The Facts of Life was in good hands with Leachman. That series The Facts of Life ran for nine seasons, surpassing the eight-year run enjoyed by Strokes. [20] In 2007, Coleman was cited for disorderly conduct in Provo, Utah, for having a "heated discussion" with a woman. The second housekeeper, Adelaide Brubaker, was played by Nedra Volz. 02/28 - Growing Pains - The Complete Series On the 1982 "Silver Spoons" episode "The Great Computer Caper," privileged Ricky met the also-wealthy Arnold Jackson (Gary Coleman). The show is wonderfully popular and the public loves all the characters, but I just felt I had done all that I could do with Mrs. Garrett. Since completing high school, Astin has kept very busy acting in both TV and movies. [16], In addition, whilst not official in-universe cross-overs, two sixth season stories saw characters meeting stars of two of NBC's other biggest shows: the episode Mr. T and mr. t sees Mr. T guest starring when the apartment block is used to film a (fictional) episode of The A-Team; and in the two-part "Hooray for Hollywood," Arnold and Dudley sneak onto the set of a (fictional) episode of Knight Rider in hope of meeting series star, David Hasselhoff. Rae went on to guest star on TV shows like ER, Pretty Little Liars, Sisters, and The King of Queens, and appeared in movies such as Dont Mess with the Zohan and Tom and Jerry: The Movie. Another episode involved a con artist (played by Whitman Mayo) posing as a relative of Arnold and Willis in an attempt to get access to the inheritance they were left by a former neighbor. Entertainment Weekly may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. While not a spin-off, Hello, Larry (19791980) had a connection to Strokes as it was established in a crossover episode that Philip Drummond and Larry Alder (McLean Stevenson) were old Army buddies and Mr. Drummond had bought the company that owned the radio station where Larry worked as a talk show host. Due to Plato's pregnancy and publicized substance abuse issues, she had been dropped from the regular cast at the end of the previous season. Status of FOX TV Shows, Cancelled or Renewed? For nine seasons, The Facts of Life was a staple of NBCs primetime schedule. The boys then feel uncomfortable around her and when they begin making jokes about her seizures, they find out that housekeeper Pearl herself has epilepsy but, unlike Karen, controls her seizures with medication. First mentioned in the first-season episode "The Fight," which revolves around his bullying of Arnold, he is mentioned in numerous episodes (and his bullying of Arnold returned as the center of several plots), with Arnold's frequent descriptions of him as a burly and troublesome brute, forever looking for trouble but not very smart. Vanity Fair may earn a portion of sales from products that are purchased through our site as part of our Affiliate Partnerships with retailers. Apple TV+ Series Frog and Toad Premieres Friday, April 28; Disney+ Reveals American Born Chinese Details Two unofficial docudramas were produced about the show: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (formerly Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment) has released Seasons 1 and 2 of Diff'rent Strokes on DVD in Region 1 & 4. The Story Behind Charlotte Rae's Decision to leave Diff'rent Strokes In the fall of 1985, when the series moved to ABC for the seventh season, Arnold, Dudley and Lisa entered high school, where they gained a new friend in Charlie (Jason Hervey). Additionally, Arnold appeared on the Silver Spoons episode "The Great Computer Caper" and the Amazing Stories episode "Remote Control Man". Im feeling so terrific and so glad to be above ground. I . By far, the most popular and enduring element "Diff'rent Strokes" unleashed into the popular culture was the catchphrase uttered countless times by star Gary Coleman as sassy kid Arnold Jackson. Privacy Policy. With Willis dropped into the background slightly, this new brotherly duo took center stage for many storylines. Cloris made me a fan! decades later, his son Robin Thicke would join the family business, becoming a chart-topping singer/songwriter. Adelaide Housekeeper. The latter is one of the few he also performed himself, along with the "Diff'rent Strokes" opening tune, which Thicke sang with his then-wife, Gloria Loring. Diff'rent Strokes - Wikiquote [43], The series had graded its audio tracks to AAC 2 Channels. According to the New York Times, his initial salary on "Diff'rent Strokes" was commensurate with his experience he earned $1,800 per episode. The 'Diff'rent Strokes' Show Quiz | Zoo Edna Garrett | The Facts of Life Wiki | Fandom I'm so HAPPY she left because to me FOL became a comedy! In the first, season 5's "A Growing Problem," Willis moves out of the penthouse to live with Jerry (Lawrence Monoson) who abuses alcohol. Now, I want you both to apologize to her! Why did Adelaide leave Different Strokes? The latter's Tandem Productions brought "Diff'rent Strokes" to TV in the 1970s, so it was a candidate for a revival via the show's format of high-profile actors re-creating an old episode, then broadcast live. When the dispute was ultimately settled, Coleman returned to the series, missing only two more episodes (season 7's "The Gymnasts" and "Baseball Blues"). In an Oct. 17, 1986 interview with the Orlando Sentinel, via