In 1983 Tom Arnold got his first taste of stand-up comedy when he performed at open microphone nights at the University of Iowa. Tom's comedy career had its ups and downs over the next several years until 1988, when he entered the Minneapolis Comedy Competition and won first place. With this victory in hand he decided to move to Los Angeles to pursue a stand-up comedy career. Once he hit Los Angeles, things happened fast. That same year he was hired as a staff writer for Roseanne's TV sitcom Roseanne and began to appear regularly on the show as "Arnie Thomas". He and Roseanne were married in 1990, with Arnold converting to Judaism prior to the marriage. They formed Rapello County Productions to develop projects for themselves.

The couple's marriage, together with their sometimes outrageous behavior, attracted media attention - and especially that of the tabloids - like a magnet. In 1994 conditions between the two deterioriated and they went through a very public, and acrimonious, diforce. Tom has been married twice since then and is the co-host of Fox Sports Net's talk show The Best Damn Sports Show Period. He also does voiceover work, and provides the voice for the "Oven Mitt" character in the TV commercials for the Arby's restaurant chain.
Nephew of Kay Arnold Participated in the Seattle Hockey Challenge in 2005 - he coached one of the teams. Earned an Associate's degree from Indian Hills Community College Obtained a Bachelor's degree from the University of Iowa His wife, Shelby Roos, is a political consultant.