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With much anticipation, many Americans (especially African-Americans) were tuned in Monday night for the return of Arsenio Hall. The comedian/actor made his big debut back to late night television with the very first episode of the “All New Arsenio Hall Show”.

 

Between 1989 and 1994, Arsenio Hall’s talk show was once a top rated program who garnered very high ratings amongst the urban community. Arsenio’s mixture of humor, celebrity interviews, musical acts, and audience participation (i.e. the infamous “dog pound” yell) was what propelled the show into becoming a respected and well-watched program.  Unfortunately, it was a hour-long interview with Minister Louis Farrakhan that was the ultimate end-all-be-all for The Arsenio Hall Show.

 

Fast-forward almost 20 years, the All New Arsenio Hall Show decided not to create something brand new. Instead, producers brought back a bit of nostalgia with the opening comedy act and musical band called “The Posse”. Also, the production set is very familiar too. The only thing that really changed visually was Arsenio. He seems to have aged gracefully.

 

For the first episode, , special guests included Chris Tucker and Snoop Dogg. Paula Abdul and Jay Leno also popped their heads in too for a quick cameo.   This week, other celebrity guests will include Nas, Magic Johnson, Earth, Wind & Fire, Angela Bassett, and the new judging panel for Simon Cowell’s “X Factor” singing show.

 

So, how did Arsenio Hall fair up?  Some critics believed the new show seemed outdated, which caused many viewers to rate it as “so so”.  Out of 5 stars, the show may have averaged a 3.  Although, the show is still one to grow on, we all still have high hopes for Arsenio.  He’s been living quietly for many years now. So, it is good to see he has another shot.

 

If you want to keep up with Arsenio’s show, go to www.arseniohall.com.

 

Tell us what you thought of the show. Should Arsenio Hall quit it or continue?