Previously, Gallagher was executive vice president, chief administrative officer and general counsel for Hilton Hotels Corporation. He was responsible for all of the company's legal affairs, supervision of the corporate human resources department and general administrative matters at the company's world headquarters. Prior to joining Hilton, Gallagher was, for five years, president and CEO of The Griffin Group, Inc., the investment and management firm for all of Merv Griffin's business activities, including Griffin's hotel, entertainment, media and gaming operations and investments. As Griffin's CEO, he led the growth of the company's hotel group from a single property to a sun belt oriented group of full-service luxury hotels and resorts. During his tenure the company's broadcast division was first reorganized and then combined with other East Coast radio stations to form a 17-station group ultimately sold to SFX Broadcasting for a substantial premium.
Game shows into development of a broad range of entertainment products.
He served as a member of the board of directors for Players from 1992 until 1997 and served as chairman of the compensation committee and the executive committee of the board. During his career at the firm, he was a partner in the New York and Los Angeles offices, was the founding and managing partner of the firm's London office, and served as managing partner in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Gallagher also served for two years as chief legislative counsel to former U.S. Senator John Tunney. A native of Michigan, Gallagher graduated magna cum laude from the College of the Holy Cross. He is an honors graduate of the Harvard Law School, and is a member of the California State Bar.