In 1999, the cable network VH1 commissioned a made-for-TV biopic about Meat Loaf’s singing career. Black landed the starring gig, in part because Meat Loaf lobbied for him.
“He was the guy I had requested for the role from day one,” Meat Loaf said. “He’s an actor, but he understands singing. He gets music. He respects the integrity of the lyrics. But then the project got postponed, and his career took off. We couldn’t afford him anymore.”
In an it’s-a-small-world ironies, one thing that catapulted Black to stardom was Tenacious D, a spoof rock `n’ roll duo he created with fellow comic Kyle Gass as part of a stage improv show. While VH1 was trying to get the biopic project back on track, HBO approached Black and Gass about a weekly series based on Tenacious D.
