30 minSeason 8 • Episode 19
LatestArnold's feature story about his high school football team threatens to turn into a controversial expose for the school newspaper when he witnesses team members buying steroids.
The series stars Gary Coleman and Todd Bridges as Arnold and Willis Jackson, two African American boys from Harlem who are taken in by a rich white Park Avenue businessman named Phillip Drummond and his daughter Kimberly, for whom their deceased mother previously worked. During the first season and first half of the second season, Charlotte Rae also starred as the Drummonds' housekeeper, Mrs. Garrett.
Acting
Gary Coleman's comedic timing at age 10 was genuinely supernatural.
Writing
Balanced very special episodes with actual jokes—revolutionary for the era.
Production
The Park Avenue penthouse set became iconic 70s sitcom architecture.
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
NBC developed this specifically to capitalize on 'Roots'—executives wanted a 'Black show' that white audiences would watch.
The 'Bicycle Man' two-parter with Gordon Jump became legendary for its handling of child predation—unusually dark for the era.
US
