NEW YORK, June 9 /PRNewswire/ -- VH1 has crowned Gary Coleman, of "Diff'rent Strokes" fame, the number one kid star. Macaulay Culkin, Mary Kate & Ashley Olsen, Jodie Foster, Drew Barrymore, Emmanuel Lewis, Ron Howard, Corey Feldman, Maureen McCormick and Danny Bonaduce round out the top ten on the list.

Premiering on Monday, June 13 at 9 P.M.* and hosted by Christopher Knight, "100 Greatest Kid Stars" is a five-night special that follows the tradition of VH1's successful "100 Greatest ... " franchise. VH1 has assembled the definitive list of child stars, and counts them down using new, exclusive interviews with many of the stars themselves and that golden footage from way back when ...

VH1 "100 GREATEST KID STARS"
1. Gary Coleman (DIFF'RENT STROKES)
40. Todd Bridges (DIFF'RENT STROKES)
91. Dana Plato (DIFF'RENT STROKES)

Darlin' Dana's Landslide

The landslide will bring you down.

'Landslide' was one of Dana's favorite songs. Aside from its haunting and beautiful melody, she unfortunately related to the sad story within the lyrics.. From the time Dana was a very young child, she was destined to perform and entertain. She was a singer, dancer, actress and an accomplished ice-skater. She was a gifted natural as a little girl, and she built her life around expressing her gift. Dana's talents were rivaled only by her incredible beauty. Given this, she reasonably expected she would express her gift and continue to do what she loved. When opportunities to ply her trade were abruptly closed off to her, she felt blindsided. Perhaps Dana underestimated or didn't even consider the possibility of something she had no control over: the unforgiving and crass nature of the Hollywood industry.

At the age of 20, Dana was excited to learn that she was expecting a child, which was not allowed under her Diff'rent Stroke's contract. Consequently, she found herself not only ousted from her role on a popular sitcom but was eventually, in effect, blacklisted in the entertainment industry. Much to her dismay, the actress and entertainer that she'd been most of her young life was abruptly discounted and all her gold stars reneged.

She was informed that she would have to redeem her reputation as a "trustworthy client". She went from audition to audition with little success. Publicly, Dana was ever the optimist and never complained about her unfair treatment. In retrospect, Dana's disappointment from the accumulative landslide of rejections, topped off by the landslide of cruel and constant tabloid ridicule resulting from some of her escapades, brought her down.

Her self-confidence and self-esteem had been deeply shaken. I took my love and I took it down

Climbed a mountain then I turned around

And I saw my reflection in the snow covered hills

Well the landslide brought me down

Oh, mirror in the sky

What is love?

Can the child within my heart rise above

Can I sail through the changing ocean tides

Can I handle the seasons of my life

People in Dana's life advised her that 'the biz' had been cruel to her and that she should walk away. Dana either didn't see it that way, or she was like most of us are to some degree at one time or another, afraid of change. If there was something more to love out there for Dana than what she had already learned to love, she would have pursued it if she could find it. The 'problem' was that Dana loved acting and entertaining. It was her entire life and the very essence of her. Entertaining defined her.

Undoubtedly, Dana questioned time and again if she would ever pull herself back up to where she wanted to be and just how rough the sailing would be to get there. In some very dark ways, such as her battles with drug addiction and her history of self destruction, Dana was unable to avert the landslide well enough to save her own life.

Well, I've been afraid of changin'

'Cause I built my life around you

But time makes you bolder

Even children get older

And I'm getting older too

Well, I'm getting older too

So, take this love and take it down

Yeah, and if you climb a mountain and turn around

And if you see my reflection in the snow covered hills

Well the landslide brought me down

--Landslide lyrics by Stevie Nicks

They are conducting a survey to see which shows we would like on DVD. You can vote for up to 5 series and let them know if you prefer "full season" sets or "best of" compilations of a single series or theme.

Besides Diff'rent Strokes, they also list: Barney Miller, Benson, Bewitched, Designing Women, Dilbert, The Facts of Life, Fantasy Island, Father Knows Best, The Flying Nun, Hart to Hart, I Dream of Jeannie, Just Shoot Me, Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman, Maude, The Nanny, NewsRadio, One Day at a Time, The Partridge Family, Silver Spoons, Soap, T.J. Hooker, The Tick, V.I.P., and Who's the Boss?

April 18th, 2000

February 9th, 2000

November 23rd, 1999

DANA PLATO WAS MURDERED -- says her family

FALLEN TV STAR Dana Plato was murdered! That shocking charge comes from Dana's closest family member -- who is demanding a new police investigation into Dana's death, originally ruled a suicide.

