Gary Coleman just died of a brain hemorrhage and I am starting to feel my age. I grew up with him on TV and religiously watched, “Different Strokes” whenever it aired. I’m pretty sure that I laughed loudly every single time he said, “What you talking about, Willis?” and to this day, that has remained a catch-phrase with many of my friends.

Gary Coleman is just a few years older than I am and while I don’t have the health problems that he has had, reading about the childhood stars from my youth like Corey Haim and Gary Coleman dying is a sad reminder that none of us are getting any younger and in all honesty, freaks me out. I even felt sad when I read the news that Andrew Andrew Koenig  (Boner of Growing Pains) committed suicide because watching the antics of the characters on “Growing Pains” was also part of my routine as a teenager.

Even all these years later, I have a personal attachment to the stars of my youth and somewhat strangely, the TV stars made more of a lasting impression than the movie stars, probably because I had weekly “appointments” to watch certain shows. Unfortunately, as we all know from the “Where are they now?” segments on gossip shows, in print, and around the net, most of the teen stars I haven’t done so well.

In fact, when I really think about it, as an 80’s kid, it’s strange to see that none of the stars I remember from my TV watching days have really succeeded in life at all, which is probably the result of the enormous pressure that teen stars are under. It’s especially tragic and disenheartening to see how the kids of “Different Strokes” have fared since the show ended decades ago. Dana Plato (who played Arnold’s adopted sister) committed suicide in 1999 and Todd Bridges (Willis) was arrested and later acquitted for murder. In the trial, he was represented by Johnny Cochrane who first argued about the extraordinary pressures that teen stars are faced with.

I have to admit that I haven’t particularly followed the exploits of Gary Coleman over the last several years, but that doesn’t make me any less sad that he died. Rest in Peace, Gary and thank you for all the laughs you gave me in childhood.