List of Diff'rent Strokes episodes

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Diff'rent Strokes had a total of 189 episodes during its run from November 3, 1978 through March 7, 1986. This is a complete list of episodes including synopses and air dates. Episodes are in air date order.

Contents

[edit] Season 1: 1978-1979

Episode Number Episode Title Original Air Date Production Code Synopsis
1 "Movin In" (a.k.a. "Diff'rent Strokes Pilot") November 3, 1978 0101 Wealthy Phillip Drummond prepares to take in two boys from Harlem, Arnold and Willis Jackson, who were the sons of his late housekeeper. Drummond plans to have the boys live in his Park Avenue apartment with him, his daughter Kimberly, and new housekeeper Mrs. Edna Garrett. Arnold appreciates Mr. Drummond's offer to take him in, but Willis wants to move back to their former home in Harlem. Arnold helps convince him otherwise.
2 "The Social Worker" November 10, 1978 0102 A social worker suggests that maybe Willis and Arnold should live with a black family instead of with the Drummonds, and Arnold gets the impression that Mr. Drummond agrees with that.
3 "Mother's Last Visit" November 17, 1978 0103 Mr. Drummond's mother visits and is surprised by Willis and Arnold, so Mr. Drummond tries to make her get over her prejudices.
4 "The Prep School" November 24, 1978 0105 Mr. Drummond enrolls Arnold and Willis at his former school, but the headmaster makes arrangements for them to fail their entrance exams.
5 "The Spanking" December 1, 1978 0104 Arnold hides from his new father, so that he will not get spanked for misbehaving.
6 "Goodbye, Dolly" December 8, 1978 0106 Arnold's prized doll is sold, and Arnold has trouble going to sleep without it, so Mr. Drummond hires a private investigator to track down the doll. The P.I. decides to have a replica made instead, but Arnold knows the difference.
7 "The Trial" December 15, 1978 0107 Arnold is accused of putting his goldfish in the hot tub, and he is put on trial by the Drummond family to prove his innocence.
8 "The Retrospective" (1) December 29, 1978 0116A The Drummond family recall past events around Christmastime.
9 "The Retrospective" (2) December 29, 1978 0116B More recollections of past events by the Drummonds.
10 "The Fight" January 5, 1979 0108 Arnold is forced to deal with a bully at school; Mr. Drummond doesn't want him to fight, but Willis thinks fighting is the only option. This is the first mention of the Gooch (who never appeared on the show in person).
11 "The Club Meeting" January 12, 1979 0109 Arnold and Willis invite their old friends from Harlem to their new Park Avenue home, and let their wealth go to their heads.
12 "The Woman" January 19, 1979 0110 Mr. Drummond wants to marry a woman who has plans to send the kids away.
13 "No Time for Arnold" January 26, 1979 0111 Arnold reverts to bedwetting to get some attention.
14 "The Relative" February 2, 1979 0112 A distant relative (played by LaWanda Page) visits Arnold and Willis and overstays her welcome.
15 "The Tutor" February 9, 1979 0113 Mr. Drummond hires a tutor for Willis and Arnold who has very unorthodox methods for getting them to learn, but with his help he discovers a mental block that prevents Willis from remembering things that happened in the year his father died.
16 "The New Landlord" February 16, 1979 0114 A new landlord tries to have the Drummonds thrown out of the apartment.
17 "Willis' Privacy" (a.k.a. "The Privacy") February 23, 1979 0115 Willis is tired of having Arnold around, and tries to get away from him.
18 "Mrs. Garrett's Crisis" March 2, 1979 0117 Mrs. Garrett experiences a midlife crisis when she feels her life isn't as exciting as her friends'.
19 "The Job" (a.k.a. "Willis' Job") March 9, 1979 0118 Willis is hired and fired from a new job -- all in 1 day -- and tries to hide it from Mr. Drummond since he thinks he'll be disappointed in him.
20 "The Trip" (1) March 30, 1979 0120A The Drummonds visit the Alders in the first crossover with the series Hello, Larry.
21 "The Trip" (2) March 30, 1979 0120B A continuation of the Drummonds' trip.
22 "Getting Involved" April 6, 1979 0119 Arnold witnesses a crime and goes to the police, although a threatening phone call forces Mr. Drummond to prevent Arnold's involvement.
23 "Willis' Birthday" April 13, 1979 0121 Willis wants to have his birthday party back in Harlem with his friends, but Mr. Drummond is apprehensive about going there.
24 "The Girls School" (a.k.a. "Garrett's Girls") May 4, 1979 0122 Mrs. Garrett decides to take charge of the chaotic dormitory at Kimberly's school. This episode is the pilot for The Facts of Life.

