he had little recourse but to break the glass to access a phone and call for help.

Quoting the police report, the Tampa Bay Times noted that the football player “got nervous,” prompting him to try to escape. It is estimated that the damage to the window is about $1,000.

Per the report, Murphy and the estate agreed to “work out the repair costs amongst themselves.” Although Murphy was not charged with vandalism or any other crime, Flagler Museum’s public affairs director David Carson told the Palm Beach Daily News that the football player’s night at the museum is being considered an “internal security matter” and that neither he nor any member of his staff would have any further comments.

For his part, Murphy was quick to defend his decision that night at the museum.

“With no one around… I didn’t have many other options,” Murphy continued, noting that he is now “working with the museum to ensure everything is properly handled.

An alumnus of St. Petersburg, Florida’s Lakewood High School and Gainesville, Florida’s Gators, Louis Murphy is well regarded in the local community for his participation in “1st Downs 4 Life” and other area charities.

The wide receiver — who is actually now on his fourth NFL team after stints with the Oakland Raiders, Carolina Panthers, and New York Giants — is not expected to immediately return to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers when the team starts its offseason training camp on Wednesday, July 27. Murphy has been sidelined since undergoing knee surgery last season and has already missed the Bucs’ other offseason workouts as he continues his rehabilitation.

Bucs’ wide receiver Louis Murphy evades a tackle against his friend Deonte Thompson’s team, the Chicago Bears. Murphy had been in attendance at Thompson’s wedding last Saturday when he was locked inside Palm Beach’s Flagler Museum. [Photo by Brian Kersey/Getty Images]

That rehab, Murphy should be relieved to know, will not be taking place anywhere near Palm Beach’s Flagler Museum.

[Photo by Ilya S. Savenok/Getty Images]

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