Ryan Murphy Honored by amfAR, Lady Gaga Performs & Spends $200,000 During Auction

Get the inside scoop on the star-studded fundraising gala

By Marc Malkin Oct 30, 2015 12:00 PMTags
Lady Gaga, Ryan MurphyJeff Vespa/Getty Images for amfAR, Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for Belvedere

Ryan Murphy sure can attract a star-studded crowd.

The television impresario was honored last night at the celebrity-packed American Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR) Inspiration Gala in Los Angeles.

Gwyneth Paltrow hosted the event, Julia Roberts presented Murphy with his award, and Lady Gaga performed a jaw-dropping 10-song set. The guest list included Angela Bassett, Emma Roberts, Evan Peters, Lea Michele (with her boyfriend Matthew Paetz), Cheyenne Jackson, Chloe Sevigny, Jamie King, Dylan Penn, Billie Lourd, Sarah Paulson, Zendaya, Jamie Lee Curtis, Alessandra Ambrosio, Diane Kruger, Joshua Jackson, Sara Hyland, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley and more.

After playfully chiding Murphy for not asking her to be the godmother of one of his sons as he did with Paltrow, Roberts gushed that her The Normal Heart director "is the kind of person who lives as he works—feverishly and unapologetically. He's like a force of nature, infinitely curious about others, wildly funny, intensely smart and compassionate.

"He is devoted to not only entertaining audiences but also educating them, bringing into our homes incredible diversity and complexity" she said.

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In his heartfelt speech, Murphy admitted that he might work too much on too many projects.

"My plate does overflow sometimes and I do this largely now I realize because of the HOV/AIDS crisis," he said. "When it is ingrained in you as a young person that you don't think you have tomorrow, you ring every last drop out of today because you may not get another one."

He also recalled getting tested for HIV more than 60 times over a 10-year span.

"I have lost 10 friends from HIV/AIDS and honestly I consider myself standing here to be some kind of miracle in the world and I think many of us in this room feel the same way," Murphy said. "I feel so lucky and grateful and blessed to be here and to have the right to marry—which I did to my husband David Miller—and...to have two young sons, Logan and Ford."

Jason Merritt/Getty Images for amfAR

"These are privileges and joys I never ever thought I would have when I was growing up," he continued. "Like many people here tonight, my entire adult life has been lived in the shadow of the HIV/AIDS crisis and the trauma of it and the pain of it and the fear of it and that infuses every thing that I do and that I have done."

During a live auction lead by Sharon Stone, Lady Gaga plucked down $200,000 for a photo of Elizabeth Taylor giving both middle fingers to Shirley MacLaine taken at a promotional shoot for their 2001 television movie These Old Dames.

#showmethemoney!!! #cubagoodingjr #amfarinspiration

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Cuba Gooding Jr. tried to coax a friend to place the winning bid on a pair of Harry Winston diamond earrings by shouting, "Show me the money!"

The evening raised $3.1 million for the AIDS organization.

The night ended with Gaga's performance. The American Horror Story: Hotel star dedicated "Call Me Irresponsible" to Murphy because, she said, "since I have met Ryan I have rediscovered something in myself—and it's my favorite part of me so thank you...You appreciate the part of me that my Christian guilt is mortified by."

Produced by Josh Wood's production company JWP, Inspiration galas have also been held in New York City, São Paulo in Brazil, Paris, Rio de Janeiro, Toronto and Miami. Last night's sponsors included Harry Winston, MAC Viva Glam, DSquared2, Fiji Water and Belvedere.

Watch: Lady Gaga Tells All on Set of "American Horror Story"