‘Showbiz!’ entertainer Murray Hill became what he didn’t see
Fresh Air

‘Showbiz!’ entertainer Murray Hill became what he didn’t see

B2Upper-intermediateOctober 7, 202644 min
  • Interview
  • Entertainment

Murray Hill's character on HBO’s Somebody Somewhere, Fred Rococo, is a soil scientist trans man who hosts a queer cabaret. “[He] is me dialed down to like a 2,” he tells Terry Gross. In real life, Murray has hosted drag king shows, queer cabarets, burlesque shows and performed his own act. He spoke with Terry Gross about finding and building his community, forgiveness, and how anti-trans rhetoric and policy has affected him. His new memoir is Showbiz! My Life as a Middle-Aged Man. Subscribe to our free weekly newsletter Follow us on Instagram Subscribe to our YouT...

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and professor and a trans man with a great sense of humor.

that was held at the Presbyterian Church

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B2

B2 · Upper-intermediate

Comfortable if you already follow TV news

A1 40%A2 35%B1 16%B2 9%C1 0%
  • 91% of the words are B1 or easier.
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  • 157 harder words (B2 and up) in the whole episode.

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0:00

Public media is no longer federally funded, but the NPR network remains yours in service to, and powered by, you. Keep public media public with a donation today at donate.npr.org and thank you. This is Fresh Air.

0:18

I'm Terri Gross. My guest, Murray Hill, calls himself Mr. Showbiz. He played one of the big-hearted characters in the HBO series, Somebody Somewhere, about a community of friends in Manhattan, Kansas.

0:30

His character, Fred Rococo, was a soil scientist and professor and a trans man with a great sense of humor. He was also the host of the queer cabaret that was held at the Presbyterian Church

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