Tom Arnold Biography, Wife Or Spouse, Net Worth And Other Facts

Quick Facts

Tom Arnold name is mostly known for two things – starring alongside in True Lies and being a former husband of Roseanne Barr. But while the man hasn’t had any other project to overshadow the prominence of the above-mentioned facts about his life, he is a man of many interests and has a diverse resume that cuts across screenwriting, comedy, and politics.

Tom Arnold’s Biography

Often times, we look at actors, and celebrities and think their lives are perfect, with no reason to be sad or be in pain. Often times, we forget that before they became stars that the world gawked over, they were just people with their own pasts and history. To say Tom had a difficult past would be putting his history kindly.

Tom Arnold is an Iowa native, born in Ottumwa to Jack Arnold and Linda Kay. Things were going seemingly well in the Arnold family until his mother left the family when Tom was just a child, abandoning Tom and his siblings to their father. Raising six children is a tough job for two persons already not to mention leaving that responsibility for just one person. Having to combine the responsibility of providing for their needs and being with them, compromises would have to be made. Unfortunately, in the case of Tom, those compromises meant he was sexually molested by his babysitter between the age of 4 and 7.

Supporting a large family of six was hard for his father, so Tom and his siblings took to the streets to help in whatever way they can in complementing the income of the family. Tom, sought work in different places but ultimately found work at a meatpacking plant. Tom combined his work at the plant with high school. After graduating from high school, Tom proceeded to college where he majored in business administration and writing. He graduated from the University of Iowa.

Perhaps it was a case of using humor to hide the emotional issues he dealt with growing up, but whatever it was, he would ditch his business administration degree for a career in stand-up comedy. Thankfully for Tom, it did not turn out to be a bad decision as he was discovered by 80s/90s sitcom star, Roseanne Barr and she signed him to be a writer on her show.

From working together, the two developed affection for each other and they got married shortly after. The attention of being married to one TV most successful TV actress gave Arnold a media publicity that helped him get his own TV show, The Jackie Thomas Show. Unfortunately, it did not share the same success with the show that brought him to the limelight.

Tom Arnold’s career progressed despite the setback of The Jackie Thomas Show. In 1994, he got a lifetime opportunity to star alongside one of the biggest action stars in movie history, Arnold Schwarzenegger, playing his humorous sidekick in True Lies, a movie directed by superstar director, James Cameron.

Along with starring in feature films, Tom also hosted shows, like The Best Damn Sports Show Period, My Big Redneck Wedding. He has also participated in reality shows like I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!

His filmography includes movies like Nine Months, Mr. Magoo, Judge Dredd, Happy Endings and Homo Erectus. He has appeared in over 50 movie/TV projects since he began his career in the 80s. Over his career, he has battled alcoholism and drug addiction, he did, however, overcome it and now he’s sober.

Net Worth

Tom Arnold is worth $30 million. His wealth despite a lack of a filmography with commercially successful projects comes from his marriage to Roseanne Barr. The divorce from the TV star turned out to be a lucrative move for him, with the terms of the prenuptial agreement earning him up to $20 million. His revenue from comedy and royalties from past projects has helped him maintain his wealth.

Is He Married? Wife/Spouse

Tom has been married four times, he was first married to Roseanne Barr. The couple got married in 1990 but after four years of a turbulent marriage, the two got divorced. He got married again to Julie Lynn Champnella in 1995 but after another four years, the two got separated and eventually divorced. Tom, not a man to give up on love, tried again with Shelby Roos in 2002 and the marriage lasted longer than his first two, but after 6 years, the two went their separate ways. In what he hopes will be his last marriage, he is now married to Ashley Groussman. The couple got hitched in 2009 and they are still going strong. They currently have two children and four dogs.

Other Facts To Know About Tom Arnold

Arnold is a practicing Judaist

Although Arnold was raised as a Methodist and was expected to stay one, his marriage to Roseanne Barr converted him to Judaism and he has stayed one ever since.

He started out as a prop comedian

Tom started a career as a comedian at the age of 23 in the early 80s. He had a prop based routine which he titled Tom Arnold and the Goldfish Review.

Arnold is a vocal political commentator

Since the ascension of  into the White as President of the United States, Arnold has joined a host of Hollywood stars as vocal critics of the American president.

His marriage to Roseanne Barr was weird

The relationship between the two attracted a lot of attention, not just because of the implications of the relationship for his career but also their conduct while they were together. Tom had a tattoo of Roseanne’s face on his chest while Roseanne tattooed his name across her buttocks.

Although more famously known as Tom Arnold, his birth certificate reads Thomas Duane Arnold.

Also Read: Top 10 Richest People in the world with full biography and details.