[edit] Season 2: 1979-1980

Episode Number Episode Title Original Air Date Production Code Synopsis
25 "Arnold's Girlfriend" (1) (a.k.a. "The Girlfriend") September 28, 1979 0202 Arnold is too scared to go to the doctor after he suffers appendicitis, but his fear goes away when he meets a young girl named Alice who is having her tonsils out, and they plan to share a room together in the hospital. However, her father (played by Dabney Coleman) decides against it when he finds out Arnold is black.
26 "Arnold's Girlfriend" (2) (a.k.a. "The Girlfriend") September 28, 1979 0203 Arnold and Alice "run away" to be together, as both their families frantically search for them before Arnold's appendix bursts.
27 "Feudin' and Fussin" (1) October 26, 1979 0204A The Alders visit New York in this second crossover with Hello, Larry, as Larry Alder gets a job hosting a talk show in New York.
28 "Feudin' and Fussin" (2) October 26, 1979 0204B Larry does well with his talk show tryout, but his family isn't so keen on packing up and moving to New York.
29 "Mrs. Garrett's Romance" November 7, 1979 0205 Mrs. Garrett dates a much younger man, but finds out he's really looking for a mother instead of a lover.
30 "The Birds and The Bees" November 14, 1979 0208 Arnold is given conflicting stories about where babies come from.
31 "Arnold's Hero" (a.k.a. "The Hero") November 21, 1979 0201 Muhammad Ali visits Arnold after he is told that Arnold is dying.
32 "The Adoption" (1) December 5, 1979 0206 Mr. Drummond offers to adopt Arnold and Willis, but a man named Jethro Simpson (Whitman Mayo) claims to be their relative and tries to interfere in order to obtain an inheritance.
33 "The Adoption" (2) December 19, 1979 0207 The truth about Jethro Simpson is revealed, and the boys officially become members of Mr. Drummond's family.
34 "Father and Son Day" January 2, 1980 0209 Willis trades in Mr. Drummond for another man to win an athletic competition. Reggie Jackson guest stars.
35 "Thanksgiving Crossover" (1) January 9, 1980 0211A The Alders visit in the final Hello, Larry crossover, when Larry and Mr. Drummond argue over a potential business deal.
36 "Thanksgiving Crossover" (2) January 16, 1980 0211B Despite the ill feelings between Larry Alder and Mr. Drummond, the two families get together for Thanksgiving dinner.
37 "The Rivals" January 23, 1980 0210 A girl feigns interest in Arnold so she can get close to Willis.
38 "Hot Watch" January 30, 1980 0212 Arnold and Willis find a lost watch in the building, but soon become suspects when it's discovered the watch was taken from a burglarized apartment.
39 "The Dog Story" (a.k.a. "A Dog Story") February 6, 1980 0213 Arnold may have been bitten by a rabid dog, and he tries to do whatever he can to prevent getting rabies shots.
40 "The Election" February 13, 1980 0214 Mr. Drummond runs for a political position. Nedra Volz joins the cast as the second housekeeper, Adelaide Brubaker.
41 "Friendly Mate" February 20, 1980 0215 Willis and Arnold set up their father on a blind date, but confusion arises when the dating service thinks Mr. Drummond is black, and he also ends up with a second date for the same night.
42 "Poor Drummond" February 27, 1980 0217 Circumstances have the family thinking they're on the verge of financial ruin, so Arnold and Willis try to put their dad on welfare.
43 "Big Business" March 5, 1980 0216 Arnold and Willis go into the brownie business, but get in over their heads when they alienate Kimberly and overwork Adelaide, so they're forced to make the brownies themselves.
44 "Return of The Gooch" March 12, 1980 0218 Arnold takes martial arts lessons to defend himself against the Gooch, and gets in trouble when Willis convinces him he has a "killer foot".
45 "Valentine's Day Retrospective" (a.k.a. "Valentine's Vigil") March 19, 1980 0219 Arnold and Willis accidentally get locked in the basement of their residence building, so they recall previous emotional events to pass the time until someone lets them out.
46 "Skin Deep or True Blue" (a.k.a. "Guess Who?") March 26, 1980 0221 Kimberly's new love interest is found out to be a bigot when he won't let his sister (played by Melora Hardin) go on a date with Willis, so Kimberly comes up with a way to teach him a lesson.
47 "Teacher's Pet" April 2, 1980 0220 Arnold's teacher begins favoring him after she dates Mr. Drummond. Arnold's friends Dudley and Robbie appear for the first time; Mary Ann Mobley, who eventually took over the role of Maggie in Season 8, plays Arnold's teacher.
48 "The Slumber Party" April 9, 1980 0222 Willis' friends and Kimberly's schoolmates (from The Facts of Life) clash over who gets to do what in the apartment, and ruin Mr. Drummond's date in the process.
49 "The Will" (a.k.a. "Arnold Faces Fatality") (a.k.a. "Drummond's Will") April 16, 1980 0223 Arnold's pet goldfish dies, so the family tries to hide it from him until they can get a replacement. When Arnold becomes suspicious, and happens to notice Mr. Drummond's will, he jumps to the wrong conclusion and thinks that Mr. Drummond is dying.
50 "The Squealer" April 23, 1980 0224 Willis is forbidden by Mr. Drummond to join a gang, but does so anyway and is punished. However, when the gang has plans for vandalizing the school, Willis is reluctant to inform on them and ends up trying to stop them himself.

