Dana Plato, remembered by millions as Kimberly Drummond on the hit sitcom Diff’rent Strokes, went from teen idol to a life marked by legal trouble, financial hardship, and personal struggles. Born Dana Michelle Strain on November 7, 1964, in Maywood, California, she was adopted as an infant by Dean and Kay Plato. Her childhood was anything but typical—by age seven, she had already appeared in more than 100 television commercials. Plato made her acting debut at 10 on The Six Million Dollar Man, followed by a film role in the 1977 horror Exorcist II: The Heretic.
Shortly after, an appearance on The Gong Show caught the attention of a producer who helped cast her on Diff’rent Strokes. The NBC sitcom debuted in 1978 and became an instant success. In 1984, Plato married rock guitarist Lanny Lambert, and their son, Tyler Edward Lambert, was born in July of that year. Her pregnancy and struggles with substance abuse reportedly led to her dismissal from Diff’rent Strokes shortly after the birth, though she did make occasional appearances on the show in 1985 and 1986.
The years that followed brought a series of setbacks. In January 1988, Plato separated from Lambert—the same week her mother died of scleroderma. During her 1990 divorce, she lost custody of her son and received only visitation rights. She also reported that her accountant had disappeared with most of her money, leaving her with less than $150,000.
Plato made efforts to rebuild her career, including posing for a June 1989 Playboy pictorial after having breast implants, but meaningful acting opportunities remained scarce. On February 28, 1991, Plato entered a video store, pulled out a pellet weapon, and demanded cash from the register. She fled with $164. The clerk called 911 and told the dispatcher, “I’ve just been robbed by the girl who played Kimberly on Diff’rent Strokes.
” Around 15 minutes later, Plato returned to the scene and was arrested. Las Vegas entertainer Wayne Newton posted her $13,000 bail, and she was ultimately sentenced to five years of probation. In 1992, Plato was arrested again, this time for forging a prescription for a controlled substance. She served 30 days in jail for violating her probation and immediately entered a rehabilitation program afterward.
Plato later relocated to Las Vegas, where she faced poverty and unemployment, working at one point in a dry cleaning store. In the latter part of her career, she took on erotic roles, appearing nude in Prime Suspect (1989) and Compelling Evidence (1995). She was engaged to her manager, Robert Menchaca, and the two lived together in a motor home. On May 7, 1999, the day before her death, Plato appeared on The Howard Stern Show.
She discussed her financial problems and prior run-ins with the law. Many callers insulted her and questioned her sobriety, which visibly provoked and angered her, though some callers and Stern himself defended her. The next day, May 8, 1999, Plato and Menchaca stopped at his mother’s home in Moore, Oklahoma, for a Mother’s Day visit while returning to California. During the visit, Plato said she felt unwell, took some medication, and lay down inside the Winnebago parked outside the house.
When Menchaca woke up, he discovered she had died in her sleep. She was 34 years old. Plato’s body was cremated, and her ashes were scattered over the Pacific Ocean. Her death brought a tragic close to a life that had once seemed full of promise.
On May 6, 2010, two days before the 11th anniversary of his mother’s death, Tyler Lambert took his own life.
