Diff'rent Strokes' Adoptive Dad Conrad Bain Dies at 89

Actor Conrad Bain, most famous for playing Philip Drummond on Diff'rent Stokes, died of natural causes Monday night in Livermore, Calif. He was 89.

Before Bain became the wealthy Manhattan widower raising two sons left to him by his housekeeper on Diff'rent Stokes, he had had a lengthy career as a stage actor. Appearing in such Broadway shows as Eugene O'Neil's The Iceman Cometh, Candide and On Borrowed Time, he went on to help organize the Actors Federal Credit Union and serve as their first president. Bain had also appeared in a number of films, including Lovers and Strangers and Woody Allen's Bananas.

Todd Bridges, who played Willis Jackson on Diff'rent Strokes, is now the only surviving cast mate. Dana Plato, who played Bain's character's daughter on the show, passed away from a drug overdose in 1999. And Gary Coleman, who played the youngest adopted son, Arnold, died in 2010 in a controversial fall down the stairs.

"I am deeply saddened by the sudden passing of Conrad as we were looking forward to celebrating his 90th birthday next month," Bridges told FOX in a statement. "In addition to being a positive and supportive father figure both on and off-screen, Conrad was well-loved and made going to work each day enjoyable for all of us. He will be missed, but never forgotten."

Bain's wife of 64 years, artist Monica Sloan, predeceased him in 2009. He is survived by his three children: Jennifer, Kent and Mark.

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