15. Gary Coleman – $1.68 Million for the Final Season of Different Strokes, 1985 (Age 17)
via:www.youtube.com
Gary makes this list even though he was a star more than 30 years ago (at a time when even Bill Cosbywasn’t making that kind of money on TV). If you adjust for inflation, Gary would be one of the top 5 child star earners right now. He started his career on the famed show about racial harmony (Different Strokes) at the age of 10. The biggest child star of his decade by far, he was born with one atrophied kidney and a weak second one, he had two kidney transplants by the time he reached 16 and the effects of his dialysis medication permanently stunted his growth (to 4’8″). Unfortunately like every child star on that show, he developed quite a few issues in adulthood. In his case, the troubles probably stemmed from the fact that Hollywood had no more need for an adult star trapped in a child’s body. Even with all of his millions, he declared bankruptcy in 1999, due to overwhelming hospital bills and legal bills. I guess millions aren’t enough if new income is not coming in.
The 42-year-old actor died of a brain hemorrhage on May 28, 2010, after suffering an epidural hematoma from a fall at home. A sad end to a career that had every famous comedian of his day praising his comedic skills as a teenager.
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