The Facts of Life

The Facts of Life is a spinoff from the successful TV show "Diff'rent Strokes (1978-1986). This show is about a Housekeeper who eventually becomes the housemother of an all girl Private School named Eastland in Peekskill, New York. This show features focuses mostly on the four schoolmates and the Housemother who later becomes a Dietician. I love the 1980's and this show is the epitome of a solid TV sitcom. They do not make shows like this. I love all the charcters including the spoiled Blair Warner, the nosey Dorothy "Tootie" Ramsay, the chubby and hilarious Natalie Green and of course the tough girl Joanna Marie Polniaczek.


I am happy to own four seasons of this wonderful show on DVD. I heard Season 5 will be out in the fall of 2010. I hope there is more to come. This show lasted for nine seasons!!!! If a show lasts this long, they must be doing something right.


Finally, don't forget about the 3 TV movies: "The Facts of Life goes to Paris"(1983), "The Facts of Life Down Under"(1988) and "The Facts of Life Reunion"(2001).

I never watched T.V. during the 70's or 80's so seeing this & other shows are from that era,are a more simple time which I find so easy to watch.I like this show.They all played their parts with heart.


I have no favorite episode,a great way to pass the time without being heavy in it's content.


Safe show for teens to watch as that is the group it is aimed at.


Dealing with teen issues,Mrs.Garret was the wise one who directed these teens in the right direction by letting them come around to seeing what the best thing or solution was for each of them to see for themselves.

I loved this show. Watching Natalie blow up like an Oompa Loompa was priceless. Tuti getting hamburger meat caught in her braces was gross but hilarious. Jo and Blair going at each other all day as if there were things going on behind the scenes that No one was aware of. It rhymes with huff and what you do when you jump off the springy thing attached to your pool. I hated the episodes with Natalies snobby friend Kelle. She strutted around in the house as if her you know what didnt stink. She had a different guy in every episode. She was always complaining that her jaw hurt too. Whats up with that? She did look hot but in a " look but dont touch" kind of way. All the guys she brought to the set knew the difference between prada and gucci handbags, whatever that meant. She thought she was funny and oh my god, she laughed all the time. It made me want to barf. If they had just kept that **** off the show, it would have lasted forever.

i wish dat they were younger so they could make more episodes.the facts of life has been a good show even though it's a spin-off of different strokes.these sort of shows always encourage you to try your best don't jugde things or people and always do the right things even if you lie or cheat.the 1980s and 1990s were the best time for these shows before all the trash tv came along.you take the good you take the bad you take them both and there you have the facts!and I love their theme song the most in the beggining and end.

I never would have watched The Facts of Life, if not for my mother who told me about this show. I instantly fell in love with this show an its' characters. The Facts of Life was a great show, the charaters were so funny, there was: Blair, Jo, Natilie, tootie, and of course Mrs. Garret. The situations that the girls would get themselves into and how they were always there for each, it taught me some great lessons in life, I guess that is why they call it The Facts of Life. I hope that this show goes down as one of the best show in history.

Ok so this guilty pleasure of mine comes only because of Nickelodeon (the channel that is). I watched the show *after* its glory days when it was "new and hot" on TV. I loved it to be quite honest, but I have to be honest - it's not very original at all. I mean, it's teens (girls to be specific) at an all girls school. So what? There's a lot of teen shows with kids at a high school, whether it's an all girls private school or not. "Saved By the Bell" anyone? I mean seriously, though. The idea may not have been entirely original, but it *was* funny, and some episodes did have *very* good messages. How about the one(s) with the cousin who had MS? *Very* famous and good episodes - and such a good message!


I loved 'Jo', and Mindy Cohen seemed like such a sweetie in real life I just loved to watch her in *any* scene. Cloris Leachman's always been a fave actress of mine, so I enjoyed watching those eps. And *then* when George Clooney came on I drooled away - seeing as I was in my "Clooney phase" in those days, too. I also enjoyed seeing a young Mackenzie Astin, though I'm really a Sean fan - but he was a cutie and a good young actor, too.


