# Murray Hill (performer)

Murray Hill is a New York City based American comedian, drag king, actor, television host, and entertainer. He is the entertainer persona of Busby Murray Gallagher, although this persona is maintained even in private settings. Murray Hill is the self-proclaimed "hardest-working middle-aged man in show business."
In The Encyclopedia of Lesbian and Gay Histories and Cultures, Jack Halberstam praised Hill for "transforming masculinity and exposing its theatricality with profound results". The New York Times called him "the current reigning patriarch of the downtown performance community" and the Seattle Weekly called him a "pioneer" of drag kings.

## Biography

Hill is transgender and started performing in 1996, when the cutting-edge chic of the East Village waned as the neighborhood gentrified, the art galleries moved for cheaper rent in Chelsea, and the music scene shifted to the Pacific Northwest. His celebrity impersonations include Elvis and John Travolta. Hill was part of a 1990s wave of comedians and performers whose talent stood out in the Lower East Side and East Village scene, emblematic of the neighborhood as portrayed in the musical Rent.
Hill is a frequent event emcee in Lower Manhattan, including the annual "Ms. Lez" competition, a bingo night with co-host drag queen Linda Simpson, and a variety of burlesque and theater performances.
Hill was the opening act for a tour of the rock band Le Tigre and has opened for The Gossip. He has performed at parties hosted by Joan Rivers and Liza Minnelli; and his acts incorporate homages to Joey Adams, Benny Hill, Sammy Davis Jr., and Henny Youngman.
Hill had cameos in the 2006 John Cameron Mitchell film Shortbus and a 2010 episode of Bored to Death on HBO. He also appears with burlesque performer Dirty Martini in Dirty Martini and the New Burlesque. Hill and Michael Musto appeared in the video for TV on the Radio's song "No Future Shock."
Hill is part of the cast of the 2022 comedy-drama Life & Beth and the host of the 2023 Hulu comedy competition Drag Me to Dinner. He was part of the main cast of the series Somebody Somewhere from 2022 to 2024.
In December 2024 it was announced that Hill would be the host of an upcoming drag reality competition series King of Drag set to air in 2025. The series will be the first drag competition series focusing specifically on drag kings.

## Filmography

Film :
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2010 | Dirty Martini and the New Burlesque | Himself | Documentary |
| 2024 | Jackpot! | Johnny Grand | Cast |
| TBA | The Man with the Bag | | Cast; filming |
Television :
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2010 | Bored to Death | Himself | 1 episode |
| 2022 | Life & Beth | Murray | Recurring; season 1 |
| 2022-2024 | Somebody Somewhere | Fred Rococo | Main cast |
| 2023 | Drag Me to Dinner | Himself | Host |
| 2025 | King of Drag | Himself | Host |
| 2025 | Elsbeth | Henry | 1 episode |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result | Ref. |
| 2022 | Peabody Awards | Entertainment | Somebody Somewhere | Nominated | |
| 2025 | Queerty Awards | Trailblazer | Himself | Won | |

## Gallery

* Hill doing a story in the East Village of Lower Manhattan
* Hill with frequent collaborator Miss Dirty Martini at the Copacabana in 2011
* Murray Hill in 2007, during his last show at Mo Pitkins' House of Satisfaction in the East Village