One of the many drawbacks of Donald Trump’s rise to power has been the renewed relevance granted to figures who, like himself, were better off left in the 20th century. Just in the past month, he’s hired Rudy Giuliani, publicly praised Roseanne, and tweeted about phone calls with Sylvester Stallone.
It’s not just his supporters either. The comedian Tom Arnold has landed a TV show with Vice thanks to Trump. Unlike his ex-wife’s rebooted sitcom, though, Arnold’s show is unlikely to draw Trump’s praise.
On The Hunt for the Trump Tapes With Tom Arnold, the star of The Stupids will attempt to track down a treasure trove of lost tapes casting Trump in an unflattering light, Vice says.
The host will draw on his high-profile network of celebrity friends, entertainment executives, and crew members he’s met over more than 35 years in showbiz to dig for evidence on Trump’s most incriminating moments — and, being a comedian and all, he’ll have a little fun along the way. He’ll be backed up by a handful of experienced journalists, and — aside from trying to uncover the tapes themselves — he’ll look into the companies and tycoons who have allegedly fought to keep the damning recordings a secret.
Why Tom Arnold? Because he’s been making noise about these tapes for years. He first tweeted about rumored tapes of Trump using the N-word on the set of The Apprentice four days before the election. He later claimed to be in possession of the tapes, though the title and conceit of his new show would suggest otherwise.
In later tweets Arnold mentioned a “Russian sex tape,” Trump’s “version of the Ray Rice elevator tape,” a video of Trump and Jared Kushner’s dad with “super young Russians in FLA,” a “Miss Teen USA Backstage Tape,” and a “Backstage Miss Universe Tape.” What will he find other than a newfound ability to book stand-up shows at places called Yuk Yuk’s? We get to find out later this year.
