or don't show this againI am good at figuring things out. In 1981, Plato appeared in the television special A Step in Time,[27] which earned her a second Young Artist Award nomination. the filmmaker told theSeattle Timesafter Renfro died. ", "He's become a metaphor for a fallen angel, a messiah," former girlfriend Martha Plimpton, his co-star inThe Mosquito Coast andRunning on Empty, alsotold Esquire. Dana Plato was a child actress on the television show Diff'rent Strokes. The next day, May 8, 1999, Plato died of a toxic combination of the painkiller Lortab (hydrocodone) and the muscle relaxant Somaboth of which she had been prescribed for back pain, lingering. Portrait of Dana Plato in the '80s | Photo: Getty Images. This browser does not support getting your location. Her questionable luck kicked in early on -- Dana was chosen for the lead role in "The Exorcist" but her adoptive mother refused to let her appear in such a film. Check out the hottest fashion, photos, movies and TV shows! Dana Plato and actors Gary Coleman and Todd Bridges at the 33rd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards on January 27, 1980 | Photo: Getty Images. "I kept the door open and let him know I would be there," Whitaker said. [10][11], Dana Plato was born Dana Michelle Strain on November 7, 1964, in Maywood, California, to Linda Strain, a teenager who was already caring for an 18-month-old child. After his death, his grandmother revealed that he struggled with his mother's death, and their lives had been wrapped around him. +. Lanny Lambert was the husband of 'Diff'rent Strokes' star Dana Plato. He served as Director of Popular Music in the Music Department of Palm Beach Atlantic University in West Palm Beach, FL, until his retirement in 2021. Renfro had been an unruly kid from the beginning, when he was an unknown making his acting debut inThe Clientat the age of 12 alongside Susan Sarandon in 1994. Whitaker said Lambert's family once asked him to talk to the young man, an aspiring rapper and singer, about his drug use. Dana Michelle Plato was born in Maywood, California on November 7, 1964. His family assumed she had died in her sleep, and her death was initially ruled as an accidental overdose. Following her jail term, Dana appeared in a string of B-grade features including such sterling gems as 1992's "Bikini Beach Race" and 1995's "Compelling Evidence." He sued his adoptive parents in 1989 for mismanaging his earnings, eventually winning a $1.3 million judgment. [32][33] She also started taking roles in such B-movies as Bikini Beach Race (1989) and Lethal Cowboy (1992). She was the "real" daughter of the kind Mr. Drummond where Arnold and Willy had only been adopted. Johnny Whitaker, Plato's former manager and a friend of the family, told ABCNews.com he once tried to intervene in Lambert's drug use. Tyler also went into show business working behind the camera and was an aspiring rapper and singer. From 1978 until 1984, when she got pregnant and was written out of the show, Plato starred onDiff'rent Strokes as Kimberly Drummond, the big sister to adopted brothers Willis and Arnold, played by Todd Bridges and Gary Coleman, both ofwhose post-Strokes lives are also the stuff of child-stardom-gone-wrong legend. "Mother's Day was always a difficult time, not only because it was Mother's Day but the anniversary of Dana's death," Whitaker said. [44] Entertainer Wayne Newton posted her $13,000 bail,[43] and Plato was given five years' probation. Like his mother, Tyler, a cameraman and aspiring songwriter, had battled drug and alcohol abuse. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate, or jump to a slide with the slide dots. Bullet disbanded some time before 1975. His grandmother also found a note among his belongings. Dana Michelle Plato (ne Strain; November 7, 1964 May 8, 1999)[2][3] was an American actress. Clark then drove Renfro to Florida, giving the teen a chance to detox, and hired a trainer and minder for him while they madeBully. The same friend told Whitaker that Lambert always said, "he wanted to be with Mom.". Tyler tried to get over losing his mum at such a young age, but he also became a victim of his mother's death. Is. [12] Upon waking up, Menchaca and their family discovered that Plato had died in her sleep initially assumed an accidental overdose but later ruled a suicide based on Plato's long history of substance use. He was a very natural actor. Drafted 25th overall in the second round of the 1983 NHL Entry Draft, Lambert played 283 games in the NHL for the Quebec Nordiques, New York Rangers, and Detroit Red Wings between 1983 and 1989. This is a carousel with slides. The series debuted in 1978 and became an immediate hit. We collect and tell stories of people from all around the world. Phoenix had also mentioned beingsexually abused as a little boy when his family was still a part of the Children of God cult, a group he later called "disgusting. He looks horrible. And when the toxicology reports come in, I'm sure they will show something.". It featured actors who at the time were unknown, as well as Bridges, who made a cameo appearance. "I said, 'What the[bleep] are you doing?'" Oops, some error occurred while uploading your photo(s). She moved to Las Vegas, hoping to advance her career, but could only find retail and service industry jobs. Her death was a tragic coda to what was unarguably a hard life, fleeting perks of fame aside. Plato had a son, Tyler, with her former husband, rock guitarist Lanny Lambert. In 1991, she was arrested attempting to rob a video store at gunpoint, and the following year she was arrested for forging a Valium prescription. [43], On