‘Diff’rent Strokes’ Star Conrad Bain Dies At 89


Conrad Bain, who is best known for his role as Philip Drummond on Diff’rent Strokes, has passed away. Bain died of natural causes Monday in Livermore, California at the age of 89.

Bain’s character was a wealthy Manhattan widower who adopted the two sons — played by Gary Coleman and Todd Bridges — of his late maid. Issues of race and class were regular subjects on the show, which ran for six seasons on NBC and two seasons on ABC.

Even after the show went off the air, Bain continued to be there for his co-stars. In the early 1990s, Bridges had a series of legal and drug problems. But when he started trying to get clean, he said Bain became like a real father to him, according to The Associated Press. Bridges is now the only surviving member of the show’s main cast. Coleman died of an epidural hematoma in 2010 and Dana Plato, who played Kimberly Drummond, died from a drug overdose in 1999.

Coleman’s death renewed rumors that the cast of the show was cursed, with only Bain and Charlotte Rae not succumbing to legal or health problems at the time.

After Diff’rent Strokes went off the air, Bain starred as Dr. Arthur Harmon, husband of Rue McClanahan’s character Vivian on Maude. The show, which was a spinoff of All in the Family, ran for six seasons from 1972 to 1978.

Bain is survived by his three children: Jennifer, Kent, and Mark. His wife, artist Monica Sloan, died in 2009. They had been married for 64 years.

Jennifer Bain told TMZ, “He was an amazing person. He was a lot like Mr. Drummond, but much more interesting in real life. He was an amazing father.”

We here at The Inquisitr extend our condolences to Conrad Bain’s family and friend.

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