Whatever happened to Arsenio Hall?

**And there is a new 24 hour cable channel, it's called "The Golf Channel". It shows golf 24 hours a day, except for between 2:00 AM and 3:00 AM when it shows "The Byron Allen Show".
--Norm MacDonald, SNL

The last time I saw a show of his, the interviews were done in this extreme style of photography and effects that was actually physically revolting. So I haven't been paying much attention to his career. But really, how great can you be when you're perpetually standing in the soul-crushing shadow of Arsenio?

the nightmare continues...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=ukwUoaIczFA#!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=DL_1amsoK4M

wow for some reason I thought his original show ran for way longer than just 5 years. funny how his show run lines up with the "golden age" of hip hop ('89-'94)

I didn't watch his show all the time, usually just if there was a musical act I wanted to see (you'd never see De La Soul on Letterman or Carson in 1989).

But on one show he spent what seemed like 7-10 minutes -- the length of a normal celebrity interview -- talking to a member of the audience. The guy he was talking to was Milan Williams of the Commodores, who had just quit the band rather than play shows with them in South Africa. I was pretty impressed that Arsenio spent so much time talking to him about the situation, and I couldn't/can't imagine Jay or Dave or Carson or whoever doing anything equivalent to that on their shows.

yeah I only watched for the musical acts and Arsenio himself always seemed kind of corny/square. in hindsight I can see it as being part of that post-Cosby Show fluorishing of black TV culture (In Living Color, Martin etc.), which was pretty revolutionary

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dRoObE7vpzY

Ask and you shall receive

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dO472bHQV-g

What happened when Arsenio got interrupted by GLAAD activists wanting to know why he didn't have on more gay guests, like Gus Van Sant.

the guests that night were paul hogan and Poison.

so did anyone actually watch his new show last night or is this not that thread

xp jeez that is, like... something...

'Loosen up and enjoy it!"

--so did anyone actually watch his new show last night or is this not that thread--

I saw abt 10 minutes. Snoop Dogg singing What's My Name, and a painfully unfunny bit where he unpacked a time capsule supposedly containing stuff from the early 90s ("kim kardashian's tricyle" with comically oversized seat; a-rod's "high school baseball glove", which had pills and needles in it. Ahhaaahhhaaaaaa). Then I saw him talking to an absolutely insane-looking paula abdul but I had muted it by that point so I don't know wtf she was doing there. Possibly she had climbed out of the time capsule too.

Tara Reid was in the audience too for some reason

What happened when Arsenio got interrupted by GLAAD activists wanting to know why he didn't have on more gay guests, like Gus Van Sant.

honestly he handles that pretty well. was his schtick homophobic? I don't remember that it was, but I was young when this all went down.

LOL post-crocodile dundee paul hogan.

weren't there rumors about hall's sexuality?

Alessandra Stanley weeps.

"kim kardashian's tricyle" with comically oversized seat; a-rod's "high school baseball glove", which had pills and needles in it. Ahhaaahhhaaaaaa

this sounds so hilariously stupid. wonder if Snoop is going for some kind-of Neil Hamburger prop comic thing here

I found that GLAAD clip above excruciating. Arsenio was making valid points--different time and place, he was undoubtedly having closeted guests on the show, Carson and Letterman were probably more culpable--but he says at one point "This isn't the Morton Downey Jr. show," even though that's exactly what he does, turn it into the Morton Downey Jr. show.

You honestly did a lot for black artists when your show was on. A lot of them would never have been invited to the Late Show or the Tonight show. Are you going to continue in that vein?

IAmArsenioHall 1145 points 7 days ago
Yes, absolutely. Of all the black artists I broke, I'm most proud of Trisha Yearwood and Billy Ray Cyrus and I plan on doing more of that.

The Morton Downey Jr. part of it feels like part of lol 1990. He addressed that more directly than other talk-show hosts did at the time, instead of meeting activism with indifference.

--this sounds so hilariously stupid. wonder if Snoop is going for some kind-of Neil Hamburger prop comic thing here --

Sorry, it was Arsenio doing the time capsule props, not Snoop. And yeah at one point he did say something jokey about Carrot Top.