[edit] Season 3: 1980-1981

Episode Number Episode Title Original Air Date Production Code Synopsis
51 "The Bank Job" (1) November 12, 1980 0302 Arnold wants to impress Tootie (from The Facts of Life) with his "riches", so he goes to the bank to make a withdrawal but gets trapped during a holdup.
52 "The Bank Job" (2) November 12, 1980 0303 Mr. Drummond and his sons are held hostage during a bank robbery, but quick thinking by Arnold and Mr. Drummond saves the day.
53 "Small Claims Court" November 19, 1980 0305 Arnold takes a toystore owner to court over a faulty train set.
54 "Substitute Mother" November 26, 1980 0306 Arnold wants a temporary housekeeper to become his new mother while Adelaide is away; when Adelaide plans to return early, Arnold gives her the impression that she's being replaced permanently.
55 "The Accident" (1) (a.k.a. "Drummond's Accident") December 3, 1980 0307 Mr. Drummond is hospitalized after a car accident and loses his memory.
56 "The Accident" (2) (a.k.a. "Drummond's Accident") December 3, 1980 0308 Mr. Drummond may lose all of his assets if he cannot recover his memory. When he starts to remember details about Kimberly and not about Willis and Arnold, they decide to leave.
57 "Little Mother" December 10, 1980 0310 Kimberly's friend is pregnant, and everyone thinks Kimberly is the one who is expecting.
58 "Football Father" December 17, 1980 0304 Phil bribes a hard-nosed football coach into letting Arnold join the team by buying new uniforms for them, but he regrets his decision when he finds out how the coach is motivating the kids.
59 "First Love" (a.k.a. "Willis' Girlfriend") December 31, 1980 0311 Janet Jackson makes her first appearance as Willis' girlfriend Charlene. In the episode, Mr. Drummond doesn't want Willis to see her because it's interfering with his schoolwork, so the two make secret arrangements to be together.
60 "Count Your Blessings" January 7, 1981 0309 Arnold is heartbroken when he finds out he will not do much growing when he gets older, so Mr. Drummond arranges for a young handicapped girl named Kathy (her first appearance) to show him how fortunate he really is.
61 "The Loan" January 14, 1981 0312 Arnold wants to help a young doorman get started in business, so he loans him some money to bet on a sure thing.
62 "Roots" January 21, 1981 0313 Willis's friends think that he and Arnold have lost touch with where they came from, so they adopt a more Afro-centric attitude and alienate the rest of the family.
63 "Junk Food Junkie" (a.k.a. "The Junk Food") February 4, 1981 0314 Arnold is made to give up junk food, which is difficult since his school has junk food vending machines, and having them removed may hurt his chances at winning a school election. Dody Goodman makes her first appearance as Mr. Drummond's sister Sophie.
64 "The Bus" February 11, 1981 0315 Picketers threaten Arnold's classmates when they become part of a school integration program.
65 "The Older Man" February 25, 1981 0316 Kimberly dons a wig for a class play and ends up getting a date with an older man.
66 "Where's There's Hope" March 4, 1981 0317 Arnold is adamant about not wanting a pesky young girl at his birthday party, but things become serious when he finds out the girl is very sick, so he pays her a visit at the hospital to cheer her up.
67 "The Magician" (a.k.a. "It's Magic") March 11, 1981 0301 Arnold is trapped on a ledge 30 stories up after he tries to impress his family, a reporter, and football player Ed "Too Tall" Jones with his magic act.
68 "Drummond's Fair Lady" March 18, 1981 0319 Mr. Drummond recommends a woman for a position at his company, but runs into opposition from his coworkers, because of her sex, and his children, because they think she's using him.
69 "The Ancestors" March 25, 1981 0320 Mr. Drummond finds out that his ancestor was a slave trader, which affects his plans to build a community center in Harlem.
70 "Almost American" May 6, 1981 0318 A student in an immigration and naturalization class becomes the suspect in a robbery. This episode was a backdoor pilot for a potential series, but was never picked up. The Drummonds have a very small role in this episode.
71 "Room For One More" May 13, 1981 0321 Arnold tries to get Mr. Drummond to adopt Dudley when he finds out his foster father may not be able to keep him.
72 "The Athlete" May 20, 1981 0324 A fast-talking baseball coach woos Willis for a high school team, and uses expensive gifts and deception to attain his goal.