Newspapers.com, Rae explained her departure. She broke into television playing Sylvia Schnauser, the wife of Al Lewis Officer Leo Schnauser on Car 54, Where Are You? For awhile, she co-hosted an Arizona radio show with Growing Pains Alan Thicke (who coincidentally wrote the Facts of life theme-song). She was written out to start The Facts of Life. Shes been the voice of Velma in animated Scooby Doo projects since 2004. No infringement of previously copyrighted material is intended on this site. Garrett feels that her life goals have not been fulfilled and she wants to leave her job. Rae got her start in the theater, eventually acting on Broadway. Plato's publicized brushes with substance abuse contributed to this decision, resulting in her dismissal from the series at the end of the sixth season. On-screen this was explained with her character often said to be away at her private school; in reality the producers were still undecided whether the character was extraneous to the format, with the option that she could simply be faded into the background and written out as away studying should they choose to drop her. 05/23 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Complete Season Eleven / The Complete Season Twelve October 15, 1958 Opa-locka, Florida, U.S. The show began airing in 1979; Garrett stuck with it until the eighth season, eventually bowing out due to health problems. After the series, she earned a degree in cultural anthropology from Loyola Marymount University. She changed her last name to Austin and has issued five albums. Phillip Drummond is the only character to appear in every episode of the series. Bridges, Plato and Catlett were all absent from the episode, and several cast members later voiced their disappointment that they had not realized it would be the final episode, and would have liked to have been present to mark the end of the series onscreen more adequately. By this time while still pulling in reasonable viewing figures, ratings were beginning to fall, so producers decided to add several new characters to the cast to freshen the series up and open up future storylines. In 2004, Coleman appeared on the second season of The Surreal Life and was pressured to quote his famous catchphrase by Vanilla Ice. Her death was ruled a suicide. Despite having made $25,000 an episode while on the series, she was often broke and was working as a cashier at a dry cleaning store. "There will just be a new Maggie," star Conrad Bain said, referring to how producers opted to recast the character of Maggie, bringing in actor Mary Ann Mobley. When that series ended in 1997, she guest-starred on several other series like Cupid, The Drew Carey Show, and The Division (alongside McKeon). An oft-mentioned character spanning the entire show's run, was "The Gooch", a notorious bully at Arnold's school. As much as she was beloved by TV watchers throughout the 80s, she remained associated with the beloved character of Mrs. Garrett thanks to reruns. She took over when Charlotte Rae left after seven seasons. [39] Season 7 was released on February 27, 2018. By the time the comedy went into production in 1978, Thicke had established a healthy sideline as a theme song composer he also wrote the music for the game shows "Stumpers," "Celebrity Sweepstakes," "The Joker's Wild," and "The Wizard of Odds." Stickle took over Garretts duties at Over Our Heads. Her role as the girl's mentor was taken over by her sister, Beverly Ann Stickle. More Recent and Upcoming TV DVD Releases / DVD Reviews Archive / SitcomsOnline Digest homophobia. The show began airing in 1979; Garrett stuck with it until the eighth season, eventually bowing out due to health problems. In February 1988, he was arrested and charged with the attempted murder of a drug dealer at a crack house in South Central Los Angeles. 05/23 - Go On - The Complete Series Mrs. Garrett is a Democrat. "Diff'rent Strokes" wasn't the only early '80s NBC sitcom about a little boy thrust into a world of wealth and luxury the network also broadcast "Silver Spoons," starring Ricky Schroeder as Ricky Stratton, a kid who meets and moves in with his immature, toy company heir father. As with Bridges, Rae was offered the role without audition, but was locked into a contract with CBS; however, Lear was determined to have Rae for the role and used his influence to convince CBS to release her from her contract, freeing her up to be available for the role. Whatever Happened To The Cast Of Diff'rent Strokes? - Looper And in 1996, a decade after a move to ABC and then cancellation for "Diff'rent Strokes," Bain and Coleman reprised their roles as Philip and Arnold Drummond, respectively, in a brief appearance on the series finale of NBC's "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air," as prospective buyers of the Banks' family's mansion. 05/23 - Go On - The Complete Series "Diff'rent Strokes" already launched one successful spinoff in 1979, "The Facts of Life," when housekeeper Mrs. Garrett took a job at a private school, and in 1981, producers tried it again with the Season 3 episode "Almost American," a backdoor pilot for a new sitcom called "Night School.". Well guess what happens next. The reason for this, in part, was that it was in Rae's contract that she be allowed to return to Diff'rent Strokes should The Facts of Life be canceled.