Tichina Arnold has knocked down a lot of doors in Hollywood. Now she wants to play a superhero

No matter how much actors love acting and love Hollywood, the industry doesn’t always love them back. Just ask Tichina Arnold.

After she finished a breakout role on the 1990s Fox sitcom “Martin,” it took almost 10 years for her to find steady footing again when “Everybody Hates Chris” came around on the CW and UPN. When that show ended in 2009, she stumbled around in supporting and guest roles until nabbing “Survivor's Remorse” on Starz in 2014. Her career, in fact, is a portrait of perseverance and stick-with-it-ness.

“Show businesses is like your boyfriend,” she says. “Are you going to love him back when he's not paying you a lot of attention, when he's not taking you out and feeding you? I’ve gone through a lot of those moments through the years. But you find your way and make it happen. That's what we have to continue to do as black women — to knock down those doors.

“You’ve got to love it because when the business didn’t love me back, I still loved it. You’ve got to take the bumps and bruises and heartache and no money and sometimes starving and losing friends — well, people who you thought were friends — because it's a different world.”

Luckily, she doesn’t consider herself a star, so the struggle to be a leading lady hasn’t fazed her much.

“Stars fall,” she says. “I want to be a woman who left a great legacy of work that people can watch for years. And sure I’d like to reap the benefits of getting paid for it. But [after 36 years], I still have to fight over my salary.

“Everything is a fight ... but you have to be up for the challenge.”

How did you get your start in comedic acting?

The comedy came though doing musical theater, but I honestly started my comedy when I was a little kid. In order for me to get out of spankings, I’d think of funny things to do, like putting my underwear in my butt like a wedgie and dancing in front of my mom. Anything I could do to make her laugh. And if I was making her laugh, I wasn’t getting in trouble.

Tichina Arnold with John Grantham, left, and Eric Payne in a 1997 episode of “Martin.” (Kassa Zakadi / 20th Century Fox)

(KASSA ZAKADI / twentieth century fox)

Then I started singing in church at 3, and by the time I was 12, I was driving my mother nuts because I was this big ball of energy. My uncle saw something in me … and suggested I go into show business. Then I did the Billie Holiday Theatre program in Brooklyn. “The Me Nobody Knows” was my first production ever, and when I got a taste of that stage I just never turned back.

I think I fell into the whole comedy thing because that’s what made me comfortable.

Well, you’re known for some tent pole comedic roles, namely Pam from “Martin” and Rochelle from “Everybody Hates Chris.” Do you still have to audition for roles?

Actors must always audition. I think it's good because it allows you to still be competitive and understand how the game has changed. It keeps your chops up.

Are the types of roles you’re getting now different than those from earlier in your career?

I’m getting more opportunities at different roles. But with the industry the way it is, there’s not much written for black women. That’s just the way it is. We need more black writers, more people of color in those rooms making decisions. Every now and again, I get a script that's like, “I’ve got to do this!” But I want to be a good role model for my daughter. When I take a role, it has to be something she can watch.

I’d like to see more women of color as superheroes. I just saw “Wonder Woman” and loved it. I would love to be a superhero.

How did “Martin” come about?

My first audition was in New York. I was born in Jamaica, Queens, so by the time I was 12, I was taking the train to the city by myself. New York just raised me. Culturally, it made me tap into a lot of things about my artistry that I probably would've never done staying in Queens or starting in L.A. The theater world gave me training.

Back then, there was an MGM airlines. I paid $1,500 for my ticket to Los Angeles, one way. Within two weeks, I booked three projects, “Martin” being the third.

I was happy about “Martin.” It was cool because Tisha [Campbell-Martin] was already doing it, but I auditioned like everyone else. Martin [Lawrence] didn’t even know that Tisha and I were close friends.

You’re a veteran in the industry. Why do you think it’s difficult for black women to become comedic superstars?

Because there's a list in Hollywood. I had a top executive tell me this and that I wasn’t on that list. She didn’t know why. But unfortunately, we don't get the same opportunities. That's why I audition for white parts … because why not? It allows them to see a black woman in “white women's roles” and see black women in a different light.

We're constantly pigeonholed. That’s why they don’t see us as superheroes. And when I say “they,” I mean the audience out there because it's never presented to them. And when we’re fed it a little bit, people get excited. To see Halle Berry play Storm [from “X-Men”], it was wonderful and refreshing. We need to get more shots at opportunities like that.

We’ve got to knock down doors, and I've knocked down a lot of doors, but you get used to being told “no.”

And I’ve seen a lot of actors come out of the comedy world and [turn] serious. They get burned out.

Would you ever do stand-up?

That's one thing I will not attempt. I’ll do a one-woman show, but my life is bringing that black-and-white to life. And I’m a survivor. For 36 years in this business, I've seen so many people come and go.

Get your life! Follow me on Twitter (@TrevellAnderson) or email me: trevell.anderson@latimes.com.