[edit] Season 4: 1981-1982

Episode Number Episode Title Original Air Date Production Code Synopsis
73 "Growing Up" October 1, 1981 0322[1] Willis wants to go all the way with Charlene.
74 "First Day Blues" October 8, 1981 0402 Willis has trouble making friends at his new school, until it's discovered that he's rich, so he gets asked to buy weed for a party.
75 "The Model" October 15, 1981 0323[1] Kimberly begins a modeling career.
76 "The Team" October 29, 1981 0403 Willis is upset when he doesn't make the basketball team because a white student takes his place, so he plans to take action.
77 "The Big Heist" November 5, 1981 0405 Arnold attempts to steal an expensive comic book to get into the Gooch's club, and gets taken to court when he's caught.
78 "The Double Date" (a.k.a. "Blind Date") November 19, 1981 0406 Arnold gets his first date with a girl he likes, but things turn sour when Dudley butts in on them.
79 "The Ski Weekend" November 26, 1981 0401 Kimberly goes on a ski trip with her friend, but doesn't let the family know that there will be boys there. Mr. Drummond and Willis end up surprising her by paying her an unannounced visit, but get surprised themselves when they see the boys.
80 "The Health Club" December 3, 1981 0407 Arnold and Willis try to get into Mr. Drummond's health club, but are turned away because of their color. When Drummond is honored by the club, a confrontation takes place.
81 "The Burial Ground" December 17, 1981 0409 Drummond's building project is discovered to be on the site of a Indian burial ground, which leads to a conflict with a member of the Indian tribe.
82 "Hello, Daddy" January 14, 1982 0404 The son of a woman Mr. Drummond knew during the Korean War shows up claiming that Mr. Drummond is his father. This leads to a reunion with the woman, and the truth about who the father really is.
83 "Jilted" January 21, 1982 0408 When Willis' attitude drives Charlene away, she sees someone behind his back.
84 "Kathy" (a.k.a. "Arnold's New Friend") January 28, 1982 0411 Arnold gets reassurance from Kathy when he plays Abraham Lincoln in a school play, but when he tries to get her to use her crutches instead of sitting in a wheelchair, she is furious and blows his confidence before showtime.
85 "Dreams" February 4, 1982 0412 Arnold begins having nightmares when he finds out Mr. Drummond is going on a business trip.
86 "Fire" February 11, 1982 0413 A fire has the family trapped in the building, and when smoke starts coming through the vents, it makes everyone think the end is near.
87 "The Squatter" February 18, 1982 0410 A woman (played by Audrey Meadows) becomes a squatter in the Drummonds' house after she is forced out of her apartment due to a condominium conversion.
88 "The Car" February 25, 1982 0414 Willis takes the car out without Mr. Drummond's permission in order to pick up Charlene for a date, and gets in trouble when he hits a police officer's motorcycle.
89 "Crime Story" (1) (a.k.a. "Crime In The Schools") March 11, 1982 0415 Arnold and Dudley are harassed by two bullies who force them to give them their lunch and money. Willis decides to interfere and gets more than he bargained for.
90 "Crime Story" (2) (a.k.a. "Crime In The Schools") March 18, 1982 0416 After Willis is hospitalized for trying to stop the bullies, Arnold is asked to participate in a sting operation to nab them. When Mr. Drummond refuses to allow him to participate, Arnold takes matters into his own hands.
91 "B.M.O.C." March 25, 1982 0417 Willis lets his potential membership in an exclusive club go to his head, but falls hard when he alienates the club members.
92 "Green Hair" April 1, 1982 0418 Kimberly's hair turns green before a date, due to using a copper bowl affected by acid rain to wash her hair.
93 "Have I Got a Girl For You" April 8, 1982 0419 Mr. Drummond has a good time going out with a hairdresser, but he doesn't invite her to a posh party and she feels like he is embarrassed by her.
94 "Lifesavers" April 15, 1982 0420 Willis saves Arnold's life, so Arnold feels obligated to dote on him constantly. In order to get Arnold off his back, he sets up a fake robbery at his job so Arnold can save him and even the score. When Arnold finds out what Willis is up to, he decides to have a little fun with the "robber", not knowing that a real robber has come to hold up the place.
95 "Stress? What Stress?" April 22, 1982 0421 Willis finds out he has very high stress levels, so Mr. Drummond wants him to lay off on his extracurricular activities, much to Willis' chagrin.
96 "The Music Man" May 6, 1982 0422 Willis forms a musical group and wants Charlene to join, but Kimberly ends up impressing his bandmates so much that they want her in the group instead.
97 "Short But Sweet" May 13, 1982 0424 Arnold isn't interested in celebrating his birthday because he feels girls aren't interested in him, particularly one girl he really likes, but things change when he invites the girl to his party; however, his intentions aren't made clear and she comes to the party with someone else.
98 "On Your Toes" May 20, 1982 0423 Arnold attends Kimberly's ballet recital and decides he wants to learn ballet, which makes Willis very uncomfortable and he tries to put a stop to it.

