Aug 18, 2026 · 39 min · 13 segments
Todd Bridges revisits becoming Willis Jackson on *Diff'rent Strokes*, helping cast Dana Plato, and building television history alongside Gary Coleman and Conrad Bain. He shares his perspective on…
Jodie SweetinGuestYeah.
But he came in like a vet.
Right? The-
Mm-hmm
Right.
Um, so he, he was pretty seasoned on that, as, as far as that part, but he needed people around him.
Like, people don't understand the setup guy for a comedian has to be a really good actor.
Mm-hmm.
Right.
People who are, um, the setup people for people to make the jokes have to be good.
Mm-hmm.
Right.
I like the fact that you said, um, you brought in Conrad Bain, and Dana Plato was the person that you were like, "That's our person."
What was it about her as an actress?
Yeah.
But he came in like a vet.
Right? The-
Mm-hmm
Right.
Um, so he, he was pretty seasoned on that, as, as far as that part, but he needed people around him.
Like, people don't understand the setup guy for a comedian has to be a really good actor.
Mm-hmm.
Right.
People who are, um, the setup people for people to make the jokes have to be good.
Mm-hmm.
Right.
I like the fact that you said, um, you brought in Conrad Bain, and Dana Plato was the person that you were like, "That's our person."
What was it about her as an actress?
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