Thursday, January 17, 2013
Remembering Conrad Bain, Antenna TV Pays Tribute with Maude, Diff'rent Strokes Marathons; Betty White's 2nd Annual 90th Birthday Special on Feb. 5
Veteran actor Conrad Bain, who played Phillip Drummond in Diff'rent Strokes and Dr. Arthur Harmon in Maude, has died. He died of natural causes on January 14 at a retirement home in Livermore, California. Mr. Bain was 89.
Conrad Bain was born on February 4, 1923, in Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada. His career began as a stage actor in a Connecticut production of Dear Ruth in 1947. Bain's other theatre credits included The Iceman Cometh, Candide, Advise and Consent, An Enemy of the People, Uncle Vanya and On Borrowed Time.
Bain's television career began in 1952 with an appearance in Studio One. His early television guest appearances included The Defenders, The Trials of O'Brien and N.Y.P.D.. In 1966, he played Mr. Wells, the town innkeeper, in Dark Shadows. He appeared in four episodes in the first two seasons before his character was killed off by werewolf Chris Jennings. In 1970, he appeared as Dr. Charles Weldon #1 in The Edge of Night. Bain's film credits in the 1960s and 1970s included Madigan, A Lovely Way to Die, Coogan's Bluff, I Never Sang for My Father, Bananas, The Anderson Tapes, Up the Sandbox and C.H.O.M.P.S.
In 1972, he landed his first starring television role in Maude. The All in the Family spin-off aired for 6 seasons on CBS from 1972-1978. The series starred Bea Arthur, Bill Macy, Adrienne Barbeau, Rue McClanahan and Esther Rolle (1972-1974). Bain played the role of Dr. Arthur Harmon, Maude and Walter Findlay's next-door neighbor and the best friend of Walter. Arthur was initially a widower in the series, but he later started dating Maude's best friend, Vivian (Rue McClanahan), at the beginning of the second season. Their characters were married in the middle of the season in February 1974. His identical twin brother, Bonar Bain, played his twin brother Arnold in the 1977 episode Vivian's Surprise.
Bain's best known role was as Phillip Drummond in Diff'rent Strokes. The popular sitcom ran for 8 seasons on NBC from 1978-1985 and ABC from 1985-1986. Philip Drummond was the wealthy father of daughter Kimberly (Dana Plato) and adopted sons Arnold (Gary Coleman) and Willis (Todd Bridges). Their family lived in an apartment on Park Avenue in Manhattan. He was the president of the huge conglomerate Trans Allied, Inc. Bain also appeared as Mr. Drummond in The Facts of Life pilot episode and the crossover episodes with Hello, Larry. In 1996, he reprised his role and appeared with Gary Coleman as prospective buyers of the mansion in the final episode of The Fresh Prince of Bel Air. He reunited with Coleman and Bridges in March 2003 at the TV Land Awards to present the award for "Funniest Food Fight."
Following the end of Diff'rent Strokes, he appeared in the 1987-1988 Fox sitcom Mr. President. He played the affable Charlie Ross, who was the loyal Chief of Staff to President Samuel Arthur Tresch (George C. Scott). In 1990, he played the role of Grandpa in the film Postcards from the Edge. He had been retired from acting since 1996, except for a stage role in Ancestral Voices in 2000.
Survivors include three sons, one daughter and his identical twin brother, Bonar Bain. Conrad was married to Monica Sloan from 1945 until her death in 2009. Jennifer Bain had this to say TMZ about her father: "He was an amazing person. He was a lot like Mr. Drummond, but much more interesting in real life. He was an amazing father." Mr. Drummond was one the greatest dads in TV history. Gary Coleman may have been the big star of the show, but Bain was the glue who held everything together. He had many hilarious lines and scenes. He will be greatly missed.
Share your memories on our Diff'rent Strokes and Maude message boards. View photos in our Diff'rent Strokes and Maude photo galleries.
Antenna TV will pay tribute to Conrad Bain by airing a marathon of some of his finest work on episodes of both of his long-running series. They will air "A Tribute to Conrad Bain" this Saturday (January 19, 2013) from 1-8pm ET, with eight episodes each of Maude (1-4pm ET) and Diff'rent Strokes (4-8pm ET). View the episode info for this tribute marathon. We will let you know if any other network or station is planning a tribute.