A NATIONAL ENQUIRER probe of inconsistencies in the statements of Robert Menchaca, the man who called himself Dana's fiance, helped raise suspicion.

Now loved ones say suicide simply doesn't make sense.

"Dana didn't want to die," Joni Richardson, Dana's former mother-in-law, told The ENQUIRER in an exclusive interview.

"She was in the most positive and optimistic mood I'd seen in years," declared Joni, who raised Dana's son Tyler, 15.

"There's something fishy here. I think she was murdered."

Astonishingly, authorities view this as anything but a crackpot claim.

In fact, cops are willing to take a second look into Dana's May 8 death by drug overdose in Moore, Okla.

And evidence The ENQUIRER supplied to authorities may help determine if foul play was involved.

We reported previously that Chicago promoter Shane Bugbee had put a sleazy compact disc and booklet about Dana for sale on the Internet.

Joni Richardson quickly alerted police to the ghoulish curiosity item, billed as "Dana Plato's Last Breath."

The CD contains telephone conversations between Bugbee and Dana's fiance Robert Menchaca while Dana allegedly lay gasping and then died.

Bugbee's Internet package also contains what purports to be a death photo of Dana -- which, the promoter said, Menchaca snapped before calling police.

"That man took pictures of Dana to make money instead of getting her help," charged grief- stricken Joni.

If that's true, Menchaca's in big trouble, said Sgt. Scott Singer, of the Moore Police Department.

"The law here requires that you come to the aid of someone who is in mortal distress," Sgt. Singer told The ENQUIRER.

"If we can show Menchaca took pictures instead of trying to save Plato's life, there could be negligent homicide involved, which is a felony."

Sgt. Singer said his department is investigating a copy of the compact disc and death photo package provided by The ENQUIRER.

"I'm going to continue speaking with Mrs. Richardson and we will investigate," Singer added.

"If there is evidence that Robert Menchaca or anyone else is guilty of criminal negligence or actual participation, we will prosecute."

Plato, the 34-year-old star of the popular '80s TV show "Diff'rent Strokes" died in a motor home the day she returned to Oklahoma from New York, after appearing on the "Howard Stern Show."

An autopsy revealed she had taken large amounts of Valium and the painkiller Lortab.

Menchaca's account of what happened the day Dana died doesn't add up, according to sources close to the investigation -- and may contain vital clues investigators are seeking.

Here are some of the most damning instances.

For example, he said the two took an afternoon nap in their Winnebago, parked outside his parents' home that ill-fated day. Menchaca told police that when he woke up later, he found Dana cold and lifeless.

The first thing he said he did was run to his mother's house, because she is a nurse. Family members arrived and tried to revive Dana. Then at 8:45 p.m., Menchaca dialed 911.

But Shane Bugbee's compact disc suggests Menchaca called the promoter several times before Dana died -- and prior to calling for help. Bugbee says Dana's breathing can be heard on the recording. On one call, her breathing stopped and Menchaca shouts, "Dana! Dana!" in a futile attempt to wake her.

To highlight Menchaca's clashing version of events in more detail, Joni pointed out that on the day Dana died her son Tyler waited all day to hear from her.

Menchaca finally called at about 9:30 that night, and told the boy he'd been in his parents' house with friends at the time Dana died.

"But later, he told police he was resting next to her in the motor home," noted Joni, who insisted it couldn't happen both ways.

The bitter irony is that Dana finally seemed ready to straighten herself out after 15 years of addiction hell.

"She had everything to live for," declared Joni. "She was more peaceful than I had seen her in years.

"She was going to live in Tulsa with Tyler and open a small sandwich shop in Tulsa with me. It was all set up. It would be a solid income for Dana and Tyler. It was a fantastic dream.

"I will never believe she committed suicide. Tyler doesn't believe it either."

Joni is also convinced there's no way Dana would ever overdose on prescription tranquilizers and painkillers, despite her history of addiction.

"Dana had five prescriptions for that painkiller over recent years -- for her teeth and back pain. She lived with me then. She never abused those drugs.

"I just can't believe she forced those pills down her throat herself."

The photos Menchaca allegedly snapped of Dana before she died could be his undoing. He told officials he took them because he thought she was, "snoring funny," said Sgt. Singer.

Poppycock, said Joni. She had found Dana on the verge of death from overdoses several times. "There is no way those awful croaking noises Dana made when she was like that could be mistaken for snoring.

