Gary Coleman is dead. Which makes the prospect of a
Different Strokes movie all the more unlikely. Okay, I know there was already a
Different Strokes flick starring Dana Plato; however, I meant a non-porno whose storyline is at least vaguely related to the show. Sure, remake movies rarely include original cast members, except for cameo appearances, but actors are notoriously superstitious beasts and there aren't many that would want to tempt fate by associating themselves with this cursed franchise. Well,
Todd Bridges is still hanging on. He's not even behind bars anymore. And he, after all, is the only one who can finally answer the question, "What'choo talkin' 'bout, Willis?" Perhaps Todd,
Conrad Bain and
Charlotte Rae could get together for a reunion show anyway. Play it real. Kimberly has killed herself and Arnold has died of stupidity. Bains and Rae are as old as dirt, so you'd better hurry. Of course, they'll both probably outlive Bridges in the end. He's due to go off the deep end soon.
As I write this, I hear of another passing on a whole different scale:
Dennis Hopper, one of my favorites ever to grace the silver screen. To paraphrase his
Apocalypse Now photojournalist: "I'm a small man, a small man; he's a great man ... his mind is clear but his soul is mad." I couldn't put it better.
So as Gary and Dennis stand waiting at the pearly gates (or perhaps a somewhat warmer variant), they must be having an interesting conversation. Perhaps
Art Linkletter has joined them.
Now, on a completely unrelated topic, I'll close with the parting words from more than one of the
A-Team episodes I caught on the
Centric Network's marathon today. "Why do they do it?" "For the Jazz, man. For the Jazz." Indeed. Pure poetry.
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