- Born
- Died
- Birth nameDana Michelle Strain
- Height1.57 m
- Dana Michelle Plato was born in Maywood, California, on Saturday, November 7, 1964. Her first excursion into the film world occurred when she was 11 in the television film Beyond the Bermuda Triangle (1975). Dana never made an impact on the TV screen until she landed the role of Kimberly Drummond in the TV hit sitcom Arnold et Willy (1978) from 1978-1986. After the series ended, Dana had difficulty finding more acting work. Sometimes she would act in a made-for-TV movie or a low- budget silver-screen film. She was married for Lanny Lambert for seven years and they had a son. She was arrested in 1991 for robbing a Las Vegas video store and placed on probation; the next year she was arrested again, this time for forging a Valium prescription. She had just finished an interview with Howard Stern in the spring of 1999 when she and her fiancé, Robert Menchaca, were headed back to California. She hoped the interview would revive her stalled career. They stopped at his parents' house in Moore, Oklahoma for a Mother's-Day-weekend visit; on Saturday, May 8, 1999, Dana died of what appeared to be an accidental overdose of the painkiller "Loritab". On May 21, a coroner's inquest ruled her death a suicide because of the large amount of drugs in her body and her history of past suicide attempts. Dana Plato was 34 years old.- IMDb mini biography by: Denny Jackson
- SpouseLanny Lambert(April 21, 1984 - March 1990) (divorced, 1 child)
- Children
- ParentsDean Plato
- RelativesHeidi Plato(Sibling)John Daran Strain(Sibling)
- She was the mother of Tyler Lambert. Lambert committed suicide via a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head on May 6, 2010, two days before the 11th anniversary of his mother's death.
- Was fired from Arnold et Willy (1978) at the end of the 1983-1984 season due to her pregnancy. The producers were unwilling to write the pregnancy into the show, but she was able to return for guest appearances after her son was born.
- Arrested for armed robbery in 1991.
- Childhood dream was to be an Olympic figure skater.
- She played the same character (Kimberly Drummond) in three different series: Arnold et Willy (1978), Hello, Larry (1979) and Drôle de vie (1979).
- I think the whole nerves thing comes into play when we worry about what other people and society will think.
- I'm tired of defending my character. I am what I am. What you see is what you get.
- Growing up, all I did was work and vacation, but I loved it, no one pushed me into anything. The thing was I developed no special skills. I don't have any resentment because I am a performer and I've always felt that, but it did take its toll socially.
- I've learned through experience that life is never that bad. The secret is just paying attention to how you feel and not letting anyone else dictate what in your heart you know is right.
- In my opinion it's not about gay or straight or bi, we're attracted to spirits, whatever body they're in. There are other reasons too, but that's how I see it.
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