Comedian Murray Hill on the Teachers Who Freed Him From an Unsafe Home

<p>Now famous as a New York City nightlife fixture and for his role on <em>Somebody Somewhere</em>, comedian Murray Hill used to keep his personal history private. In fact, the persona of “Murray Hill” started as a drag king character modeled after old-timey comedians. Over time, though, the gap between the character and the man has shrunk. </p><p>This week on the show, Murray opens up about everything: his upbringing in Connecticut with a family who could be cruel and abusive, teachers who looked out for him, and friends who helped the real Murray emerge. </p><p>His new memoir is called <em><u><a href="https://books.apple.com/us/book/showbiz/id6759484102?itscg=30200&amp;at=1000l38Mz&amp;ct=death_sex_money" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Showbiz!: My Life as a Middle-Aged Man</a></u></em>. </p><p>The interview with Norman Lear that Anna mentions can be found <u><a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/all-in-the-family-of-norman-lear/id870688022?i=1000372893249" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a></u>. </p><p>Get more with <em>Death, Sex &amp; Money</em> Plus! Join for exclusive bonus episodes of DSM and ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the <em>Death, Sex &amp; Money</em> show page on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/death-sex-money/id870688022" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Apple Podcasts</a> or <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/0yKEWqaqfaAKlSjYnDuisy" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Spotify</a>. Or, visit <a href="https://slate.com/death-sex-money-plus?utm_medium=link&amp;utm_campaign=plus_pod&amp;utm_content=Death_Sex_Money&amp;utm_source=episode_summary" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">slate.com/dsmplus</a> to get access wherever you listen.</p><p>If you’re new to the show, welcome. We’re so glad you’re here. Find us and follow us on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/deathsexmoney/?hl=en" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Instagram</a> and you can find Anna’s newsletter at annasale.substack.com. Our email address, where you can reach us with voice memos, pep talks, questions, critiques, is deathsexmoney@slate.com. </p><p>Need to set up your Slate Plus feed? If you subscribed through Slate.com, check out our <a href="https://slate.com/podcastfaqs#plusbenefits" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">FAQ</a> at slate.com/podcastfaqs for easy instructions. Members subscribed via Apple Podcasts get automatic access—no setup req