Arsenio Hall looked back at his feud with Howard Stern
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Hall said that Stern "really hated him" and that it ultimately hurt the ratings for The Arsenio Hall Show
Hall appeared on Stern's talk show in 2021
Arsenio Hall is looking back at his talk show and what role it played in late-night wars.
Hall, 70, is releasinga memoir titledArseniothis week, and he opened up about it in an interview withThe New York Times,published on March 30.The Arsenio Hall Showran in syndication from 1989 to 1994 and became a hit in major markets.
The Timesnoted that Hall's show often "leaned into controversy," including tellingEntertainment Weeklythat he would "kick [Jay] Leno's ass."
"There were times when Jay thought I didn't work as hard as he did. And he criticized my monologue," Hall explained. "And somebody got that to me. We definitely battled." Years later, Hall appeared onThe Jay Leno Show, and the pair have toured together.
The interviewer also noted that Hall appeared onThe Howard Stern Showand noted, "That surprised me, because maybe your ugliest feud was with him."
Hall explained, "When Magic Johnson contracted H.I.V. and Howard said, 'I hope Arsenio dies,' that's when I realized it wasn't joking around. He really hated me." Hall was friends with Johnson, who announced he had contracted H.I.V. in 1991, and frequently appeared on this show.
In an episode ofThe Tonight Showin 1992, Stern, 72, called Hall a "moron" who "couldn't even do stand-up comedy." He toldEntertainment Weeklyin 1993, "Arsenio has no talent. Arsenio's talent is kissing ass. I can't watch those interviews. I cannot take the ass sucking that goes on on a nightly basis."
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"I'll be honest: It hurt the business a lot. Howard has die-hard fans who do anything he says. Howard can hurt your numbers," Hall said. "My biggest struggle was not against other talk show hosts. It was against an angry Howard."
The Timesasked why he appeared on the show in 2021. "I have pretty thick skin," Hall said. "I heard a therapist use a word called 'weathering' once. When you're Black, between the racism and hate that you experience, there's a weathering that takes place. You build up a callus."
During his appearance onThe Howard Stern Show,Hall said that he was "the fault in that conflict" with Leno, 75. "There was a magazine that asked me about the competition with Letterman and Jay and with Jay I said, 'I know Jay very well and it's like the Lakers and the Clippers. The Clippers lose, but they don't try to lose, they try to win — and I'm going to try and kick his ass,' " Hall said. "Of course, they put a cover out saying I'm going to kick his ass."
While Hall and Stern did not address their conflict directly,Stern was very complimentaryof Hall's TV series. "Going back and observing your talk show, there's some great stuff to go back there and look at," he said. He praised especially appearances by Michael Jackson, Prince and Bill Clinton (with his saxophone) on the show. "You were delivering the f---ing goods," he said, but noted that there was a perception he wasn't doing enough. Hall said that when Johnny Carson leftThe Tonight Showin 1992, the network wanted him to inherit that audience and lean more "conservative."
In 2020, Stern reflected on his old shows and behavior. "I'll be the first to admit. I won't go back and watch those old shows; it's like, 'Who is that guy?' But that was my shtick, that's what I did and I own it," he said in part. ". . . I came to realize in therapy, if I'm going to be with my kids and have a successful marriage, I can't be insane, completely, 24 hours a day. I have to figure out a better way to communicate. So I evolved and changed."
In his interview withThe Times, Hall noted that there is no fighting among late night hosts anymore. "We're in a weird time where the hosts all came together to go against late night's arch nemesis:Donald Trump. It's like Trump kind of galvanized late night. We fought each other for numbers. Now they're all together for a common cause. It's very weird," he said.
Arseniois available at bookstores everywhere beginning Tuesday, March 31.
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