Over all, the show was really fun to watch and funny, too, but the *low* rating is just because of the fact that there are so many teens in High School 80's shows that - well it was just so "been there, done that".


But I still like it anyway.

this was a great show all though at times it played a little like an after school special it was great for what it was and still is today it showed that women could hold there own in a show as it was the longest running show with all female leads it was also very funny a ahead of its time in dealing with isssuse you can not help watch the show and whjo does not know the song I watch this again on dvd and my kids have fell in love with this show to and I love it also

I love Facts of Life! I think Jo would have to be my fave. I think the show is so good because everyone had someone to relate themselves with! Everyone of the main characters were different! I can't wait until this show is released completely on DVD! I already the first three seasons on dvd and I hope they release the whole show on dvd and not just a couple of seasons! I think that the show was so good because they all knew how to act really good if Nat who would laugh at her own jokes! I love on the episode named Green Eyed Monster in Season Three where Jo told Nat "Whoa Nat cool it! Nice girls don't throw trees!" I thought it was hilarious! And I loved Blair and Jo's little comebacks! Great writers! I definitely recommend this show to anyone with a sense of humor and anyone who hasn't seen it!

The show started out by being set at Eastland Girls School with 7 girls. They were Blair, the rich snobbish one from New York, Nancy, the one who was always on the phone with her boyfriend Roger, Cindy, the tom boy who could play sports, run, and was also a natural blonde who was very cute, Molly, the one who's parent's were getting divorced, Sue Ann, the one that was always up against Blair who was from Kansas City, Kansas, Natalie, the adopted kid who was Tootie's best friend, and Tootie, the youngest one who in the first season always wore roller skates. They were also joined by their hoouse mom Mrs. Garrett. In the second and remaining seasons it centered around four girls Jo, the new kid, who was street wise and very tom boyish, and could stand up to Blair, Blair, Natalie, Tootie, and Mrs. Garret all stayed. It centered on their relationships. When Jo and Blair graduated they moved in with Mrs. Garret when she opened Edna's Edibles. Natalie and Tootie stayed at Eastland going to school but lived at Edna’s Edibles. When Mrs. Garret left after the sixth season it wasn't the same but still was very good. It was a great show. It dealt with problems that were being faced even now. It was eighties style but it was still a great show not outdated.

My personal favorite all-time shows are diff'rent strokes and the facts of life. If this show wasn't on i'd have many boring nights. Charlotte rae (Mrs. Garrett) is my favorite actress of all time. I just saw her today (1-29-07) on the king of queens. Lisa (Blair Warner) is the most beautiful lady ive ever seen. Nancy (Jo Poliaczeck) is the tuff smart alex. Kim (tootie) is the cutest little girl. Mindy (Natalie) was my first crush. The first time i saw mindy she had that charm that i couldnt resist. Overal this show had the perfect cast and i give it a perfect 10 out of 10.

The only reason why I watched \"the Facts of Life\" is Nancy Keon. she is the only good thing about the series that I care about. Every time I tune into the show is to watch McKeon. Sure, there are some good episodes, but some of the topics are best left to other shows. The other cast members I don\'t care much for. But Nancy McKeon brings style and grace to a show that desperately needs a tune up. It\'s a spin off of \"Differ\'nt Strokes\" another show that I don\'t care much for. The only reason why I tune it to \"The Facts of Life\" and I got a good reason, is Nancy McKeon. She makes my day.

the girls grow together and being able to share in their lives as they went from being adolescents to grown women. Of course, this show was EXTREMELY cheesy, but the cheddar factor was what the 80's were all about. Watching Tootie, Blair, Joe and Natalie each week was like being included in on an ongoing slumber party (which was the end all and be all for young girls). I didn't like the show as much when Mrs. Garret left and Chloris Leachman took over and they moved into the house together, then opened the store. I thought those storylines stretched the show a bit too far.