[edit] Season 5: 1982-1983

Episode Number Episode Title Original Air Date Production Code Synopsis
99 "Shoot-Out at The O.K. Arcade" October 2, 1982 0501 Arnold tries to outdo Willis on an arcade game, but constant playing takes a toll on his schoolwork.
100 "In The Swim" October 9, 1982 0502 Kimberly decides to transfer to Willis' school, and gets into a confrontation when she tries to join the all-male swim team. Mary Jo Catlett joins the cast as Pearl Gallagher, the third and final housekeeper.
101 "Cyrano De Jackson" October 16, 1982 0504 Arnold tries to help Dudley woo classmate Lisa, but the plan backfires when Lisa thinks Arnold is the one who likes her. This is Lisa's first appearance on the show.
102 "Big Brother" October 23, 1982 0503 A classmate of Arnold's (played by Joey Lawrence) is given a lot of attention by Arnold's family, leaving Arnold to feel unwanted.
103 "The Peacemaker" October 30, 1982 0506 Willis tries to negotiate peace between two rival groups of students at his school, but when one of the students has his stuff stolen, Willis becomes the prime suspect and is forced to get a gun to protect himself. Andrew Dice Clay plays one of the students, Larry.
104 "Substitute Teacher" November 6, 1982 0505 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar plays a substitute teacher that makes life hard for Arnold and Dudley, so they try to make things difficult for him. When one of their schemes leads to Arnold getting hit by accident, they go to the principal and tell him that it was done on purpose, which gets the teacher in trouble and nearly costs him his job.
105 "The Older Woman" November 13, 1982 0507 Willis wears a fake mustache to get into a club, and lands a date with the waitress (Shari Belafonte).
106 "A Case of Overexposure" (a.k.a. "Overexposure") November 20, 1982 0509 When Kimberly submits a candid picture of Arnold with his butt exposed to a photo contest, he is infuriated and demands that Kimberly withdraw it, but the picture remains in the contest by mistake and almost ruins Arnold's chances to win the class election.
107 "Memories" November 27, 1982 0508 Arnold takes it hard when he hears his mother's voice again on an old tape.
108 "Push Comes to Shove" December 4, 1982 0510 Arnold's confrontation with the son of the new building landlord leads to Mr. Drummond punching the landlord in the face, and almost gets the family thrown out of the building.
109 "The Executives" December 11, 1982 0511 Arnold, Kimberly, and Willis get jobs at Mr. Drummond's company, but when Willis finds out that minority kids don't have the same opportunities at employment, he goes undercover to see for himself and goes too far.
110 "Santa's Helper" December 18, 1982 0512 Arnold helps out a streetcorner Santa, who takes advantage of Arnold and his family's kindness by robbing the Drummonds.
111 "A Growing Problem" January 8, 1983 0513 Willis is forbidden to go to a party when Mr. Drummond finds out there will be drinking there. After Willis disobeys and is caught, he decides to move out, and gets into a fatal accident with his friend.
112 "Parents Have Rights Too" January 15, 1983 0514 Mr. Drummond sneaks around behind the kids' backs while dating a woman, and invites her over to the apartment while the rest of the family's away. But when they return early, Mr. Drummond has to explain her presence.
113 "Independent Woman" January 22, 1983 0515 Kimberly stops working at Mr. Drummond's company and takes a job at a burger place, but is sexually harassed by her boss. When he finds out that Kimberly's family is wealthy and live on Park Avenue, he apologizes and ends up becoming romantically involved with her, for the purpose of advancing in her dad's company. Arnold soon learns what he is up to and tells Kimberly.
114 "The Bicycle Man" (1) February 5, 1983 0516 Arnold and Dudley befriend a bicycle shop owner (played by Gordon Jump), who is actually a pedophile trying to molest them.
115 "The Bicycle Man" (2) February 12, 1983 0517 After watching an X-rated cartoon at the bike shop, Arnold decides he's had enough of the bike shop owner and goes home, leaving Dudley behind. He tells his family what's been happening, and they call the police.
116 "Family On Ice" February 19, 1983 0518 Kimberly impresses Dorothy Hamill with her ice skating, and is taken under her wing. But Kimberly is overwhelmed by the hard work it takes to become a professional skater, and devises a way out.
117 "Hall Monitor" March 12, 1983 0519 Kathy transfers to Arnold's school and is treated very poorly. When she becomes hall monitor, she rules with an iron fist and doles out demerits to everyone except Arnold. When Arnold feels the heat from his friends over getting away with everything, he tries to get Kathy to lighten up, but she refuses and gets tough with Arnold instead.
118 "The Cricket" March 26, 1983 0520 When Arnold faces a streak of bad luck, he is given a lucky cricket to help him out. Arnold's luck soon changes, and he tries to use the cricket to get out of trouble with the Gooch, but the cricket escapes and Arnold has to come up with an alternative plan.
119 "The Roommates" April 9, 1983 0521 Mr. Drummond shares a room with Arnold and drives him nuts.
120 "The Reporter" April 30, 1983 0522 Arnold needs to submit a story for a journalism contest at school, and when he finds out there's a student selling drugs there he writes a story about that. The principal soon confronts him about it and tries to get him to expose his sources; when he refuses, the principal has his story withdrawn from the contest. When the situation makes the newspaper, it gets the attention of First Lady Nancy Reagan, who makes a visit to Arnold's school to speak to his class about the dangers of drug use.
121 "Romeo and Juliet" May 7, 1983 0523 Arnold is tricked into playing Romeo opposite Lisa's Juliet in a class play. Although Arnold works hard for his performance, Lisa is overcome with stage fright and Arnold has to help her out.
122 "My Fair Larry" (a.k.a. "My Fair Lady") May 14, 1983 0524 Larry (from episode 103) wants Willis to help him score with women; he gets Kimberly to assist him, but Larry falls in love with her.