Seven-time Emmy Award winner Betty White will be celebrating her 91st birthday in style as a star-studded line up of special guests pays tribute to one of the world's most beloved entertainers in Betty White's 2nd Annual 90th Birthday Special, airing Tuesday, February 5 at 8pm ET on NBC in her Off Their Rockers timeslot. Blake Shelton, Bill Cosby, Whoopi Goldberg, Sean Hayes, Rico Rodriguez, Lily Tomlin and Sarah Silverman will honor America's comedy sweetheart, along with Bill Clinton, the 42nd President of the United States. Also on hand to deliver birthday wishes will be Vicki Lawrence -- reprising her popular title role from Mama's Family -- Katie Couric and White's Hot in Cleveland co-stars Valerie Bertinelli, Jane Leeves and Wendie Malick, as well as Zachary Levi, Larry King and Kate Flannery. The evening will include special performances - including Shelton singing a tailor-made musical number for the birthday girl - as well as comedy and clips that perfectly capture the irreverent tone, spirit and comedic flair that are the hallmark of White's extraordinary career.
At 91 years old, White is one of the funniest and busiest actresses in Hollywood, currently starring on NBC's Betty White's Off Their Rockers and TV Land's sitcom Hot in Cleveland. With a career that has spanned more than 60 years, the star of classic series like The Mary Tyler Moore Show and Golden Girls has created unforgettable roles in television and film. She has also authored seven books and won numerous awards, including those for her lifelong work for animal welfare.
The first Betty White's 90th Birthday aired last year on Monday, Jan. 16, 2012 as a 90-minute special and delivered solid ratings averaging 13.86 million viewers and a 2.7 18-49 rating.
Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Thursday, July 10
Ghosts - "Smooching and Smushing" (CBS, 9:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Jay, Sam and the ghosts attempt to fix the ghost trap in hopes of getting Sasappis across the ghost boundary to visit his longtime crush, Shiki.
Bob's Burgers - "Wild Steal-ions" (Fox, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Tina's lost book of semi-erotic horse-torical fiction lands in the hands of a mysterious stranger with nefarious intentions.
Grimsburg - "How to Lose an Ankle Monitor in 10 Days" (Fox, 8:30PM ET/PT)
When the criminals of Grimsburg go on strike, the police force gets furloughed.
Family Guy - "Karenheit 451" (Fox, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Lois becomes the leader of a group of mothers who want to ban books from schools.
The Great North - "Bust a Moon Adventure" (Fox, 9:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Moon makes a big decision after clashing with Beef; Judy and Ham hatch a plot to make some extra cash.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of July 7)
Thursday, July 10
- Anthony Anderson (black-ish/Guys with Kids/All About the Andersons) - Anthony guest hosts Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Keke Palmer (Scream Queens/True Jackson, VP) - Keke is a musical guest on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
- Rhys Darby (Wrecked/How to Be a Gentleman/Flight of the Conchords), Rory Scovel (Grace and Frankie/Robbie/Ground Floor) and Baron Vaughn (Corporate/Grace and Frankie) - Rhys, Rory and Baron are guests on a repeat of After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
- Ronny Chieng (Young Rock/Ronny Chieng: International Student) - Ronny hosts Comedy Central's The Daily Show at 11pm.
- Oliver Hudson (Splitting Up Together/Rules of Engagement/My Guide to Becoming a Rock Star) - Oliver is a guest on a repeat of The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
- Valerie Bertinelli (Hot in Cleveland/Café Americain/Sydney/One Day at a Time) - Valerie appears on a repeat of The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
- Jessica Lowe (Wrecked) - Jessica talks about Elixir's Red Flag Green Flag on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
New on DVD and Blu-ray
01/28 - Wait Till Your Father Gets Home - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
02/04 - The Wayans Bros. - The Complete Series
03/11 - Frasier (2023) - Season Two
04/01 - Abbott Elementary - The Complete Third Season
05/13 - The Drew Carey Show - The Complete Series* (missing 4 episodes and some music has been replaced or altered)
06/06 - Shoresy - Season 2
06/17 - Looney Tunes - Collector's Vault - Volume 1 (Blu-ray)
07/22 - Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray)
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