This basicly takes after Different Stroke.Where Ms.Garret takes up as headmistress at some schooling for girls.It is just liked begin taught about the facts of life.The girls would always caused trouble and even to learn the facts of life.Yeah this show was an classic.I loved the theme song.Even the last movie "Facts Of Life The Reunion" Even though this show came before I was born.I was disappointed that they will not do another new season in this show.I mean it would be cool with new characters and stuff.

This show debuted quietly in August 1979. After two years of absence my red haired girl of the New Mickey Mouse Club was back on TV. Though I did see her in two or three movies in between. I was happy to see her again. She had gone blonde and Hollywood. Then the back nine episodes of the show aired in spring of 1980. Thankfully in the fall of 1980 the cast had been trimmed. And the quality of the show leaped up. I continued watching loyally and despite a few occasional "looking back" episodes the show went on merrily until Mrs. G left. Despite the shock of Cloris Leachman's arrival the four young women continued with their powerful dynamic interaction. Cloris Leachman was so irrelevent to the show. The show ended about one year too early I believe, because there was still potential to see all four finish college and begin their lives. This show is very connected to my heart.

A spin-off of the show Diff'rent Strokes on which Charlotte Rae played Mrs. Garrett, the housekeeper for Philip Drummond and his family.





Mrs. Garrett has become the headmistress at an exclusive all-girls school, Eastland. It was one of the longest running comedy shows of the 1980's. It also was one of the first regular jobs for a lot of young actresses. Molly Ringwald played Molly Parker, Kim Fields was Dorothy "Tootie" Ramsey, Lisa Whelchel played Blair Warner, Mindy Cohn was Natalie Green and Nancy McKeon had the role of Joanne "Jo" Polniaczek. The show also featured an up-an-coming George Clooney as George Burnett.





A decent show for it's time. I would turn the chanel if it was on today.

This Spin-off from the ever popular television series NBC comedy Diff'rent Strokes focused on Mrs. Garrett who had been the Drummonds' housekeeper and then pursuing at Eastland school for young woman. Mrs. Garrett was kind and wisdom was valued she was understading and sincere. She was parents to the girls at charge, as the start of the series graphed from 11-15 Blair, 15, was wealthy, attractive and a snob; Nancy, 14 well-rounded; Sue Ann, 14, was cute and leadership was self-portrayed; Tootie, 11, was the center of gossip; and Natalie was well-rounded and funny. The Headmaster was Mr. Bradley. As the season evolved. In 1980, Jo a 16-year-old from the Bronx joined the cast. In 1983, Mrs. Garrett left the girls at their stakes, in Peeksill, New York opened a gourmet food bontique entitled "Edna's Edibles". Blair and Jo, who were now attending college with Natalie and Tootie still at Eastland moved in with Mrs. Garrett. Although things changed and in 1985, a fire spurted and left Edna's Edibles in ashes, but soon after recovered and re-built it into a new buisness, the shop was a renavation and called "Over our Heads". Young Andy was the errand boy, and George a young attractive carpenter who helped rebuild. The following year Mrs.Garrett re-married and respectively moved out; she was replaced by the "leaky faucet" sister, Beverly Ann who became the new disclaimer and stepmother to Andy. By 1987-1988 had become established woman. This would be the last season, each character reaching their way into adult ways. Natalie, the aspiring author, had the chance to find her ways as a writer in New York City, and to loose her virginity when she spent a night with her boyfriend Snake. Shortly after, Jo headed for a career and married a freestounded musician. Tootie who was already had been engaged to her boyfriend Jeff, had plans to become an actress, and made her way at the Dramatic Arts located in London. Now Blair was enrolled at Langley Law School by now, watching in triumph as her alma mater Eastland rolled in to depression, she finally decided to do something. Putting all her values behind, she suprisingly bought Eastland and took her spot as headmistress; planning major inprovement including a open student body and to put Eastland at new heights.

Love this show it is one of the all time greats.


