Jeff Hiller named Celebrity Grand Marshal of LA Pride Parade

LOS ANGELES - Emmy-winning actor and author Jeff Hiller will lead this weekend's L.A. Pride Parade as its celebrity grand marshal, a role he says he accepted without hesitation.

"They just asked me and I was like, yeah!" Hiller said in an interview with ABC7's Kevin Ozebek.

Hiller, known for his work in improv and his awardwinning performance on HBO's Somebody Somewhere, said he has attended Pride parades before - but never from the center of the celebration.

"I've never even been in a parade. I've gone to the Pride Parade, but I've not even been in one," he said. "So to be the Grand Marshal of Los Angeles Pride, I mean it's .... I'm going to be waving really pretty."

Hiller built his comedy career with the Upright Citizens Brigade before moving into television roles. Last year, he took home the Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actor for his role in Somebody Somewhere.

Asked how life has been since the win, Hiller said, "You know, not bad, a good time."

The actor reflected on his journey from growing up in conservative Texas to becoming an openly gay performer celebrated on one of the nation's largest Pride stages. When asked what his eightyearold self might think of him now, Hiller said, "You know, I think it's complicated, because I think the eight-year-old version of me would have been like, don't say that."

"But I think, I think for the middle-aged Jeff, I think it's very important, and very ... it's an honor," Hiller said. "Because, you know, when I first came to L.A., and I was living here trying to be an actor, nobody wanted me even to audition for an AT&T commercial, much less be the grand marshal of the Gay Pride Parade."

With the parade approaching, Hiller admitted he's still deciding what to wear.

"That is, of course, my immediate thought and I haven't figured it out completely, but I have a couple different options," he said. He hinted that the outfit will be seasonappropriate: "Well, you know, summer, so I'll show some leg." He added that he hopes to incorporate "something sort of rainbow, but you know in a tasteful way, a heightened rainbow."