Chatterbox was unable to obtain details of this story , but Murph Murphy is the person to whom Edward H. Heinemann , an aircraft designer and engineer for Douglas Aircraft in the 1940s and ' 50s , attributes Murphy 's Law in his ( Heinemann 's ) 1980 autobiography , Ed Combat Aircraft Designer . Chatterbox got the poop on Murph Murphy from Fred Johnsen , the historian at the Edwards Air Force Flight Test Center .
Fred Johnsen spoke to Chatterbox because he believed that Murph Murphy 's story deserved to be told .