When I was younger I would race home from school to watch this show. I couldn't get enough. This show still is one of my favorites and always will be the cast and guest stars were great. I wish they made shows like this today

Wow! This was my favorite show! I always enjoyed watching the Facts of life. I liked all the episodes and I like funny Mrs.Garret. I also watched the facts of life reunion and it was pretty good but I wish they would still have the facts of life running on tv.

I rate this show a 9.4, almost a ten but not quite there. It was an excellent show back then, I think I've seen every episode more than once. I thought it was a very cute show. It told the problems of teenage girls back then. I don't think it could do so now as they'd have to bring it up to date with today's issues.





It was about four friends going to an all girls school and their problems of the time. Remember rich socialite "Blair," troubled "Jo," overweight preppy "Natalie" and "Tootie," she was black but that didn't matter to her friends. They shared dorm rooms, re "Blair and Jo," "Natalie and Tootie." Each episode had it's own new problem, dating, peer pressure, etc. but nothing too heavy.

I have only seen about five episodes of this show but I htought that they were great. This has to be at least my second favorite old show. It doesn't beat Different Strokes in my opinion but it comes pretty close. The only episodes I have seen are the ones with the seven girls Blair, Tootie, Natalie, Nancy, Molly, Sue-ann, and Cindy. I havent seen Jo yet so I'm not sure about her but so far Blaire is my favorite character in the show. I don't know why the took four of the original girls out of the show because I liked them. I think they should have kept Sue-ann and Molly at least becuase they were the two funniest out of the four. I hope I get to see more of this show because I really like it.

It was a great show - innocent but held a message at times. Typical sitcom fare but lost all its heart when they abandoned Edna's Edibles and went to that tacky store front. They started trying too hard to regain an audience and should have ended things more honorably before they completely ran out of steam.

It's a classic and I wouldn't mind seeing this show back on the air again.The cast rocked. The script got better. And everyone's personalities shined through. This is truly a great show.I think most people will agree with me when I say the Facts of Life is an all-time TV classic. With Princess Blair, Toughgirl Jo,Happy-go-Lucky Natalie, and Innocent Tootie, this show became a hit.

This is one of the few shows where a substantial retooling actually worked. Season 1 can be kindly described as a lightweight (And that's if you don't listen to Molly's song about her parents' divorce; the worst since Gene Roddenberry put lyrics to the Star Trek theme, and NBC had the good sense not to air that).





Season 2 arrived with a few changes. The most noticeable change was that the cast had been trimmed, with several regulars being dropped or downgraded to recurring status, and one new character added. However, I believe that the more important change was that the writing improved (Of course, it helped that the cast had been trimmed down to its most interesting characters). Even the theme song had passable lyrics now.





The next few seasons were excellent. Unfortunately, they let the show go on too long. By year 7, it seemed to be running out of steam, and they should have let it end there. However, it lasted two more years after that. The reunion was passable, but not the best of its kind.

"You take the good. You take the bad. You take them both and there you have the Facts of Life..." This was one of the few shows I never missed growing up. Like another beloved show, the Brady Bunch, Facts of Life featured a wise parent figure, a bunch of kids who got into minor troubles every week, and a moral. It was feel-good tv. Each of the characters represented the differences among and within all of us. Blair was the self-centered prima dona; Jo was wise-cracking and hard-nosed; Natalie was the funny but talented future writer; Tootie was the happy but precocious little sister who pushed the boundaries; and Mrs. Garrett was the wise, ever-present voice of reason with a slightly hysterical side for fun. This show has been underrated and pushed aside as being frivolous, but it deserves a better memory. It was like Judy Blume tv. It helped girls everywhere understand their own teen angst just a little bit better, and each episode always left the air with a feeling of hope implanted in the viewer.

The Facts Of Life was good for what is was setting out to do. However, as the first year wrapped, the network found themselves in a jam with so many girls, that they trimmed it down to 3 originals, and then hired Nancy McKeon. The chemistry between the girls and Mrs. Garrett for those years was good, but switching around so often was kind of unbelievable. And then the additions of George Clooney and Mackenzie Astin, along with the departure of Mrs. Garrett brought the show down hill.