"It was a death rattle. He was taking pictures when he should have been getting her up and helping her. He could tell she was dying!"

Sgt. Singer added, "The so-called snoring that Robert thought he heard was pulmonary edema (the lungs filling with liquid) and Dana was probably about an hour away from death at that point."

The ENQUIRER has called Robert Menchaca for comments on statements in this report. So far, he has not responded.

But Menchaca may be answering questions for a long time to come. For now, police are stuck, but according to Sgt. Singer, "We will continue to investigate for new evidence. The statute of limitations runs for seven years."

E! True Hollywood Story: Dana Plato

An one hour E! True Hollywood Story documentary special on the life of Dana Plato is scheduled to air on November 21st at 9:00-10:00PM Eastern. (it will be repeated on the 22nd at 12:00AM, 10:00AM, and 4:00PM Eastern on the 22nd and at 9:00PM Eastern on the 26th)

Many interviews will be included in the show including Dana's son Tyler, Dana's mother-in-law Joni, and Dana's cousin Sandy. They will also have interviews with Dana, Conrad Bain, Al Burton, Gary Coleman, Todd Bridges, etc. - they are using clips that were never used in the first E! True Hollywood Story: Diff'rent Strokes which originally aired in September 1998.

November 4th, 1999

Dana Plato's Memory Lives On

Dana Plato's family is planning an Oklahoma museum/restaurant and a CD-ROM honoring the late actress, TV Guide Online has learned.

Six months after Plato died of a drug overdose in her Oklahoma trailer, her 15-year-old son, Tyler Lambert, and her former mother-in-law, Joni Richardson, are mapping out plans for a Tulsa-based museum/restaurant tentatively called Dana's Place or Dana's Café. That's the word according to John Whitaker, himself a former child star (Family Affair, Sigmund and the Sea Monsters) and Plato's manager at the time of her death.

Whitaker also tells TV Guide Online he's collaborating with Lambert and A&R Records on a tribute CD-ROM that will feature a previously unreleased 1996 track sung by the late actress. "It's kind of slow, Peaches and Herb-type of music," he says. "Dana sings well but it wouldn't be a top-40 song."

The red-headed impresario says the CD-ROM, which he hopes to release before the first anniversary of Plato's death in May, will include home movies and positive reminiscences by family and friends. He's hoping to dispel the negative image portrayed in Dana Plato's Last Breath, a controversial CD and accompanying booklet from a small Chicago publisher featuring X-rated photos of the star and no-holds-barred audio interviews conducted with her in the weeks leading up to her death.

"The only way to combat the nasty, yucky stuff is to sell them something that can be positive," says Whitaker.

The Official Dana Plato Website at http://www.danaplato.org by Dana's friends and family to open soon.

From Johnny Whitaker (Dana's manager): "Currently, what we are planning to do is to counter the AWFUL CD, with a positive one that will have an original song Dana and a Friend recorded about 2 years ago. As to our knowledge it is the only professional recording Dana made. Along with the song, we will have pictures, memories of friends, video and audio clips of Dana, an audio/video remembrances of her son Tyler; plus hopefully a portion from her memorial here in Los Angeles."

A restaurant/memorial site for Dana is being talked about - possibly to open in November in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

A trust fund has been set up for Dana Plato's son Tyler Lambert. To send donations:

Edward Jones Co. Brokers
c/o Tyler Lambert Trust Fund
8116 S. Harvard
Tulsa, OK  74137

August 19, 1999

Added 19 pictures to the gallery bringing the total to over 90

July 6th, 1999

Winnebago and its contents to be released to custodial guardian of late actress Dana Plato's son

Norman, Oklahoma

The dispute over ownership of a Winnebago in which former "Diff'rent Strokes" actress Dana Plato died in Cleveland County in May was resolved in District Court here this morning.

The decision for the Winnebago and its contents to be released from storage and given over to the custodial guardian of Plato's 14-year-old son, Tyler, as part of the actress' estate was reached by agreement, District Judge William Hetherington said.

Hetherington had the attorney for plaintiffs Lanny C. Lambert, Tyler's father, and Joni Richardson, Tyler's paternal grandmother, read into the court record a brief statement about the agreement and ordered her to file a more specific written agreement with the court within 20 days.

Attorney Janis Preslar of Oklahoma City said the plaintiffs were satisfied with the agreement reached with Robert Menchaca Jr., Plato's fiance at the time the former child star apparently killed herself by a drug overdose inside the Winnebago as it was parked in front of Menchaca's parents' home May 8 in Moore.

