Aresenio Hall will tell the story of his life and career in a memoir, People magazine reports.
Atria/Black Privilege will publish the entertainer’s Arsenio: A Memoir next spring. In the book, the publisher says, Hall “reveals the ups and downs of his remarkable career as a trailblazing pioneer with this behind-the-scenes, star-studded, no-holds-barred memoir of celebrity, race, and show business.”
Hall worked as a stand-up comedian and actor before launching The Arsenio Hall Show in 1989. The syndicated late-night talk show quickly became a hit with younger viewers and a pop culture phenomenon, drawing guests such as Eddie Murphy, Paula Abdul, and Bill Clinton. Clinton, at the time governor of Arkansas and a presidential candidate, memorably wore sunglasses and played a rendition of “Heartbreak Hotel” on saxophone.
The show was canceled in 1994 and brought back to the air in 2013, running for less than a year. Since then, Hall has appeared in films including Coming 2 America and television series such as The Mayor and All About the Washingtons.
“This bracingly candid memoir offers a new appreciation for this raw talent and gifted storyteller, who nightly, for six years, hosted what felt like a televised ‘party’ that changed the landscape of late-night television and brought Black culture into living rooms across America,” Atria/Black Privilege says of the memoir.
Arsenio is slated for publication on April 7, 2026.
Michael Schaub is a contributing writer.
