The barking audience, the announcer shouting“Arsenioooooooooo,” the segments that made us go “hmmm?” and iconic performances that were unforgettable. From 1989 to 1994, The Arsenio Hall Show broke boundaries and dominated late-night television.
Dave Chappelle, Mariah Carey, and Tupac Shakur were only a few of the rising stars who appeared on the show. The day after Magic Johnson revealed his HIV diagnosis in 1991, he sat down with Hall and shot down our misconceptions about the disease. Hall even interviewed Minister Louis Farrakhan to push back against racism. There was nothing this show wouldn’t cover.
As late night’s first Black talk show host, Arsenio Hall had a unique platform to showcase us our art, our joy, and our pain.
In its five years, The Arsenio Hall Show paved the way for shows like Living Single and In Living Color that also centered Black talent.
The Arsenio Hall Show was more than entertainment, it was a place where our culture was celebrated and explored in new ways. It offered us a safe space to be joyful and unapologetic, without worrying about what anyone else thought.