Tom Arnold was born on March 6, 1959, in Ottumwa, Iowa, to Jack and Linda Arnold. He is the youngest of seven siblings. Arnold and his siblings were raised by their father after his mother abandoned the family when he was a child. He attended Ottumwa High School before enrolling at Indian Hills Community College. He studied writing and business administration at the University of Iowa from 1981 to 1983. Arnold’s entertainment career began in the early 1980s with a prop-based comedy routine called “Tom Arnold and the Goldfish Review.”
Personal Life
Arnold met Roseanne Barr in 1983 while performing his prop comedy act. Arnold’s drug and alcohol addiction strained their relationship at first. After getting sober, the couple married in 1990. In 1993, they bought a house in Eldon, Iowa, and opened Roseanne and Tom’s Big Food Diner, which served loose meat sandwiches similar to those served by Lanford Lunch Box on “Roseanne.” The couple divorced in 1994 due to irreconcilable differences, and their restaurant closed the following year.
Arnold then married Julie Lynn Champnella, with whom he divorced in 1999. Shelby Roos was his next wife, whom he married in 2002. In 2008, a divorce was finalised. Arnold married Ashley Groussman over the Thanksgiving holiday in 2009. The couple divorced in 2020 after having two children.
Tom purchased a home in the gated Mulholland Estates community high above Beverly Hills in 1998. Paula Abdul was the seller. Tom sold this house for $7.4 million in 2006. Interestingly, Tom later purchased a home from Randy Jackson, another “American Idol” judge. This house was in the Tarzana neighbourhood of Los Angeles. Tom forked over $1.95 million.
In 2009, he and Groussman paid $1.7 million for a 4,600-square-foot mansion in Beverly Hills’ lower Benedict Canyon neighbourhood. Arnold and Groussman remodelled the entire house. A dual-sided fireplace, a wet bar, a formal dining room with chandeliers, a gym and a master bathroom with marble floors and skylights were among the amenities of the gated, five-bedroom, five-bathroom estate. Meanwhile, the landscaped backyard included a saltwater swimming pool and spa, as well as a lounge and grill. Arnold listed the property for around $3.85 million after his divorce.
Career
Roseanne Barr hired Arnold as a writer for her sitcom “Roseanne,” which was in its second season at the time. Arnold created the character of Arnie Thomas, an ill-tempered but energetic friend of John Goodman’s Dan Conner. The character was frequently seen wearing a sweatshirt from the University of Iowa, which Arnold had attended in real life. Arnie Thomas appeared as a recurring character from seasons two to four, and then as a guest in season five.
Following his stint on “Roseanne,” Arnold launched a new sitcom, “The Jackie Thomas Show,” with his then-wife Roseanne Arnold in 1992. The show lasted 18 episodes and starred Arnold in the titular role of a cynical sitcom actor. Arnold went on to co-create another sitcom with Roseanne called “Tom,” in which he played the titular character for 11 episodes before being cancelled due to low viewership. After appearing on nine episodes of “General Hospital” in 1994, Arnold launched his own sitcom, “The Tom Show.” It ran for 19 episodes.
Later TV appearances include “The Simpsons,” “The Celebrity Apprentice,” “Law & Order: Criminal Intent,” “Sons of Anarchy,” “The First Family,” “Psych,” and “NCIS: New Orleans.” From 2008 to 2009, Arnold was also the host and narrator of the CMT reality show “My Big Redneck Wedding.” In 2017, he appeared on the Australian version of “I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!” He was the first person to be eliminated from the competition after 17 days in the jungle.
Arnold made his film debut in 1991’s “Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare.” He later appeared in “Backfield in Motion,” “Hero,” “Undercover Blues,” and the made-for-television films “Body Bags” and “The Woman Who Loved Elvis,” both of which starred Roseanne Barr. In 1994, Arnold played Arnold Schwarzenegger’s sidekick in James Cameron’s action comedy “True Lies.” Late 1990s film credits included the romcom “Nine Months,” costarring Hugh Grant, Julianne Moore, Robin Williams, and Jeff Goldblum; “Big Bully,” with Rick Moranis; “Carpool,” with David Paymer; the adventure comedy “The Stupids”; and an adaptation of the military comedy television series “McHale’s Navy.”
Arnold appeared in a number of films in the early 2000s, including “Animal Factory,” “Just Sue Me,” “Exit Wounds,” “Cradle 2 the Grave,” “National Lampoon’s Barely Legal,” and “Soul Plane.” In the 2005 film “Happy Endings,” the actor played his first romantic lead role alongside Lisa Kudrow, Steve Coogan, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Laura Dern, and others. Arnold also produced, wrote, and starred in the 2005 film “The Kid & I.” He later appeared in films such as “Homo Erectus,” “Pride,” “Game of Life,” “Palo Alto,” “The Final Season,” “Good Dick,” “Remarkable Power,” and others.
Among his film credits in the 2010s were Tyler Perry’s “Madea’s Witness Protection,” the action comedy “Hit and Run,” the comedy “Dumbbells,” the thriller “The Curse of Downers Grove,” and the biographical comedy/drama “Bigger.”
Net Worth
Tom Arnold is a $20 million net-worth American actor and comedian. He rose to prominence as a stand-up comedian before landing the role of Arnie Thomas on the hit ABC sitcom “Roseanne.” In addition, he appeared on the short-lived sitcoms “The Jackie Thomas Show” and “The Tom Show.” Arnold has appeared in films such as “True Lies,” “Happy Endings,” “The Final Season,” and “Madea’s Witness Protection.”
Facts
| Net Worth | $20 Million |
| Date of Birth | Mar 6, 1959 (64 years old) |
| Place of Birth | Ottumwa |
| Gender | Male |
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) |
| Profession | Actor, Film Producer, Screenwriter, Comedian, Presenter, Television producer, Voice Actor |
| Nationality | United States of America |
