.....What would you like to have seen happen to the Drummonds and the Jacksons?

.....What would you like to have seen happen to the Drummonds and the Jacksons?




I think that I'd would have liked to see the kids grown up, moving on with their lives and starting out on there own and having children of their own.

With Mr. Drummond happily living in the penthouse with his wife and having his grandchilderen over for visits. :)

I like that.

Diff'rent Strokes did not get a proper series finale because it was cancelled after a short 19-episodes 8th season.

But what if DS did have a proper send-off episode? One can either extend Season 8 by 3 to 5 episodes (thereby making it 22 or 24 like a few of the other seasons and the final number of episodes would be 194) or there can be a ninth and final season during 1986-87 with either 22 episodes (a full season) or 14 episodes (a half season). Also, would the series finale be a regular 30-minute episode or a two-part episode?

There are three options:

* Extend 8th season by 3 to 5 episodes with finale at the end.
* Extend 8th season by 3 episodes and half 9th season of 14 episodes w/ finale.
* Extend 8th season by 3 episodes and full 9th season of 22 episodes w/ finale.

Perhaps a 9th season is probably a bad idea.

There wasn't much to do with the show, but they could have came up with a few ideas.


For one, the title was Diff'rent Strokes. I think Mr. Drummond could have gotten a stroke, maybe not a major one, a small one. And I guess Sam would be competing on his swim team. "Therefore, Diff'rent Strokes For Diff'rent Folks" could have been the series finale title.


Drummond would make out okay, but this would send Willis rushing home, maybe he'd already be home from his first year of college, but he'd be home, as would Kimberly. Maybe something big would be occuring? Maybe Drummond's 60th birthday? I don't know...something.


There really wasn't much to do with the show. Was Willis still dating Charlene? I don't know if they were still together or not, but if they were or weren't, she could have returned and maybe they could have married and moved off campus to where he was going to college.


Those are the only big storylines I can think of that would have been a good send-off for the show.

what about Arnold cant forget him

Arnold and Sam would already be home.

I think that having Willis and Charlene as a couple, eventually married, could have extended the show - much the way that the marriage of Lionel and Jenny did The Jeffersons.

The show should have featured Sam and his friends with Arnold being the older brother. Gary Coleman could have reduced his on-screen appearences, but could he and Todd Bridges could have become directors of episodes.

Kimberly, too, should have returned. Did she have a baby on the show, or am I confusing her with real life? Anyway, she could have been a mother - wed or otherwise. Perhaps Willis or Arnold could have spent episodes matchmaking her with their friends, but she realized that she was the independent type who wanted a career. When Kimberly eventually was to get a permanent boyfriend, he could have been some type of kooky imigrant. (like on What a Country! or Perfect Strangers)

Willis would have grown into a traditional-type husband, Kimberly into a non-traditional-type mother, and Charlene somewhere in the middle.

They should have had Drummond get married on the final episode instead of earlier. When he married Maggie, Diff'rent Strokes JTS.

I think that having Willis and Charlene as a couple, eventually married, could have extended the show - much the way that the marriage of Lionel and Jenny did The Jeffersons.

The show should have featured Sam and his friends with Arnold being the older brother. Gary Coleman could have reduced his on-screen appearences, but could he and Todd Bridges could have become directors of episodes.

Kimberly, too, should have returned. Did she have a baby on the show, or am I confusing her with real life? Anyway, she could have been a mother - wed or otherwise. Perhaps Willis or Arnold could have spent episodes matchmaking her with their friends, but she realized that she was the independent type who wanted a career. When Kimberly eventually was to get a permanent boyfriend, he could have been some type of kooky imigrant. (like on What a Country! or Perfect Strangers)

Willis would have grown into a traditional-type husband, Kimberly into a non-traditional-type mother, and Charlene somewhere in the middle.



Dana, who played Kimberly, DID in fact have a child in real life.

His name was Tyler. He was only 24, and sadly / tragically, he commited suicide. He was said to be so saddened by the loss of his mom, he was an alcoholic and started doing drugs as well.

Don't remember how he took his own life, but sadly, he's joined his mom in death. :(

Probably have Arnold get accepted to a out of state college and Willis get offered a new job out of state.

i would think Arnold would have gone into something that would make use of his smart wit and charm - maybe a lawyer, that could work.

Willis, I don't know - I could see him trying to weasel into the family business, I'm still not sure exactly what Mr Drummond did - besides making money.

Kimberly probably would've become a writer for a magazine or something.

