Word: hall
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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Brown and Bonacci are two of his relatively few close friends. Another is Murphy, whom he met at Los Angeles' Comedy Store in 1980. "Eddie's the brother I never had," says Hall. "We share intimate secrets. We cry together. There's no competitiveness between us. When I called and told him I had been signed by Paramount, he couldn't have been happier." Though Hall has been linked with Murphy's so-called black pack -- a group of young black performers and filmmakers, among them actor-directors Robert Townshend and Keenen Ivory Wayans -- Hall says the others are only...
Speculation about Hall's girlfriends has ranged from Dynasty's Emma Samms (they dated a few years ago, says Hall, but are no longer involved) and Newhart's Mary Frann (too old for him, he insists) to singer-choreographer Paula Abdul ("just very good friends"). Hall refuses to identify the current "special woman" in his life and claims to spend much of his time after hours by himself. "My life is in front of people," he says, "so when I go home, I don't want to hear voices...
...garage houses two cars: a white 1986 Jaguar XJS and a Mustang convertible. He stays in close touch with his mother, who is a big fan ("No one barks louder at my show than my mom") and for whom he bought a condo in West Hollywood. For relaxation, Hall tried painting for a while but gave it up; took tennis lessons but "hated them." Says he: "I'm not an outdoor person...
Which pretty much leaves work. In addition to the five-day-a-week grind of his show, Hall has taped some antidrug commercials and is working with Reebok to promote a shoe that would "pay tribute to antiapartheid awareness." He co-wrote and co-produced his new Chunky A record album. Its cuts include a comic rap number, a satire of raunch rock ("Let me check your oil with my dipstick") and a straight-faced antidrug anthem titled Dope...
After meshing amiably with Murphy in Coming to America (in which he played multiple roles, ranging from a grizzled barber-shop customer to a fiery evangelist), Hall seems poised for a movie breakthrough. In Harlem Nights, which Murphy wrote and directed, Hall is onscreen for only a few minutes, as a gangster who "hates Eddie's guts." He is currently talking with producers Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer (Beverly Hills Cop) about starring in an action-comedy, which would probably be shot next fall. "By then," Hall says, "either I'll have a grasp on what I'm doing...