What can I say about this hit comedy?


It was a great comedy till the changes of the lead actress came up.


I adored Natalie for some reason,and loved the epiosdes that had her as the main girl.


Tootie was next,Jo and then Blair.


I think the main reason the show started to go down hill is when the girls got to be adults.

I'm not your typical fan of "The Facts of Life". I'm a 14 year old guy and this show ended before I was born. I just have to say, I watched this show's reruns when Nick at Nite carried it and I was so lucky to be able to watch them. Each of the characters rock and tonight, as I saw it on TV Land, it just reminded me of how great this show was. There's only one word to describe it. Classic. As it is in my classification, I think this is a total classic and it dealt with real stuff like dealing with death and shoplifting...

The year is 1979. Dif'frent Strokes was on the air, but I think a lot of people felt it was time for a change. With Charlotte Rae on guide, NBC created a new show, The Facts of Life, about girls living in Eastland Academy, a boarding school in Peekskill New York. Most people weren't too crazy about the first season, seeing as it had an unusually large cast, and didn't appeal to most viewers. But starting season 2, the executives decided to drop all but 3 girls, and add one. They decided to stick with Lisa Whelchel to play Blair, Mindy Cohn to play Natalie, and Kim Fields to play Tootie.





After being discovered off a Hallmark commercial at age 14, Nancy McKeon was chosen for the role of toughgirl tomboy Jo Polniaczek. The show became a hit and really boosted ratings. It eventually made the top 25 shows on television.





Charlotte Rae was born in Wisconsin, and eventually got the role of Edna Garrett on The Facts of Life. She is involved with theatre. Currently, she is enjoying time at home with her family.





Lisa Whelchel, better known as rich princess Blair Warner, was born in a small town in Texas. She got her start in The New Mickey Mouse Club at age 12. Later, she got the part as Blair in the Facts of Life. Lisa embraces her faith to no extent. She is an extraordinary women with a husband of 17 years, and three children ages 12-15. She has written several books and hosts her own website. She claims the Facts of Life was a fun time in her life, but she enjoys staying at home with her family and homeschooling her children.





Nancy McKeon, or Jo as she'll always be remembered as, was born in Westbury New York. She actually has the same birthday as me, April 4. I always felt honored to share the same birthday as her. She entered The Facts of Life in season 2, to play the new toughgirl, which I think is just what the cast needed to help the show. And it did. After FOL ended, she appeared in a made for tv movie, Firefighter, and stars in her own tv drama, The Division, on Lifetime Channel.





Mindy Cohn. Funny, happy, Natalie. The comidienne of the group on Facts of Life. A great character. Mindy was born in LA on May 20. She acted in The Facts of Life for 9 years. How she got the part was rather luck though. It was thanks to Rae who discovered her. Mindy graduated in 1995 from Loyola Marymount with a degree in sociology.





Kim Fields was born on December 5 in New York, New York. She started acting at a very young age, and got her role as cute innocent dorothy "tootie" ramsey on FOL. After the show ended she got a starring role in Living Single, and graduated college. She was most known for her braces and rollerblades.





Oh, The Facts of Life. These girls learned a lot, and show did all the girls, like myself, who grew up watching this show. If I had never watched this show as a child, I think a big part of my childhood would be missing. This show is an all time TV classic, no matter what anyone says. Anyone who grow up being a Facts of Life fanatic, would agree with me. I hope and prayy every night that this show will be released on DVD in the future, because I can't go another minute without seeing this show again.





Lisa, Nancy, Mindy, and Kim and excellent actresses, but as Blair, Jo, Natalie, and Tootie, they are excellent characters.

Even though I'm young and this show was around when I was just coming into the world, I love this show. It's a classic and I wouldn't mind seeing this show back on the air again. For some reason, I just like watching old classic shows from the 80's or 70's. I just do.

I still rembmer the opening song for this show i didn't watch this show when it first came on but i watched the re-run all the time and i love the show it was very funny and i wish it still came on on my cable station but it don't now