Background and career
Gary Wayne Coleman (February 8, 1968 – May 28, 2010) was an American actor, known as a high-profile child star of the late 1970s and 1980s. Born in Zion, Illinois, Coleman grew up with his adoptive parents. Due to the corticosteroids and other medications used to treat a kidney disease, his growth was limited to 4 ft 8 in (142 cm). In the mid-1970s, he appeared in commercials and acted in an episode of Medical Center. He caught the attention of a producer after acting in a pilot for a revival of The Little Rascals (1977), who decided to cast him as Arnold Jackson in the sitcom Diff'rent Strokes (1978–1986), a role that launched Coleman into stardom. For playing the role of Arnold he received several accolades, which include two Young Artist Awards; in 1980 for Outstanding Contribution to Youth Through Entertainment and in 1982 for Best Young Actor in a Comedy Series; and three People's Choice Awards; consecutive three wins for Favorite Young TV Performer from 1980 to 1983; as well as nominations for two TV Land Awards. He was rated first on a list of VH1's "100 Greatest Kid Stars", and an influential child actor. Coleman was the highest-paid child actor on television throughout the late 1970s and 1980s. During his prime, he reprised the role of Jackson in Hello, Larry (1979), The Facts of Life (1979–1980), Silver Spoons (1982), and Amazing Stories (1985). He acted in high-profile television series such as The Jeffersons, Good Times (both 1978), Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (1979–1980), and Simon & Simon (1986). He starred in the television films The Kid from Left Field (1979), Scout's Honor (1980), The Kid with the Broken Halo (1982), The Kid with the 200 I.Q. (1983), The Fantastic World of D.C. Collins (1984), and Playing with Fire (1985). Additionally, he was the star of his own Saturday morning cartoon The Gary Coleman Show (1982). He also headlined two motion pictures, On the Right Track (1981) and Jimmy the Kid (1982), both financial successes. Coleman struggled financially in later life; in 1989, he successfully sued his parents and business adviser over misappropriation of his assets, only to declare bankruptcy a decade later. Very few details of Coleman's medical history have been made public, although his battles with issues such as growth deficiency, substance abuse, and depression during his life earned significant media coverage. Moving forward, a lot of his acting career consisted of him playing himself in guest appearances on television shows and films. He played roles in various television shows and films, which were rarely recurring roles. He also provided his acting talents to two video games, The Curse of Monkey Island (1997) and Postal 2 (2003). Coleman died at Utah Valley Regional Medical Center in Provo, Utah, on May 28, 2010, aged 42. He had been admitted two days earlier after falling down the stairs at his home in Santaquin and striking his head, resulting in an epidural hematoma.
Gary Wayne Coleman was born on February 8, 1968, in Zion, Illinois. He was adopted by W. G. Coleman, a fork-lift operator, and Edmonia Sue, a nurse practitioner. Due to focal segmental glomerulosclerosis, a kidney disease, and the corticosteroids and other medications used to treat it, his growth was limited to 4 ft 8 in (142 cm), and his face kept a childlike appearance even into adulthood.
In 1974, Coleman's career began when he appeared in a commercial for Harris Bank. His line (after the announcer said, "You should have a Harris banker") was "You should have a Hubert doll." "Hubert" was a stuffed lion representing the Harris bank logo. The same year, he appeared in an episode of Medical Center.
In 1977, Coleman appeared in a pilot for a revival of The Little Rascals as Stymie, which ultimately ended up not getting picked up as a series. His work on the Little Rascals pilot caught the attention of an executive, and in 1978 Coleman was cast as Arnold Jackson in Diff'rent Strokes, playing one of two black brothers from Harlem adopted by a wealthy white widower in Manhattan. After the premiere, Diff'rent Strokes became a hit, and ran for eight seasons, ending in 1986.