[edit] Season 6: 1983-1984

Episode Number Episode Title Original Air Date Production Code Synopsis
123 "Mr. T....and Mr. t" (a.k.a. "Arnold Meets Mr. T") October 1, 1983 0606 When an episode of The A-Team is filmed in the Drummonds' apartment, Arnold has to compete with Mr. T for the affection of Dudley's cousin Angela, so Arnold tries to turn himself into a mini Mr. T.
124 "The Goat" October 15, 1983 0603 When Arnold is given the cold shoulder from teachers and classmates at his new school, he concocts a plan to steal the school mascot, a goat, and pretend to rescue it to get some positive attention, but he gets in trouble with the family when the goat gets loose in the apartment.
125 "Rashomon II" October 22, 1983 0601 A burglar holds the family hostage in the apartment, but is knocked out and arrested. Mr. Drummond, Willis, and Arnold all have different interpretations of what happened, but Pearl, who was in the kitchen and saw everything, tells Kimberly what really took place.
126 "The Lie" October 29, 1983 0604 Willis lies to Arnold about knowing first aid in order to get a job at the school carnival, but when Arnold gets an electrical shock Willis doesn't know how to save him. He later confesses to Arnold what happened, and Arnold is angry when he finds out the truth.
127 "Drafted" November 12, 1983 0608 A computer error leads to Arnold getting mail to sign up with the Selective Service System, even though he is too young. When Mr. Drummond complains, he is visited by the authorities, leading Arnold to think he will be drafted.
128 "The Van Drummonds" November 19, 1983 0609 Mr. Drummond's cousin Anna and her son Hans (played by Conrad Bain and Dana Plato, respectively, in dual roles) visit the family. As soon as they arrive, Hans starts causing trouble and blames Arnold and Willis for it.
129 "The Moonlighter" November 26, 1983 0611 Arnold finds out his favorite teacher is moonlighting at a gentlemens' club, and sneaks into the club to find out if it's true.
130 "Coming of Age" December 3, 1983 0605 Kimberly finds out she'll be getting a trust fund on her 18th birthday, and has plans to travel to Europe. When Mr. Drummond refuses to support her decision and threatens to keep the money from her until she's older, Kimberly plans to work as an au pair for a European family.
131 "Assert Yourself" December 10, 1983 0607 Arnold plans to have Dudley run for class president so he can control him behind the scenes. When Arnold sees that Dudley isn't doing things the way he wants him to, he decides to run against him. In the end, both lose out to a third candidate.
132 "Mrs. Z" December 17, 1983 0610 After Mr. Drummond becomes the target of an extortionist, he hires an imposing female bodyguard to protect his family.
133 "The Senior Class Queen" January 7, 1984 0613 When Kimberly tries to get into Willis' all-male letterman's club at school, he gets back at her by becoming a contestant in the school's beauty pageant.
134 "Where's There's Smoke" January 14, 1984 0602 Arnold takes up smoking to impress the kids at school, but ruins his brand new sweater when he gets burning ashes on it. He then learns the dangers of smoking from Dudley's father, who has to go to the hospital because of his habit.
