UPDATE: Gary Coleman Died

[alienlovechild 75]

Gary Coleman has slipped into a coma and is on life support in a Salt Lake City hospital, his spokesman says.

Spokesman John Alcantar told KABC that Coleman, 42, suffered severe bleeding in his skull at his home south of Salt Lake City on Wednesday. He was rushed to a hospital and was conscious and lucid by mid- morning Thursday, but by afternoon, his condition worsened and was slipping in and out of consciousness.

ABC News says he suffered intracranial hemorrhage - bleeding in the skull.

The Diff'rent Strokes star has had a history of health problems. He has been battling kidney disease since his childhood, and also had heart surgery last fall.

Coleman, who was hospitalized earlier this year having having a seizure on the set of The Insider, lives in Santaquin, about 55 miles south of Salt Lake City.

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/entertainment/post/2010/05/gary-coleman-hospitalized-after-head-injury/1

[Nagishkaw 510]

0h dear. He has a lot of health issues.

[thongd4me 69]

There's nobody that Gary Coleman couldn't make laugh when he was a TV star.

You might say the writing was brilliant and he knew how to make the most of it,

but unfortunately it was all downhill when the series ended.

It was unfortunate that he either had very bad advice or made some very bad career moves on his own,

but his story from then on was mostly that of a laughingstock, someone who was not reliable on the set

and who thought of himself as a larger-than-life character. The result was a real-life tragedy, both personal

and professional.

I hope he pulls through this time but it doesn't look very good.

Somehow when I think of him I also think of "Tattoo" who was also a smart guy and a great entertainer.

I try to think of the good regarding both.

Hervé Villechaize was born in Paris on April 23, 1943. He stopped growing very early and his father (who was a surgeon) tried to find a cure by visiting several doctors and hospitals. But there was none, so Hervé had to live with his small height and also with undersized lungs. He studied at the Beaux-Arts in Paris and made an exhibition of his own paintings, which were well received. At 21, he left France for the USA where he continued to paint and to make photographs. He also started to participate in some movies and was quickly offered several roles for plays and then for cinema. His first big success was The Man with the Golden Gun (1974) where he was a killer associated to the villain Scaramanga (played by Christopher Lee). He inspired the TV-series "Fantasy Island" (1978) where he took the role of "Tattoo", the faithful servant of "Mr. Roarke" (Ricardo Montalban). This series was a great success and, thanks to it, Villechaize became famous and rich, mostly because of his enigmatic and charming smile. In 1983, he argued with the producers of the show in order to earn as much money as Montalban but, instead, he was fired; he also lost his model-actress wife. The series continued without him but stopped one year later, when the media response meter decreased because of the lack of Tattoo's character!

Villechaize became alcoholic and depressed, so he missed several roles that he was offered. His health problems also increased (mostly suffering from ulcers and a spastic colon), and he nearly died of pneumonia in 1992. On the afternoon of Saturday September 4th, 1993, after having watched a movie, he wrote a note and made a tape recording before shooting himself in his backyard. His common-law wife, Kathy Self, discovered his body and called the ambulance which took him to the Medical Center of North Hollywood where he died at 3:40 pm. Villechaize was cremated and his ashes were scattered off Point Fermin, in Los Angeles.

[thongd4me 69]

There's nobody that Gary Coleman couldn't make laugh when he was a TV star.

You might say the writing was brilliant and he knew how to make the most of it,

but unfortunately it was all downhill when the series ended.

It was unfortunate that he either had very bad advice or made some very bad career moves on his own,

but his story from then on was mostly that of a laughingstock, someone who was not reliable on the set

and who thought of himself as a larger-than-life character. The result was a real-life tragedy, both personal

and professional.

I hope he pulls through this time but it doesn't look very good.

Somehow when I think of him I also think of "Tattoo" who was also a smart guy and a great entertainer.

I try to think of the good regarding both.

Hervé Villechaize was born in Paris on April 23, 1943. He stopped growing very early and his father (who was a surgeon) tried to find a cure by visiting several doctors and hospitals. But there was none, so Hervé had to live with his small height and also with undersized lungs. He studied at the Beaux-Arts in Paris and made an exhibition of his own paintings, which were well received. At 21, he left France for the USA where he continued to paint and to make photographs. He also started to participate in some movies and was quickly offered several roles for plays and then for cinema. His first big success was The Man with the Golden Gun (1974) where he was a killer associated to the villain Scaramanga (played by Christopher Lee). He inspired the TV-series "Fantasy Island" (1978) where he took the role of "Tattoo", the faithful servant of "Mr. Roarke" (Ricardo Montalban). This series was a great success and, thanks to it, Villechaize became famous and rich, mostly because of his enigmatic and charming smile. In 1983, he argued with the producers of the show in order to earn as much money as Montalban but, instead, he was fired; he also lost his model-actress wife. The series continued without him but stopped one year later, when the media response meter decreased because of the lack of Tattoo's character!

