{{Short description|Trinidadian comedian (1949–2020)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=October 2020}} {{Infobox comedian | name = Dennis "Sprangalang" Hall | image = | caption = | birth_name = Dennis Hall | birth_place = | birth_date = {{birth date|df=yes|1949|09|30}} | death_date = {{death date and age|df=yes|2020|10|2|1949|09|30}} | death_place = Mt. Hope, Trinidad and Tobago | height = | years_active = 1976–2020 | medium = Stand-up | genre = Observational comedy, Trinidadian humour, satire, self-deprecation | subject = Trinidad and Tobago culture, current events, everyday life | spouse = Natasha Nurse }} '''Dennis "Sprangalang" Hall''' (30 September 1949 – 2 October 2020) was a Trinidadian comedian, historian, actor, producer and singer/composer.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.guardian.co.tt/entertainment/2013-10-20/celebrating-genius-tony-hall |title=Celebrating the genius of Tony Hall|publisher=Guardian Media|date=21 October 2013 |website=Guardian Trinidad and Tobago Online |access-date=23 December 2016}}</ref> His work has a mostly Trinidadian character and lies in its extremely local nature. Hall starred in the 2003 situation comedy ''Lord Have Mercy!'' which was produced in Canada for VisionTV but has also aired on Caribbean International Network and other television stations in the Caribbean in the years since it was produced. He was also featured in the 2007 Canadian feature film ''A Winter Tale'', written, directed and produced by Frances-Anne Solomon, as well as the stage play ''A Man in the Bedroom'', alongside fellow Trinidadian comedian Errol Fabien in 2010.<ref name="New York Daily News">{{cite web | last = Maccalister | first = Jared | title = L.I. Caribbean-American International Festival to honor one of its greats | newspaper = New York Daily News | date = 7 August 2010 | url = http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/caribbean-american-international-festival-honor-greats-article-1.203267}}</ref>
==Career== Sprangalang had originally wanted to be a school teacher due to his concerns over what children were being taught in schools in Trinidad and Tobago. He first appeared on the Trinidad and Tobago National Television Show Gayelle, as the character "Draxi" on a segment called "Cultural Sprangalang".<ref>{{Cite web|last=Baksh|first=Vaneisa|date=2020-10-03|title=Vaneisa: The Gentle Observer—remembering the ‘Cultural Sprangalang’|url=https://wired868.com/2020/10/03/vaneisa-the-gentle-observer-remembering-the-cultural-sprangalang/|access-date=2020-10-12|website=Wired868|language=en-US}}</ref>
He was a lifetime member of the Trinbago Unified Calypsonians' Organisation (TUCO).<ref name=":0" />
Hall suffered a seizure in June 2019, and died on 2 October 2020 at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex in Mt Hope. His brother, the playwright Anthony "Tony" Hall, had died a few months earlier.<ref name=":0">{{cite news|url=https://www.looptt.com/content/dennis-sprangalang-hall-has-died|title=Dennis "Sprangalang" Hall has died|website=Loop Trinidad and Tobago|access-date=4 October 2020}}</ref>
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== * {{Discogs artist|Sprangalang}} *{{imdb name|id=1821572}}
Category:1949 births Category:2020 deaths Category:Male comedians Category:Trinidad and Tobago television personalities