From Meatpacking to Hollywood to Stand-Up, Tom Arnold comes full circle with his comedy tour that hits Loonees Comedy Corner this September.

Tom Arnold has lived more lives than most: comedian, actor, writer, even meatpacking worker. But through every twist and turn, stand-up comedy has been the one constant. For Arnold, it’s not just a career; it’s the backbone of his identity.

“I came from a blue-collar background,” he says. “My dad worked at a meatpacking plant, and I worked on the kill floor for three years. But comedy was always in me. I grew up watching Bob Hope, and when I finally saw him live, I knew I wanted to be a stand-up. Years later, my dad actually got to see me standing next to Bob Hope after performing stand up live on that very show on TV. That felt like everything had come full circle.”

From those small-town Iowa beginnings, Arnold’s path quickly expanded. His sharp wit and fearlessness took him from open mics to writing rooms, where he famously met Roseanne Barr, another turning point in his career. Their partnership, both personal and professional, launched Arnold into television and eventually Hollywood. His breakthrough film role came in James Cameron’s blockbuster True Lies, where he played opposite Arnold Schwarzenegger. “I thought there was no way I’d get that role,” Arnold laughs. “But I went in, read with Schwarzenegger, and it just clicked. At one point while Schwarzenegger was walking into the reading room, I whispered to James Cameron, ‘I could take him,’ and James laughed. That sealed it. He gave me the role but told me not to tell anyone for two weeks of course I told everyone but no one believed me until the trailer came out!” 

“Fast forward today and I’m selling ice cube trays at my comedy shows,” referring to his famous scene from the film. He said his famous line “What kind of sick bitch takes the ice cube trays out of the freezer?” was actually something he said referring to Rosanne in the dressing room and it made Cameron laugh so hard that he told Tom he had to implement it into the film. 

Despite his success on screen, Arnold always returns to stand-up. For him, it’s where honesty and connection live. “Audiences expect me to be real,” he says. “I’ve never felt bad after a stand-up show. You can’t take it for granted, you’ve got to be a little nervous, or else it’s not real.”

Colorado, he adds, holds a special place in his comedy journey. “It was one of the comedy meccas when I was starting out. The crowds here are cool, they get my humor. And maybe it’s because I’ve got two ex-wives from Colorado,” he says with a grin.

Looking back on his wild ride, Arnold admits he’d tell his younger self to go easier. “I had so many close calls, it’s a miracle I made it here. I’d say, chill the hell out and stop punishing yourself. Don’t get in fistfights with cops, don’t end up in the back of a squad car.  Honestly though, all of it shaped me, and all of it shows up in my comedy.” After decades in the spotlight, the motivation remains simple. “I never regret doing stand-up,” Arnold says. “It’s the one thing that makes me happy.”

Fans can experience that unfiltered honesty firsthand when Tom Arnold brings his My Crazy Ex-Wife Tour to Loonees Comedy Corner in Colorado Springs on September 19 and 20.