It's hard to believe Diff'rent Strokes debuted nearly 40 years ago, and it's tragic to think that Dana Plato and Gary Coleman have passed away too soon (and horribly Dana's son died soon after her untimely death). Whilst there is much racial subtext to this series, it was still fun to watch and Gary Coleman became an overnight sensation big time.I'm not sure if a reboot of Diff'rent Strokes would work now with the election of Trump.

There was an era on NBC where every show was lame except for the Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson. Of all of those shows, this show was the flagship of lame. Sub-standard writing, horrible acting and a script built around one unfunny catch phrase: "What you talking about Willis?"Of course, over the years, there were many variations, "What you talking about Dad?", "What you talking about Kimberly?", "What you talking about Mrs. Garrett?", and then there's the ultimate creative variation, "What you talking about 'insert name of guest star of the week'?"Secondly, has Conrad Bain ever been on a show that had any value? Then they surround him with kids who couldn't act their way out of a loosely tied Walmart bag and an old hag with a quivering voice? This is comedy? Worse yet, you can see the child actors often mouthing the lines of their costars while awaiting their canned "humorous" reply, or their eyes wandering left to right as they read their poorly written lines from a cue card.To further the vomit aspect, they bring in friends of Arnold to add to the fun. The annoying little girl crush, the kid in a wheelchair (to posture the show as caring and all inclusive) and his pet gold fish, with which he has heart to heart talks. And as ratings fell through the floor, big name guest stars would be brought in to help salvage the shipwreck.And of course, as expected each one would be asked, "What you talking about?"And yet there seems to be nothing but praise for this steaming pile of canned laugh track sitcom from NBC's era of suck. More than 1 star, seriously? No wonder all the child stars of this show crashed and burned. If it was this pathetic on the surface, I can only imagine how bad things were behind the scenes.In summary, I could eat a box of Apha-Bits and crap a better script than any episode of this show, 1 star because zero isn't an option.

And the kids out there, were all terrific. I just regret one thing - to have tried to know about their personal lives. I broke to tears when I read them, and whenever I watch the DVD, the sadness catches up with me in one corner. Miss Gary, Plato & Brian. Let them Rest in Peace. Line5 Line6 Line7 Line8 Line9 Problem Fixed IMDb? that's dumb reviewing system. I just wanted to write few words about the show. Why does this site demands me write 10 lines minimum? Don't really have time for this. Just reading this: By submitting this review you are agreeing to the terms laid out in our Copyright Statement. Your submission must be your own original work. Your review will normally be posted on the site within 2-3 business days. Reviews that do not meet the guidelines will not be posted. Please write in English only. HTML or boards mark-up is not supported though paragraph breaks will be inserted if you leave a blank line between paragraph.

Different Strokes (1978-1986): Starring Gary Coleman, Todd Bridges, Conrad Bain, Charlotte Rae, Dana Plato, Mary Jo Catlett, Danny Cooksey, Mary Ann Mobley, Dixie Carter I first saw Different Strokes sometime in the 80's. Being ages 1-9 in the 80's, I don't recall what year it must have been but if the show ended in 86, it must have been either 85 or 86 when the show was wrapping up. I had no idea it was on as far back as 1978. I recall enjoying the opening song, with its thought-provoking theme: "Now the World don't move with the beat of just one drum....it takes different strokes to move the world, yes it does..it takes different strokes to the move the world." During the opening credits, we see Gary Coleman and Todd Bridges looking out of a limo to the vast New York City vista of high-rise buildings.... Nolstalgia! The premise: A wealthy businessman who resides in Manhattan has adopted the children of his late maid. The mixture of black children and white parents must have been new and innovative at the time, like an interracial Brady Bunch. But it seems pretty absurd now, as so many families are interracial. The kids were cute and hilarious. Gary Coleman became a celebrity through this and all subsequent successes was due to his role as Arnold. "What you talking' bout Willis ?"... The show dared to tackle issues that had never been tackled on TV before like unprotected sex, drugs, gangs and racism. The 80's was full of shows which tackled issues like these and often contained inspirational and educational messages to parents and kids after the show was over. I think it was because the 80's was Reagan's reign and he was a strictly conservative President who launched a lot of anti-drug and celibacy programs at a time when AIDS and drugs were a huge problem. This show was well-written and often moving. Actress Charlotte Rae who played Edna Garrett the maid would later move on to "The Facts of Life" yet another popular 80's show.