Bio
If you ask different people where they first saw Arsenio Hall, you'd probably get a number of different answers. But, it was the success of his Emmy-Award winning late night talk show "The Arsenio Hall Show" that made Arsenio a household name. The versatile actor, comedian, and producer first became involved in the arts at "The Cleveland Playhouse" and continued to hone his craft through his Kent State University years.
In 1979, Hall moved from Ohio to Chicago, Illinois where he tried his hand at stand-up comedy and was discovered by Jazz singer Nancy Wilson. In the following few years Arsenio toured, opening for twenty major headliners including Patti LaBelle, Aretha Franklin, Tina Turner, and Stevie Wonder. A short time later, Arsenio attempted to diversify his career by making numerous appearances on television shows such as "Solid Gold" and "The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson"…and doing his first film cameo in "Amazon Women on the Moon," directed by John Landis.
In 1987, Arsenio was asked to replace Joan Rivers on the Fox Network series "The Late Show." On the strength of his work as interim host, he was signed to a film and television deal with Paramount Pictures, which subsequently led to the opportunity to co-write and co-star in the hit (Paramount) comedy "Coming to America."
On January 3, 1989, "The Arsenio Hall Show" made its debut. Virtually overnight, Arsenio changed the face of late night television by captivating young viewers across the country. During his successful five-year run as Executive Producer, Arsenio provided a forum for cutting edge comedy, politics and the television debut of such pop superstars as Mariah Carey, Snoop Doggy Dogg, Boyz to Men, and countless others. In 1994, Arsenio was again ready to grow and diversify. He resigned from the late night gabfest to pursue other personal and professional interests.
In 1998, Arsenio joined the cast of the CBS dramedy, "Martial Law," playing “Terrell Parker," a streetwise L.A.P.D. detective, for two years. He followed this up with a two-season stint as Host of the new "Star Search" (CBS). And then, taking on his most challenging task to date, he returned to stand-up comedy and toured for the first time in over a decade.
Arsenio was featured as the comical ”Carl Cristall” in Exodus Films’ animated feature “Igor,” starring John Cusack, which was released in theatres nationwide in September, 2008, and on DVD in January, 2009. Arsenio returned to television in the fall of 2008, as host of the popular weekly series “World’s Funniest Moments,” a one-hour show capturing life’s most outrageous moments caught on tape, which premiered in October, 2008, on MyNetwork TV. He also hosted the fascinating five-hour special “The Blacklist: 100 Greatest Power Moves,” which chronicled the unforgettable moments, cultural movements and personal achievement that have advanced the black race and helped change the course of American history over the past century, which aired on five consecutive nights, November 9 – 13, 2008, on the TV One Network.
Most recently, Arsenio appeared in a memorable cameo in the highly touted feature comedy, “Black Dynamite,” an homage to classic blaxploitation films, which opened in theatres nationwide October 16, 2009 (Sony/Apparition), and was released on DVD in February, 2010.
In addition, Arsenio was featured in the HBO Sports Documentary “Magic & Bird: A Courtship of Rivals” which premiered in March, 2010, as well as the A&E two-hour documentary special “The Battle For Late-Night,” which premiered in April, 2010.