David A. Arnold, a comedian best known for hosting two Netflix comedy specials, passed away on Wednesday at the age of 54.
The stand-up comedian passed away “from natural causes” at his home, according to his family. He was the showrunner of Nickelodeon’s “That Girl Lay Lay” and a producer on the revival of “Fuller House.”
He had only performed three times thus far during his four-month nationwide comedy tour called “Pace Ya Self.”
“It is with great sadness that we confirm the untimely passing of our husband, father, brother and friend, David A. Arnold,” his family told the LA Times.
“David passed away peacefully today in his home and doctors have ruled the cause of death due to natural causes.”
“Please keep our family in prayer and respect our privacy at this time, as we are all shocked and devastated by this loss,” the statement concluded.
Arnold discussed his illustrious comedic career with Jalen Rose for his weekly column in The Post only one week before he passed away. He recalled how his first attempt at an open mic night failed. But years later, after a career in the Navy, D.L. Hughley motivated him to give it another shot.
“And the next thing you know, I was a comedian,” he told Rose. “And that’s when I realized: You gotta bomb. You got to take it in the face and you still got to want to do it.”
Arnold, who hailed from Ohio, kickstarted his writing career at the Montreal Comedy Festival and later appeared on “Jamie Foxx Presents Laffapalooza.”
Arnold gained two Netflix stand-up specials after making his name known; his first one was released in 2019 and was titled “David A. Arnold: Fat Ballerina.”
Kevin Hart produced his second Netflix special, “It Ain’t For The Weak,” which was made available in July of this year.
The popular Nickelodeon programme “That Girl Lay Lay” was created and executive produced by Arnold, who is also well known for this.
On “Fuller House,” “Meet The Browns,” and “Tyler Perry’s House of Payne,” he also worked as a writer and producer.
His wife Julie Harkness and their two children Anna-Grace and Ashlyn are left to carry on without him.
Arnold shared a clip of his comedic act on Instagram only hours before he tragically passed away.
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“I’ll never forget the day my oldest decided between my wife and me who she was gonna send to the nursing home,” he captioned the post.
Celebrities and fans alike have been paying tribute to the comic on social media after news of his death came to light.
“Devastated to hear of the passing of David A. Arnold. He was a beloved member of our Fuller House writing team, one of the funniest comedians I’ve ever seen & an all-around wonderful man,” tweeted Bryan Behar, a TV writer, and producer.
“David was finally experiencing the fruits of decades of work. May his memory be a blessing.”
