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Dana Plato

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Biography

Recent Role:
Herself (archive footage) on Retrosexual: The '80s
Gender:
Female
Born:
11-7-1964
Died:
5-8-1999 (Suicide by Drug Overdose)
Birthplace:
Maywood, California, USA
Birth Name:
Dana Michelle Strain
Dana Plato led quite an interesting life, full of dizzying heights and shattering lows. She came to fame as a child star but found out soon enough that early fame often has its own pitfalls. Best known as Kimberly Drummond, the older sister on TV's "Diff'rent Strokes," Dana went through a lot while never quite escaping the scrutiny of the media and fans.



Dana Michelle Plato was born in Maywood, California on November 7, 1964. Her birth mother (Linda Strain who was a 16-year-old unwed mother already struggling to support an 18-month-old child) gave her up for



… More adoption as an infant and she was taken in by a Southern California couple (adopted by Dean and Florine 'Kay' Plato in June 1965) who soon enough guided her into acting. Dana landed roles on over 100 TV commercials as a child, including appearances for KFC, Arco and Dole bananas. 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. So while Linda Blair went on to huge stardom, Dana was left with roles in flicks like 1975's "Beyond the Bermuda Triangle." (Dana did grab a small part in "Exorcist II: The Heretic," a film that has been voted one of the worst of all time.)



Dana's fortunes began to turn when she was spotted by a producer during a brief appearance on TV's "The Gong Show." He was casting a new sitcom for NBC which was to become "Diff'rent Strokes," and Dana landed the part of Kimberly. Her girl-next-door cuteness and seemingly effortless way with comedy won her lots of fans during the show's prime time run, which lasted from 1978 to 1986. Dana moved in with rock guitarist Lanny Lambert in December 1983. In April 1984, she married Lanny and on July 2nd, 1984 their son Tyler Edward Lambert was born. Dana was fired from Diff'rent Strokes after the 1983-1984 season because of her pregnancy, but she did return for the final season on ABC in 1985-1986. By the time the program was cancelled, Dana had blossomed into a striking young woman, but her acting career could never escape the long shadows cast by her sitcom stardom.



Dana's mother, Florine 'Kay' Plato, who had guided her career died of a blood disease in January of 1988 and her husband reportedly left her the same week. 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.



Dana drifted in and out of the business over the next few years. She posed for a June 1989 pictorial in Playboy (a 5-page nude layout, the shots were taken in November 1988 in Arizona), showing off the delectable figure that she'd kept hidden for all those years. The nude pictorial did nothing to help revive her career, though, and Dana continued to languish on the fringes of the entertainment industry. She blasted her way back into the headlines in January of 1992, when she was arrested for the armed robbery of a Las Vegas video store (which she used a pellet gun and netted her $164) - she was charged with armed robbery and was later sentenced to five years probation. Her ill-conceived grab for rent money (it was really a cry for help according to many people) sent her to jail for a short stint, but her new notoriety managed to get her work in the "no publicity is bad publicity" world of Hollywood. Dana was helped by Las Vegas singer, Wayne Newton, who posted the $15,000 bail for her. In January of 1992 she was arrested for forging Valium prescriptions. Cited for parole violation, she served 30 days in jail. In 1993, she spent a month in a drug and alcohol rehab center in Las Vegas - one of several times she went into rehab.



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." She was featured in a video game in 1992 called Night Trap as a scantily clad victim. In 1995, she was in a play called "Last of the Red Hot Lovers" where she received passing grades. Her experiences behind bars also seemed to change more than just her career prospects -- Dana came out as a lesbian in a 1998 issue of the Sapphic pride magazine "Girlfriends." (she had said in more recent interviews that she was not a lesbian and was only experimenting). She turned plenty of heads with her scintillating performance in the 1997 straight-to-video epic "Different Strokes." It's a steamy softcore tale of a guy and a girl and another girl, and Dana shows off her curvaceous figure and lust for her fellow femmes in a series of sensual scenes. Sadly and tragically, she died of a prescription drug overdose on May 8th, 1999.



According to Sgt. Scott Singer of the Moore (Oklahoma) Police Dept., "At this point, we having nothing against Robert Menchaca (her fiance at the time of her death). But the statute of limitations does not run out on deaths for seven years. So if the police do get evidence that Robert is guilty by criminal negligence or actual participation, we will certainly prosecute."

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  •  
    8.5 Great
    Dana Plato got less than she deserved. hide show

    I had such a crush on Dana when she did "Diff'rent Strokes," and I'm still so saddened by the way she ended up. It was and still is a horrible way for one to go even for one who spent a few years making us laugh from behind one of her co-stars. As Kimberly, she was bright, funny and effervescent; as Dana, she was turned down for movie roles and struggled to make ends meet. I still wonder if the Exorcist would have been just as good had she won the role of Regan, but getting that role might have prevented her from recieving the role of All-American Kimberly. She was lovely, attractive and tragic and will be sorely missed by her true fans.

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    aesgaard41 Added Sep 9, 2006 All my reviews
  •  
    8 Great
    Childhood crush hide show

    Dana Plato was one of my childhood crushes. I don't think I am alone in admitting that as well. While I enjoyed watching Gary Coleman in just about everything he ever did as a child star, I admit that I watched Diff'rent strokes because of Dana.
    When Dana left the show, I was heart-broken and had always hoped that Dana would turn her life around and make it back to TV but sadly her life from bad to worse. Dana seemed to be in trouble most of her adult life and tragically she ended up over-dosing and leaving this world at a very young age.
    I personally believe had Dana not fallen under the bad influence of others that she could have made it as an adult star as she had the talent for it..

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    fluffybear Added Jul 24, 2006 All my reviews
  •  
    10 Perfect
    I really liked you when you were on Diff'rent Strokes because I thought you had a cute nobby nose. hide show

    I am a big fan of yours. I have watched and taped every episode with you as Dana Plato in Diff'rent Strokes.

    I am living in a residential house because I have Aspergers Syndrome, which means I get stuck on magpies, I have been watching Diff'rent Strokes with family and friends.

    I would like to meet you for a cake and a hot chocolate one day.

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    matthew_trompf Added Oct 6, 2005 All my reviews
 

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