Villechaize became alcoholic and depressed, so he missed several roles that he was offered. His health problems also increased (mostly suffering from ulcers and a spastic colon), and he nearly died of pneumonia in 1992. On the afternoon of Saturday September 4th, 1993, after having watched a movie, he wrote a note and made a tape recording before shooting himself in his backyard. His common-law wife, Kathy Self, discovered his body and called the ambulance which took him to the Medical Center of North Hollywood where he died at 3:40 pm. Villechaize was cremated and his ashes were scattered off Point Fermin, in Los Angeles.

Apparently there IS a link between Coleman and Villechaize (strange but true):

(from Wikipedia)

He also appeared as himself, parodying his Fantasy Island role, in an episode of Diff'rent Strokes.

[ScottThuy 140]

They just reported that GC has died....

[Obama 2012 1,714]

a shame..

the guy had a rough life after being the star he was.

[alienlovechild 75]

BREAKING NEWS: Gary Coleman Dead At 42

Coleman had been hospitalized in Provo, Utah since Wednesday, May 26, after suffering what his family called "a serious medical problem."

As RadarOnline.com previously reported, Coleman had slipped into a coma and was on life support after suffering an intracranial hemorrhage.

He was pulled of life support Friday morning and later passed away. His wife Shannon Price and her father were at the hospital Friday.

The Illinois native's death marks the end of a long, sad road for the diminutive Diff'rent Strokes star, who struggled professionally and financially as his fame and fortune diminished since the show went off the air in 1986.

Colemans growth was hampered at a young age by a congenital kidney disease caused by focal segmental glomerulosclerosis, as he never grew beyond 4 feet, 8 inches tall. Twice having undergone kidney transplants in 1973 and 1984, Coleman required daily dialysis in his everyday life.

Coleman got his break in acting when caught the eye of TV icon Norman Lear, which eventually paved the way for him to star in Diff'rent Strokes as Arnold Jackson, a wisecracking runt adopted with his brother Willis (Todd Bridges) by a rich New York businessman (Conrad Bain). Coleman's considerable charisma -- buoyed by his catchphrase "What'cu Talkin Bout Willis" -- made the show a ratings winner in its' first three years, as the young actor was earning as much as $70,000 an episode at its peak.

Coleman would wind up suing his parents in 1989 over missing money from his trust fund, and was awarded more than $1 million in 1993, but the money would not last, as he would wind up declaring bankruptcy six years later.

Coleman said in an appearance on Geraldo Rivera in 1993 that he had twice tried to overdose on sleeping pills.

Coleman got some publicity in later years when he threw his name in the hat of the circus that was California's 2003 recall election, receiving more votes than other show biz candidates such as porn star Mary Carey and Gallagher, en route to an eighth overall finish to eventual winner Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Coleman's death marks another sad chapter for the Diff'rent Strokes cast, as Bridges' career was stunted by frequent drug incidents, while Dana Plato, who played Kimberly Drummond on the show, committed suicide via pill overdose in 1999. On a related note, Plato's son, Tyler Lambert, fatally shot himself in May 2010, nearly eleven years to the day of his mother's suicide.

http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2010/05/breaking-news-gary-coleman-dead-42

Edited May 28, 2010 by alienlovechild

[andresbonifacio 7]

R.I.P.

[alienlovechild 75]

Kinda surprised so few posts about Coleman's death. Must be the holiday weekend or he was a star before most posters' time so his death didn't make much of difference to them.

[William33 110]

ALC,

I changed the title to the departure of Gary Coleman. I hope you don't mind.

Personally, I appreciated his humor and acting during my youth. Sad that his career was short.

[Rhiannercakes 14]

He was such a cute kid, RIP.

[gabby4ever 1]

RIP

[Nagishkaw 510]

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

He was a bit of an oddball, but dying at 42 is a tragedy nonetheless.

[Fandango 1,439]

How sad RIP Gary....you were my fave! "whatchoo talk about Willis???'