Arsenio Hall - Hardcover

Aficionados of Hall's talk show will snap up this light, readable history. King ( Everybody Loves Oprah ) affects a tell-all approach, but in fact has produced a hero-worshipping biography. Nonetheless, he provides a factual account of Hall's Cleveland childhood, scarred by battles between his incompatible parents, a rigid clergyman and a witty, tolerant health-care worker, who separated when their son was in grade school. King also covers Hall's college years at Kent State, his apprenticeship as a magician and later a comic, his friendship with movie star Eddie Murphy. The performer's youthful dream of emulating Johnny Carson became reality in 1989 when he began hosting his own talk show, a fast-moving, hip program that has become a major attraction of the post-prime-time hours. King includes lengthy quotes from Hall's unbuttoned exchanges with guests that vividly demonstrate the show's appeal; his own prose tends more toward hackneyed descriptions (the studio audience greets Hall's first program with "a frenzy of jubilation"), overstated metaphors (Carson's departure is "an earthquake of unprecedented proportions") and similar forays into show-biz hype. Photos not seen by PW .
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Billed as the first biography of the late-night superstar, this book is a glossy look at the popular talk-show host. Dispensing with early biographical details in the first two of the book's 19 brief chapters, King goes on to chronicle Hall's beginnings in stand-up comedy and his later forays into television and the movies. The book focuses on his current talk show on CBS and his earlier venture on the Fox network, with much of the material apparently drawn from the popular press, especially Vanity Fair, Rolling Stone, and Newsday. This is not an essential purchase, but libraries with substantial television collections may want to consider.
- Carolyn M. Mulac, Chicago P.L.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.