135 "Drummond's Lady" January 21, 1984 0615 Mr. Drummond tries to make a business deal with exercise instructor Maggie McKinney (played by Dixie Carter - her first appearance on the show), and falls in love with her.
136 "The Hitchhikers" (1) (a.k.a. "Hitchhiking") January 28, 1984 0616 Arnold and Kimberly hitchhike to get home for Mr. Drummond's birthday party, and are picked up by a man who takes them to his apartment and tries to have his way with Kimberly.
137 "The Hitchhikers" (2) (a.k.a. "Hitchhiking") February 4, 1984 0617 Arnold escapes from the kidnapper and makes it home, but leaves Kimberly behind and can't remember where she is. A policeman helps Arnold remember by hypnotizing him and getting him to reveal the license plate number of the kidnapper so the police can track him down.
138 "Hooray For Hollywood" (1) February 11, 1984 0618 Mr. Drummond travels to Hollywood and proposes to Maggie, and finds out she has a young son named Sam. Meanwhile, Arnold and Dudley try to meet Knight Rider (David Hasselhoff) and sneak into a car that's about to be blown up.
139 "Hooray For Hollywood" (2) February 18, 1984 0619 Knight Rider rescues Arnold and Dudley just in time, and the rest of the family find out about Mr. Drummond's marriage plans. Arnold is less than thrilled, especially when he finds out he's getting a new little brother as part of the deal.
140 "The Wedding" (1) (a.k.a. "Drummond's Wedding") February 25, 1984 0620 Arrangements are being made for the wedding, and Maggie is furious when she finds out that Mr. Drummond's lawyer suggested a pre-nuptial agreement.
141 "The Wedding" (2) (a.k.a. "Drummond's Wedding") February 25, 1984 0621 The wedding is about to take place, until Maggie and Mr. Drummond realize that neither of them called anybody to perform the ceremony. Guests include Mrs. Garrett, Adelaide, and Aunt Sophia, all of whom hadn't appeared on the show for some time prior to this episode.
142 "The Honeymoon's Over" March 17, 1984 0622 Mr. Drummond and Maggie return from their honeymoon, and find out that Arnold had been taking advantage of Sam while they were away. As punishment, Arnold is not allowed to go to a party where his love interest Angela is going to be, so he devises a scheme to sneak out of the apartment, leaving Sam behind.
143 "The Bar Mitzvah Boy" April 7, 1984 0623 Arnold decides to convert to Judaism, but is convinced otherwise by a rabbi (played by Milton Berle).
144 "Kathy's Olympics" April 14, 1984 0624 Arnold is in charge of keeping donations for a fundraising drive at school, but loses the money when he puts it in an old pair of shoes that gets thrown out, so the rest of the family has to dig through the garbage to find them.
145 "The Houseguest" May 5, 1984 0612 After a falling out with her father, Charlene moves in with the Drummonds and ends up fighting with Willis.
146 "The Boyfriend" May 19, 1984 0614 Kimberly plans to move in with her boyfriend, who her dad doesn't like, by tricking the family into thinking she's moving in with her girlfriend instead.

