MyEpisodeCalendar.com - Diff'rent Strokes Episode Summaries

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First Aired: November 3rd, 1978

Status: Ended

Network: ABC

Summary: The series stars Gary Coleman and Todd Bridges as Arnold and Willis Jackson, two African American boys from Harlem who are taken in by a rich white Park Avenue businessman named Phillip Drummond and his daughter Kimberly, for whom their deceased mother previously worked. During the first season and first half of the second season, Charlotte Rae also starred as the Drummonds' housekeeper, Mrs. Garrett.

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Episode Statistics:

# of Episodes: 189

# of Episodes I watched: 0

# of Episodes I haven't watched: 189

Last Episode I watched: -

Diff'rent Strokes (1978) Main Page

Episode Summaries

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Season 5

Episode 1: Shoot-Out at the O.K. Arcade

Air Date: October 2nd, 1982

Summary: Arnold is determined to defeat brother Willis at his own game and dethrone him as local video game champ, but in doing so Arnold's passion becomes a destructive ""addiction"" that could have serious consequences.

Episode 2: In the Swim

Air Date: October 9th, 1982

Summary: Willis is completely supportive of Kimberly's transfer into his public school, until his sister's ""innocent"" actions begin getting him into hot water.

Episode 3: Cyrano De Jackson

Air Date: October 16th, 1982

Summary: Arnold's on the outs with his best friend Dudley after he innocently offers to help his bashful buddy win the heart of a young lady -- who falls for Arnold instead.

Episode 4: Big Brother

Air Date: October 23rd, 1982

Summary: Arnold's got a ""can't lose"" plan for curing a new classmate's loneliness -- sharing big brother Willis -- but his kind of intentions leave Arnold feeling like the lonely, only child.

Episode 5: The Peacemaker

Air Date: October 30th, 1982

Summary: Willis' personal safety is in jeopardy when his noble attempt to mediate a feud between rival gangs backfires, forcing him to take a drastic step to insure his protection -- purchasing a handgun.

Episode 6: Substitute Teacher

Air Date: November 6th, 1982

Summary: Arnold and his buddies fabricate a ""little white lie"" in an attempt to get rid of an overly-conscientious substitute teacher, but their tell tale could result in more than just removing the teacher from the classroom -- it could destroy his entire career.

Episode 7: The Older Woman

Air Date: November 13rd, 1982

Summary: A false I.D. and a false bravado create real problems for Willis and a beautiful ""older"" woman when an evening on the town doesn't go quite as he had planned.

Episode 8: A Case of Overexposure (a.k.a.) Overexposure

Air Date: November 20th, 1982

Summary: Arnold must face the bare facts -- his chances of winning a prestigious school election seem desperately slim, thanks to an ""overexposed"" candid campaign photo taken by sister Kimberly.

Episode 9: Memories

Air Date: November 27th, 1982

Summary: A long lost trunk returned to the boys contains a tape recording of their deceased mother which brings to the surface a previously unrecognized problem that triggers uncharacteristic behavior from a usually happy-go-lucky Arnold.

Episode 10: Push Comes to Shove

Air Date: December 4th, 1982

Summary: Arnold's unexpected confrontation with the new building manager's son leads to a chilling series of events that could get the entire Drummond family evicted.

Episode 11: The Executives

Air Date: December 11st, 1982

Summary: Willis learns that even a little power in the wrong hands can be dangerous when he oversteps the bounds of his authority in his afterschool job at his father's office.

Episode 12: Santa's Helper

Air Date: December 18th, 1982

Summary: Arnold falls innocent victim to a beguiling street-corner Santa who has an ulterior financial motive for hiring him as a holiday ""helper.""

Episode 13: A Growing Problem

Air Date: January 8th, 1983

Summary: At 16, Willis thinks he's man enough and old enough to ""top"" a few drinks with the guys, but Drummond's objections send Willis storming out of the house intent on proving his father wrong.

Episode 14: Parents Have Rights, Too

Air Date: January 15th, 1983

Summary: Drummond's plans for a quiet and private weekend ""alone"" don't quite work out as he had intended, when a storm sends Arnold, Willis and Kimberly home from a camping trip early -- catching him off guard in a compromising situation.

Episode 15: Independent Woman

Air Date: January 22nd, 1983

Summary: A new job and a handsome new boss add up to trouble for an innocent Kimberly when her new employer starts displaying a more than casual interest in her -- hoping that his ""special attention"" will help land him a position within Drummond's prestigious company.

Episode 16: The Bicycle Man (1)

Air Date: February 5th, 1983

Summary: Unaware that he's being lured into the carefully crafted trap of a child molester, Arnold eagerly agrees to perform a simple task in return for an overly generous reward from a ""friendly"" neighborhood merchant.

Episode 17: The Bicycle Man (2)

Air Date: February 12nd, 1983

Summary: Arnold and Dudley's ""friendship"" with a local merchant reaches a dangerous turning point when, unbeknownst to the boys, the man, who is actually a child molester, is about to make his move.

Episode 18: Family on Ice

Air Date: February 19th, 1983

Summary: Kimberly is overjoyed when Olympic Gold Medalist Dorothy Hamill sees great promise in her as a competitive figure skater, but she's even more astounded when Drummond agrees to let her leave the New York ""nest"" to train full time with the award-winning skater -- in Los Angeles.

Episode 19: Hall Monitor

Air Date: February 26th, 1983

Summary: Arnold's good intentions backfire when his efforts to help his handicapped friend Kathy adjust to life in public school cost him the esteem of his classmates and the friendship of pals Dudley and Robbie.

Episode 20: The Cricket

Air Date: March 5th, 1983

Summary: To try to curb Arnold's run of bad luck, Drummond gives him a pet cricket, but the Japanese ""good luck charm"" brings nothing but sleepless nights and dreams of ""pesticide"" to the rest of the household.

Episode 21: Roommates

Air Date: March 12nd, 1983

Summary: The household's turned upside down when Drummond becomes Arnold's roommate for a week.

Episode 22: The Reporter

Air Date: March 19th, 1983

Summary: Determined to prove he didn't fabricate a story about drug abuse in his grade school just to win a journalism contest, Arnold takes his article to the New York City newspaper sponsoring the competition, and when they run his story on the front page, Arnold receives some unexpected more support from First Lady Nancy Reagan.

Episode 23: Romeo and Juliet

Air Date: April 30th, 1983

Summary: Arnold's Romeo is steeped in more turmoil than Shakespeare ever intended when he's tricked by his ""best friends"" into playing opposite arch-nemisis Lisa's Juliet.

Episode 24: My Fair Larry (a.k.a.) My Fair Lady

Air Date: May 7th, 1983

Summary: School ""thug"" Larry coerces Willis into teaching him how to ""make it"" with girls, but things go from bad to worse when Larry's first target is Willis' sister Kimberly.

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