The play gave Coleman a tribute, complete with weeping. “Avenue Q” has gotten a lot of mileage out of making fun of Gary Coleman over the years, a fate which looked fraught with controversy in the wake of his death. But despite that, the show went on with him last night, and it looks like it’ll continue to go on with him. “After watching it tonight, I would miss him too much,” said the play’s book writer, Jeff Whitty. “Personally, I would miss him terribly.” source
While everything in life may be only for now, we suspect that Gary’s legacy will live on for many years to come. Gary’s memory will certainly endure in the hearts and minds of those of us who live on Avenue Q.
A statement from the crew of the off-Broadway performance of “Avenue Q” • Regarding the death of Gary Coleman. Here’s the problem they face. One of the main characters of the play is based on the deceased “Different Strokes” star (without Coleman’s consent), and the play goes out of its way to make fun of him. One of the songs about Coleman is called “It Sucks to Be Me.” They plan on doing a tribute tonight, but we’re guessing it’s going to be tough to reconcile Coleman’s tragic death with the satire on his life. source
I’m sorry I had to take Gary Coleman. But damn if I’m not going to make him say ‘What’choo talkin bout, Jesus?’ when he gets here.
The Twitter account @Jesus_M_Christ • Who’s been kind of a jerk about Gary Coleman’s very sad situation. The person behind the Jesus parody account has posted nine tweets in the last two days with the kind of black humor we can’t get behind. This tweet is pretty bad, but it’s nowhere near as bad as this one. Look, Coleman has famously been the butt of jokes (there’s a character in “Avenue Q” who parodies his depressing fate) but now isn’t the time. Seriously. source
Gary Coleman’s story may be one of the saddest child star stories ever. Coleman, who died at 42, deserves respect from an obit. Doesn’t he? For nearly a decade, he was a pint-sized legend that ranked up there with Lucille Ball. Then it all fell apart. His life is a sad tale. Not only is he the ultimate example of how typecasting can ruin a career (although the four People’s Choice Awards did help soften the blow in the early ’80s), but he had all sorts of awful things happen to him throughout his life. A few examples:
Trust misappropriationSure, Coleman spent all of those years on “Different Strokes,” but he didn’t get rich of it. Why? Because his parents and manager reportedly mis-managed his trust fund. As a result, he had to file for bankruptcy in 1999.
trouble with the lawWhile we don’t exactly want to play Coleman as an angel with a halo over his head, we can’t help but think his financial troubles eventually led to myriad troubles with the law, including assault and domestic violence charges.
selling out his imageOver the last two decades of his life, he had to suffer through humiliating appearance-oriented jobs just to pay the bills. It’s pretty troubling that his last credited role was in a film called “Midgets vs. Mascots.” His entire IMDB is a mess. source