Plato, who was 34 at the time of her death, played the wholesome Kimberly Drummond on the NBC sitcom from 1978 to 1984.

Menchaca originally was sued by Lambert and Richardson because he contended he had an ownership right to the Winnebago and its contents.

Preslar said "any dispute involving contents also has been resolved" between the parties, noting for the court record that a digital camera and a computer - items among those originally disputed - belong to plaintiffs.

Film from the camera seized by Moore police during an investigation following the actress' death is to be destroyed by police once police are done with it, Preslar said.

That film contains pictures Menchaca reportedly took shortly before Plato died. He told police he thought she was just sleeping.

Preslar, in an earlier court hearing, said the plaintiffs' "biggest concern" was that Menchaca planned to exploit Plato's death by selling the pictures or personal belongings of the actress.

Menchaca denied that was his intention, but initially argued that part of his money was used to purchase the Winnebago and its contents and that he was entitled to possession of it.

'Diff'rent Strokes' Actress's Death Declared Suicide

05/22/1999, The Associated Press - Oklahoma City, OK

Former child actress Dana Plato, who had long battled problems with drugs, committed suicide with an overdose of painkillers and muscle relaxants, the state medical examiner's office ruled Friday.

Plato, who played Kimberly Drummond on the NBC sitcom "Diff'rent Strokes" from 1978 to 1984 (and on ABC from 1985 to 1986), died May 8 while visiting her fiance's parents in Moore.

"I expected that she overdosed," fiance Robert Menchaca Jr., said Friday. He had said in a news conference days after the death that he trusted her judgment as she took the prescription drugs he said a Tulsa doctor had prescribed May 3 for back injuries Plato had suffered in a car accident.

Police initially said she died of an accidental drug overdose of Lortab and Valium.

But Dr. Larry E. Balding, the deputy medical examiner, said Friday that laboratory studies showed fatal concentrations of the drugs carisoprodol and hydro- codone/acetaminophen in her blood and tissues and the equivalent of seven tablets of carisoprodol still in her stomach. Carisoprodol is the generic name for the muscle relaxant Soma. Hydrocodone/acetam- inophen is the generic formulation for the painkiller Lortab.

Balding said the death was ruled a suicide because of the drug concentrations, her past history of suicidal gestures and the agency's investigation of the death.

Plato, 34, had had numerous problems since the sitcom's cancellation. In 1991, she was arrested for robbing a Las Vegas video store and was placed on five years' probation. A year later, she was given another five years' probation for forging prescriptions for Valium.

"If I hadn't gotten caught, it could have been the worst thing that happened to me, because I could have died of a drug overdose," she said then.

Plato had appeared on Howard Stern's radio program in New York on May 7 to deny the claims of a former roommate who said Plato was on drugs. Plato said she had been sober for about 10 years, though she had taken painkillers when her wisdom teeth were removed four months ago.

This week, a Cleveland County judge ordered the motor home where Plato died impounded until a hearing can be held to determine who owns the vehicle.

Plato's 14-year-old son, Tyler Lambert of Tulsa, wants the motor home. Menchaca's attorney said his client paid for the motor home although it was in her name.

Outside the courthouse, Lambert's paternal grandmother, Joni Richardson, said she was suspicious of Menchaca's motives and noted that he had taken photos of Plato in a comatose state.

Menchaca had told police he thought Plato was snoring when he took the photos. Moore police spokesman Sgt. Scott Singer said that actually Plato's lungs were filling with fluid.

A memorial service is planned on Sunday in Los Angeles.

I have received quite a few e-mails, read the message board posts, and the guestbook entries but there was one message that I received that meant so much to me personally and was especially poignant:

5/11/99

I don't know if she ever got around to telling you this, but I am a friend of Dana's, as well as working with her manager, but Dana and I talked about your site a few months ago, and she really loved and appreciated what you have done with it.  Your site is the only one that really covered her career and her life with a fair and balanced perspective. Johnny Whitaker was her legitimate current manager, and at the request of her son will be doing several TV interviews this week to set the story straight.

FYI, you source in Tulsa was correct; Dana was set to go into rehearsals for an Off Broadway show this summer. She was planning to take her son on vacation first so that they could spend some time together before her schedule was tied up.  We also had several movie offers for her that we were working on scheduling around the show, so things were really starting to go well for her.  The tragedy is even worse for its timing; if she hadn't died when she did she would have made a comeback in a big way by this time next year.

Dana was a really sweet, nice person, who genuinely appreciated her loyal fans, and really liked your site. Thank you on her behalf.

Susan Rydeen