Things that make you go hmmmm…
Tambay’s recent post of a clip from the Arsenio Hall show reminded me of something somebody once told me about him. But before I get to that, a brief refresher.
All of you I’m sure remember triangle head Arsenio and his catchphrase made popular as the title for this article. Back during the late 80’s to early 90’s, was there anyone hotter on TV? His show was created to lure young viewers to late night TV, and did it work ever. His show was a super smash hit, and everybody who was anybody and who wanted to show how ”hip” and “cool” and “with it” they were, made tracks to Arsenio’s show. (Remember Bill Clinton wearing shades and blowing his sax with Arsenio’s band? Believe me, he won the presidential election right at that moment.)
He was as big as anyone could be on TV despite the fact that 1) he wasn’t all that funny and 2) his whole “hipper-than-Thou” persona come off as forced and phony. But what the hell? Lots of people bought it, until he and his show got played out by 1994, and his ratings sunk faster than the Titanic, and the show was canceled. (And countrary to popular belief, it wasn’t the infamous appearance by Minister Farrakhan that resulted in his show’s cancellation. Just the opposite; Farrakhan’s appearance on the show was a desperate, last minute attempt to boost badly sagging ratings but to no avail)
Well, as I was saying, someone I know who’s been in show business for quite a long time told me once that in Hollywood Arsenio was looked on as a baffling mystery. In that, at the height of his popularity, Arsenio was offered everything, and I mean EVERYTHING. Multi-picture movie deals, TV producing deals, book deals, everything. But he never took advantage of any of it. Nothing. To show business execs back then, Arsenio was letting a golden opportunity slip by and there was no explanation for it. Was it fear of failure? Fear of success? Maybe a miscalculated strategy that misfired? Nobody knows. All they knew was that he blew it. Big time.
Which makes one ponder what might have been if he did take on all those offers? Where would be today? (Instead of auditioning to host Deal or No Deal which went to Howie Mandel, the only person in Hollywood whose career at the time was even colder than Arsenio’s.) He might have been the biggest box office star in the world and people instead would be saying Will WHO? Or he could have gone the TV mogul route and right now be the biggest TV producer even larger than Jerry Bruckheimer. Or maybe nothing would have happened and he would be where is today; working the 4PM to midnight shift at a KFC at La Brea and Crenshaw in L.A. Who knows? Kind of makes you go hmmmmmm……
2 comments to Things that make you go hmmmm…
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Flashback To 1989 – Eddie Murphy On The Arsenio Hall Show (Michael Jackson Drops By Too)
Friends get together and chat… Eddie Murphy (who was on a high at the time – the black Hollywood celebrity of the moment), Arsenio Hall (whom we could say was also at his peak), with a surprise appearance by Michael Jackson (who was certainly flying high, 2 years after the release of his Bad LP, although not quite as high as he may have been previously)… in 3 parts:
Part 1:
Part 2:
Part 3:
The Farrakhan booking wasn’t an attempt to boost ratings. It was him booking who he wanted..and he paid big for that choice. It was one of many things that hurt his relationship with the studio and network that helped end the show.
The reality is he didn’t make the right choices afterward, and he tricked off a lot of opportunties.
Like a lot of black folks in Hollywood who either don’t get or don’t listen to the right advice.
Of course, subsequent attempts to launch a black talk show have made all of use appreciate Arsenio’s talents a lot more than we did back then.
Are you kidding me?
I think Sergio is sadly mistaken and may not have a full understanding of racism in this country. More accurately how racism works in this country.
Arsenio was huge, bigger than all the other talk show hosts at his time. You had to put two or three other talk show host together just to match his numbers and his viewers crossed every demographic. So even if his numbers where to dwindle he was still outperforming all the other talk show hosts.
As for him passing up opportunities, Cmon folks, you know what comes attached to those deals. Rumpelstiltskin taught you that when you where like 6years old. Arsenio was smart and he rolled with money. Magic Johnson and Eddie Murphy – the highest grossing black actor of all time! What happened to his career was a result of him exerting his power and authority to have Farrakhan on his show. After that show the entire industry put an ABP out on him. Don’t believe me, google The Hollywood Ten,