Golden Globe nominee Eric Roberts films scenes in Windber, tours town

Jul. 7—WINDBER, Pa. — Multiple-time Golden Globe Award nominee Eric Roberts recently spent some time in Windber, acting in two productions being put together by director Blair Murphy, owner of the historic — and some say haunted — Grand Midway Hotel.

He contributed to Murphy's "The Deep Dive" and "The Midway Zone" while also touring the town.

"Eric Roberts' reaction to Windber was really neat," Murphy said. "He said to me, 'You relocated from Los Angeles to here?' and then he paused and he said, 'You got it made. Look at this town. Look at this park out front (of the hotel). This is like stepping back in time. I love it here. I see myself coming back here.' ... He said real nice things about Windber."

Roberts is the brother of internationally known Academy Award winner Julia Roberts, whose films have grossed approximately $4 billion.

Eric Roberts has more than 700 credits to his name, including starring in Murphy's 2014 film "Zombie Dream." Roberts had roles in "The Dark Knight," a highly acclaimed film from the Batman catalog, and on the CBS soap opera "The Young and the Restless."

His Golden Globe nominations were for new star of the year (1979) for his role in "King of the Gypsies," best actor (1984) for "Star 80" and best supporting actor (1986) in "Runaway Train."

His credits will soon include Murphy's two current projects.

"The Midway Zone" will involve celebrities coming to the hotel and spending nights in certain rooms. For example, Roberts stayed in the "Frankenstein" suite, so his episode will be about that book and its author, Mary Shelley.

Murphy's daughter, Luna Zamboni-Murphy, will play a bellhop in all of the episodes, which are expected to be posted to YouTube sometime this year.

"Eric Roberts was so generous and kind to her," Murphy said.

"The Deep Dive" is a feature documentary about William Shakespeare.

"It's like a reality show," Murphy said. "It's kind of this road trip where I put on a play and then I just start going around the country and interviewing scholars. In real life, I had this dream. It said, 'Go to this paragraph in Shakespeare's play, and that's your Rosetta Stone. Then follow the following clues and everything will unfold.' "

Murphy plans to release his Shakespeare project in 2024.