Following his reported seizure a few weeks ago on the set of The Insider, Gary Coleman has again popped up on our screens and monitors; his rise, fall and the occasional waving and / or drowning appearances ever dissolving the layman’s dream of child stardom.
Coleman suffers from a congenital kidney disease which stunted his growth at an early age. He is 4 ft 8 in tall. He earned his fame in the TV shows The Jeffersons and Different Strokes, which aired from 1978 to 1986. He was the most popular character in the latter, propelled by his charisma and famous catchphrase; “Whatchootalkin’ ‘bout Willis?” He was paid as much as $100,000 per episode, but is said to have received about of a quarter of that figure after his parents, lawyers, advisors and the IRS took their cut. It seems there may have been a payday loan.
The Different Strokes star has scarcely been able to enjoy the success of his child-star days, after his adoptive parents and former manager squandered the fruits of his toil. Coleman sued his one-time guardians and manager in 1989 and won $1.28 million 4 years later in 1993. He applied for bankruptcy in 1999.
After Different Strokes was cancelled, Coleman appeared in a plethora of made-for-TV movies and as in cameo roles in highly successful series such as The Simpsons, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and Family Guy.
Despite these appearances which have lamented his status as a cult idol of sorts, over the last decade Coleman has repeatedly found himself as the centerpiece of tabloid scandals, including an assault rap, for which the star was charged with punching a female who harassed him about his lackluster career, yet, was still expecting an autograph. Further turmoil’s included disorderly conduct and domestic disputes with his wife, Shannon Price in 2007 and 2009 respectively (the pair were married two months after the disorderly conduct misdemeanor), an automobile accidentin 2008, again the victim was a ‘fan’ who hassled Coleman, this time for a photograph, and finally, Coleman was charged with domestic violence on January 24th of this year.
As I wrote this article, a Wikipedia rumor surfaced that Gary Coleman died yesterday, the 8th of March in bizarre circumstances. It was pulled from Wikipedia a few hours later. Rumors like this one have been circulating for months. It seems that child stars are fast becoming piñatas for the people.
