Last year, Arsenio Hall returned to late night television with “The Arsenio Hall Show” almost twenty years after his original five year run as a late night host came to an end. However, the revival of “The Arsenio Hall Show” has come to an end.
CBS Television Distribution has canceled “The Arsenio Hall Show” after one season despite previously renewing the series back in February. The demise of the series can be traced back to its struggles in the ratings. “The Arsenio Hall Show” launched with 1.9 million viewers before sinking to 0.7 in overall viewers and 0.3 in the coveted 18-49 age group.
A spokesperson for CBS Television Distribution said “While there are many loyal fans of the show, the series did not grow its audience enough to continue. Arsenio is a tremendous talent and we’d like to thank him for all the hard work and energy he put into the show. We’d also like to thank Tribune and all our station group partners for their support of the show.”
Hall’s original late night run grew out of a guest stint on Fox’s “The Late Show.” Hall went on to host “The Arsenio Hall Show” for Paramount in 1989 and he had a very successful stint that brought younger viewers to late night. An early guest appearance on Hall’s show by then Presidential candidate Bill Clinton has been a highly cited cultural milestone of Clinton’s eventual election to President.
In a brief statement, Hall addressed the end of his comeback series. “When I started this adventure with CTD and Tribune, we all knew it would be a challenge – I’m gratified for the year we’ve had and proud of the show we created. I’d like to thank everyone on my staff for rallying around me and striving to make the best show possible every night.”