February 28, 1991, Plato entered a video store, produced a pellet gun, and demanded the money in the cash register. He had something I don't understand.". "I don't know if that was true, but I remember him saying that. But he also said Lambert thought he had a closer relatonship with his mother than he really did. "I've been around a lot of addicts and alcoholics, and I remember thinking at the time, this is one of the worst cases I've ever seen," Clark said. The two married in April 1984 but separated in January 1988, a week after her adoptive mother's death. He didn't leave a note but friendssaid he had been depressed aboutthe state of his careerthough the work kept trickling in, they weren't the starring parts that landed him in endless teen-magazine spreads in the first half of the '90s. That same year, she was defrauded by her accountant, who was never prosecuted. "Speculations as to the underlying cause of this tragedy are exactly that: speculations," read a statement at the time from the president of A Minor Consideration, an organization that provides support for current and former child performers. Kagen suggested that Plato may have been used for a free meal ticket, which Plato denied, explaining that her mother's ways were so that she would not become a prima donna. This memorial has been copied to your clipboard. He has tracks running down both arms. Hollywood and associated environs are full of actors and singers who started young and, whether you know who they are or not as adults, are doing just fine. She was arrested again in 1992 for forging a diazepam prescription. Fans of Renfro were understandably outragedwhen he wasn't included in the Oscars' in memoriam tribute that year. The couple married on April 24, 1984, and their only child, Tyler Edward Lambert, was born on July 2, 1984. The 25-year-old Tyler was Plato's son with Lanny Lambert. All Rights Reserved. And it was Dana Plato from 'Diff'rent Strokes'. "I think he was the best. Grandson of Linda Strain. Plato was born to teen mother Linda Strain in 1964 and was adopted by Dean and Florine "Kay" Plato in 1965. According to Grossman, his parents sold two of his infant siblings. Lanny Lambert. After agreeing to enter a drug-diversion program following another arrest in 2006, Renfro talked to reporters about being 30 days sober. Thanks for using Find a Grave, if you have any feedback we would love to hear from you. At one point, the young actress was even reduced to accepting anything and everything. During the interview, Plato was quite frank about her life and career, even openly admitting to being a recovering addict. (Against all odds, Bridges, author ofKilling Willis: From Diff'rent Strokes to the Mean Streets to the Life I Always Wanted, managed to overcome being a victim of sexual abuse as a kid, drug addiction and going on trial for attempted murderhe was acquittedandpress on in life and his career.). I just saw the whole movie going down the drain.". Meanwhile, legal and substance abuse problems plagued the actress. O'Bannon: "Finally, returning to Lambert & Parker's murders, when we see the result of the creature's attack we notice that her bare legs are hung midair but we are not shown why. She got sentenced to five years of probation and lost custody of Tyler in the process. He only admitted to using marijuana. ", Remarking on what was said at his memorial, all the people comforting each other with thoughts of Phoenix in heaven, or as energy now all around them, Plimpton cracked, "You would have thought he was 90 and had died in his sleep. He made the complaint in Clark County, Nevada, three days before the seventh anniversary of her death. Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest? Her finances were at their worst. Dana and Lanny would divorce in March of 1990 and Dana was allowed visitation of her son, but her husband won physical custody of Tyler.A New Low. For memorials with more than one photo, additional photos will appear here or on the photos tab. However, even as a child star, she was said to be insecure. Self: E! They ask, 'Where you been, Corey?' "It wasn't as bad as I had feared it would be," he said of the detox program. She was found dead in her RV, which she shared with fiancee Robert Menchaca, during a visit with family in Oklahoma. The Tulsa, Okla., office of the Chief Medical Examiner confirmed to ABCNews.com that Lambert died last week from a self-inflicted shotgun wound to the head. And this girl showed up. In 1990, things became worse as her divorce was finalized, and she lost custody of her son, Tyler. Her death at the age of 34 was eventually ruled a suicide and her body was cremated. Toxicology test results are still. The information in this article is not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. I don't feel like walking.' The Tulsa, Okla., office of the Chief Medical Examiner confirmed to ABCNews.com that Lambert died last week from a self-inflicted shotgun wound to the head. And by the time she was 18, she got pregnant by her then 21-year-old boyfriend, Lanny Lambert, and was written off the show. On Jan. 31, 2020. She came to fame as a child star but found out soon enough that early fame often has its own pitfalls. He charted eight times as a songwriter between 1971 and 1980, with "White Lies, Blue Eyes" by Bullet (co-written by Flax) landing at #28 in the U.S. in 1971. After we were done cleaning the floors and cleaning up all the sandwich stuff, she would close up shop and we would fucking drink beer. Quickly see who the memorial is for and when they lived and died and where they are buried.
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