Coleman received recognition and praise for his work on Diff'rent Strokes; for his role he received five Young Artist Award nominations, of which he won two, and won the People's Choice Awards for Favorite Young TV Performer four years in a row, from 1980 to 1983. At the height of his fame on Diff'rent Strokes, he earned $100,000 ($388,105.58 in 2025) per episode, and he became known for his character's catchphrase "What'chu talkin' 'bout, Willis?", uttered skeptically in response to statements by his brother Willis, who was portrayed by Todd Bridges. According to Bridges' autobiography Killing Willis, Coleman was forced to work long hours on the set of Diff'rent Strokes despite his age and debilitating health problems, which contributed to him feeling depressed and withdrawn from the rest of the cast. A Biography Channel documentary estimated that Coleman was left with a quarter of the original amount of money he received from his years on Diff'rent Strokes after paying his parents, advisers, lawyers, and taxes. In 1989, Coleman sued his adoptive parents and former business advisor for $3.8 million for misappropriating his trust fund and won a $1.28 million (approximately $2,846,895 in 2025 adjusting for inflation) judgment in 1993. In 1978, Coleman acted in one episode of The Jeffersons, and two of Good Times.. Coleman also made his first appearance on The Tonight Show in late 1978. In 1979, Coleman made his television film debut playing the lead in The Kid from Left Field, a baseball comedy. The television film was made by NBC to enhance Coleman's name recognition and boost his commercial value. It was the 15th highest-rated prime time show of the week, with a Nielsen rating of 21.4. In that same year, he acted in "Cosmic Whiz Kid" an episode of the first season of science-fiction show Buck Rogers in the 25th Century as a time-displaced whiz kid; and appeared later in that season, in a 1980 episode named "A Blast for Buck". In 1980, Coleman played the lead in the television film Scout's Honor. In 1981, Coleman made his feature film debut with the comedy On the Right Track, headlining as Lester, a young shoeshine orphan who lives in a locker in a train station, who achieves fame for having an uncanny talent for gambling on horses. Coleman's mother explained that "it was a script written some time ago for someone else, it was rewritten for Gary, reconstructed for him. It was one of several ideas presented us for him. Gary has a very big love for trains, and we thought this might be a good one for him to do". Though it received a number of reviews concluding that it was sappy and capitalizing on Coleman's TV following, many found the film charming, well written, well acted, with Coleman being a solid actor in his first lead role in a motion picture. The film was a financial success, it grossed $13 million at the box office ranking it at 61 on highest grosses of that year. Home video rentals of the film added $10 to $15 millions to the gross income. In 1982, Coleman starred in Jimmy the Kid. The film was financially successful, but received resoundingly negative reviews, with critic Roger Ebert writing "... movies like this don't really have room for brilliant performances. They're written by formula, cast by computer and directed by the book, and when a little spontaneity creeps in, it seems out of place." On April 4 of that year, Coleman starred in the television film The Kid with the Broken Halo. The film served as the basis for Saturday morning cartoon The Gary Coleman Show, which started that year on September 11, where Coleman had the lead voice role as Andy LeBeau, an angel in training who comes to earth to help others and gain his wings. Finally in 1982, Coleman played Arnold Jackson in a crossover episode of Silver Spoons. Moving forward, Coleman played the lead in the comedic television films The Kid with the 200 I.Q. (1983), and The Fantastic World of D.C. Collins (1984). In 1985, Coleman played a teenage arsonist in the television film Playing with Fire. It was his first dramatic project. In 1986, Coleman hosted the made-for-home video educational film Gary Coleman: For Safety's Sake, in it Coleman provides various safety advice around a home.
When Diff'rent Strokes was cancelled in 1986 after eight seasons due to low ratings, Coleman went on a hiatus. Like his Diff’rent Strokes co-stars, he struggled with finding acting roles. From thereon, the majority of Coleman's adult roles were single appearances in television sitcom episodes. He played himself in The Ben Stiller Show, The Jackie Thomas Show, Sherman Oaks, The Parent 'Hood, The Wayans Bros., The Naked Truth, Shasta McNasty, The Simpsons, My Wife and Kids, The Hughleys, Baby Bob, The Parkers, and Drake & Josh. Shows where he played a character were 227, Martin, Unhappily Ever After, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (his last appearance as Arnold Jackson), Married... with Children, Homeboys in Outer Space, The Jamie Foxx Show, The Drew Carey Show, The Rerun Show, Son of the Beach, and Robot Chicken. Coleman also played roles in television films these are Like Father, Like Santa (1998), A Carol Christmas (2003), and A Christmas Too Many (2006). In films, Coleman played himself in S.F.W. (1994), Dirty Work (1998), Shafted! (2000), The Flunky (2000), Frank McKlusky, C.I. (2002), Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star (2003), The Great Buck Howard (2008), and Midgets vs. Mascots (2009). Films where he played a different character were Fox Hunt (1997), Church Ball (2006), and An American Carol (2008).