Sam I am fairly certain would now be an international terrorist.

i would have been happy to see willis graduate from college and get married and have a decent career making lots of money for himself

i would have been happy to see arnold finally get a real girlfriend and graduate from high school and move out of the drummands house

i would have been happy to finally see mr drummand sell his apartment house and move into real house maybe he gets a divorce he becomes a single man again

Philip Drummond was president of Trans Allied Inc., which was how he got rich, along with being rich as a kid, due to having wealthy parents. It could have ended by having the Drummond's move to California.

I think they would have finished off the series in the 8th season. The show was stale and at the time Webster was kicking ass and taking names.

Diff'rent Strokes for Diff'rent Folks (series finale). I like that name that someone said earlier.

To end the show, I would liked for them brought all the original characters back. Willis could have proposed to Charlene on the last episode. I would had a storyline between Arnold and Dudley possibly going out on dates with various girls. Sam starts hanging out more with his friends. Mr. Drummond and his wife have to realize that everyone is growing up and developing lives of their own.

What was the last episode that Charlene appeared in? I think she had been out of the picture for several years by the time Diff'rent Strokes ended.

What was the last episode that Charlene appeared in? I think she had been out of the picture for several years by the time Diff'rent Strokes ended.

Charlene (Janet Jackson) last appeared in "The Houseguest", Season 06, episode 22, aired May 05, 1984.

What was the last episode that Charlene appeared in? I think she had been out of the picture for several years by the time Diff'rent Strokes ended.


Exactly, her and willis went separate ways which is the norm for teens

It was nice to see Mrs. garrett return for Mr. Drummond's wedding

Exactly, her and willis went separate ways which is the norm for teens

It was nice to see Mrs. garrett return for Mr. Drummond's wedding
It would have made it even better to have the girls with Edna as well.

It would have made it even better to have the girls with Edna as well.


You have to all remember, Arnold was only finishing up his freshman year of high school and Willis was finishing up his freshman year of college. No way would they age them several years if they did a send off in season 8, unless it was a time jump to show what became of them.

Diff'rent Strokes did not get a proper series finale because it was cancelled after a short 19-episodes 8th season.

But what if DS did have a proper send-off episode? One can either extend Season 8 by 3 to 5 episodes (thereby making it 22 or 24 like a few of the other seasons and the final number of episodes would be 194) or there can be a ninth and final season during 1986-87 with either 22 episodes (a full season) or 14 episodes (a half season). Also, would the series finale be a regular 30-minute episode or a two-part episode?

There are three options:

* Extend 8th season by 3 to 5 episodes with finale at the end.
* Extend 8th season by 3 episodes and half 9th season of 14 episodes w/ finale.
* Extend 8th season by 3 episodes and full 9th season of 22 episodes w/ finale.

Perhaps a 9th season is probably a bad idea.

I was recently watching Todd Bridges' interview on Vlad TV:
0Deb9nHiJB4

He says that Diff'rent Strokes could've in theory, lasted at least 10 seasons. I mean, its spin-off, The Facts of Life had I believe nine seasons, before itself ending in 1988. So what's not to say that Diff'rent Strokes could've lasted into 1988 as well?

Anyway, according to Todd, Diff'rent Strokes was still a top rated show when NBC first canceled it in 1985. What happened was that NBC was fed up with Gary Coleman's parents demanding more and more money. Bare in mind, that Gary was already making top dollar on Diff'rent Strokes, more than anybody else on there. Plus, by that point, they had The Cosby Show, so there was a general feeling that they really didn't need Diff'rent Strokes anymore regardless.

Shortly after ABC picked the program up for the 1985-86 season, Gary's parents kept doing the same thing and of course, ABC quickly got tired of dealing with them as well.

You hit the nail on the head regarding the "behind-the-scenes" drama. It’s wild to think that Diff'rent Strokes—a show built on the idea of a stable family—was actually undone by real-life family greed and network politics.

Todd Bridges is right that the ratings were still decent, but by 1985, the "math" stopped working for the networks for two big reasons:

The "Cosby" Effect: When The Cosby Show debuted in 1984, it completely changed the landscape of Black sitcoms. It was sophisticated, high-budget, and a massive hit. NBC felt Diff'rent Strokes suddenly looked "dated" and "gimmicky" by comparison. They didn't need the headache of the Colemans when they had the Huxtables.

The Salary Wars: Gary Coleman was famously making around $70,000 per episode (an insane amount for the early '80s). His parents and agents constantly playing hardball with NBC and then ABC turned the show into a "liability" rather than an asset. Both networks eventually decided the backstage stress wasn't worth the shrinking profit margins.

It’s a shame because a 10th season in 1988 could have given the show a proper series finale. Instead, it just sort of vanished after moving to ABC, leaving fans without any real closure for Arnold and Willis as adults