[edit] Season 7: 1984-1985

Episode Number Episode Title Original Air Date Production Code Synopsis
147 "A Haunting We Will Go" September 29, 1984 0708 In this take-off on Ghostbusters, Arnold and Sam explore a haunted house. John Astin and Ray Bolger guest star.
148 "Arnold and Lisa's Mother" October 6, 1984 0706 Lisa's mother takes over teaching Arnold's class, and Lisa forces him and his friends to be nice to her or she'll rat them out to her mom. But Arnold finds out that Lisa's mom doesn't like her telling on her classmates, so he decides to sabotage her science project as revenge.
149 "Bed-Wetting" October 13, 1984 0701 Sam develops a bedwetting problem, and the family begins showing him a lot more attention while ignoring Arnold.
150 "Undercover Lover" October 20, 1984 0703 Willis' new girlfriend is actually an undercover cop trying to bust drug dealers at school.
151 "Arnold's Strike" October 27, 1984 0704 Arnold protests dress code changes at school, and is suspended. Dick Sargent plays Arnold's principal.
152 "Sam's Father" November 3, 1984 0710 Sam's father (played by Hoyt Axton) wants Sam to stay with him instead of with the Drummonds.
153 "Carmella Meets the Gooch" November 10, 1984 0711 Foreign-exchange student Carmella faces off against Arnold, develops a crush on Willis, and fights the Gooch.
154 "Arnold the Entrepreneur" November 17, 1984 0713 Arnold and Sam go into business selling roach spray, but Arnold's greed causes Sam to go his own way. Hervé Villechaize guest stars.
155 "The Honorable Arnold J. Jackson" November 24, 1984 0707 Arnold is forced to choose between his friend Robbie and a girl he likes when she accuses Robbie of being a nerd, and Arnold has to judge the matter in student court.
156 "The Gymnasts" December 1, 1984 0714 Willis' friend, a promising athlete who was crippled in a car accident, gets a gymnasium named after him and sees a performance by the gold-medal-winning U.S. men's gymnastics team from the 1984 Summer Olympics. After seeing them perform, he becomes self-conscious about the fact that he can never walk again and decides to give up on himself.
157 "Tonsils" December 8, 1984 0705 Sam has to have his tonsils removed but is afraid to go to the hospital. When Mr. Drummond has to undergo surgery himself, he and Sam try to face their fears together.
158 "Arnold's Songbird" December 15, 1984 0712 Arnold has to ask Carmella for help when his plans for the school pageant fall apart.
159 "Baseball Blues" January 5, 1985 0716 Mr. Drummond tries to turn around Sam's losing baseball team; in order to do so, he has to leave Sam on the bench.
160 "Arnold Saves the Squirrel" January 12, 1985 0709 Arnold and Sam try to keep a childrens' show from getting taken off the air.
161 "Sam Adopts a Grandparent" January 19, 1985 0715 Sam's scout troop is asked to work with a bunch of senior citizens on projects, but Sam's assigned senior citizen refuses to help, so Sam has to put together a model airplane by himself. Failing to do so, Sam is humiliated by his troopmates and decides he hates all old people, so Mr. Drummond has a talk with the senior to get him to patch things up with Sam.
162 "Happy Birthday Drummond" January 26, 1985 0718 Maggie and Sam surprise Mr. Drummond for his birthday by having Kimberly return from France to visit him. She brings a present of her own - the Drummond family tree, but the happiness turns to sadness when he realizes that he is the last person to carry on the Drummond name. Arnold comes up with a solution - he and Willis will have their names legally changed to "Drummond", which makes Mr. Drummond the happiest man in the world, but Willis has second thoughts.
163 "Sam's New Pal" February 2, 1985 0717 Sam becomes friends with another kid in the building, but is horrified when he finds out the kid is actually a girl (played by Soleil Moon Frye). Mr. Drummond convinces him that being friends with a girl isn't so bad, so Sam decides to have her stay the night for a sleepover, which makes both their fathers nervous.
164 "Russian Embassy" February 9, 1985 0719 Arnold's toy rocket crash lands at the Russian embassy and nearly causes an international incident.
165 "Cheers to Arnold" February 16, 1985 0720 Arnold is pressured to drink by an alcoholic classmate. His parents find out and lay down the law, but when he catches his friend with some of his dad's liquor - and is mistakenly accused of using it himself - he has to get his friend to clean himself up.
166 "A Camping We Will Go" February 23, 1985 0721 Mr. Drummond takes Sam and Arnold camping, but is unable to compete with Sam's more-experienced dad.
167 "Beauty is in the Eye of Arnold" March 2, 1985 0722 Arnold enjoys going out with a classmate, but his friends think she isn't good enough for him and get him to dump her for a pretty cheerleader.
168 "Blue Collar Drummond" March 9, 1985 0702 Mr. Drummond goes undercover at his company to find out how his employees really feel about working there.
169 "Street Smarts" March 23, 1985 0723 Arnold is mugged on his way home from school, and is so traumatized that he begins carrying a knife with him. In order to get him to open up about the incident, Mr. Drummond arranges for a crime-prevention demonstration at his school, but the demonstration becomes too real for Arnold.
170 "A Special Friend" May 4, 1985 0724 Arnold and Sam befriend a street performer, much to dad's chagrin. When they try to tell her they can't hang out with her anymore, she begins having an epileptic seizure. At first the two are scared by the incident, but later on they start to make jokes about her condition. When Pearl overhears them, she reveals that she herself is epileptic.

[edit] Season 8: 1985-1986

Episode Number Episode Title Original Air Date Production Code Synopsis
171 "Sam's Missing" (1) September 27, 1985 0804 A father who loses one of his children decides to kidnap Sam to replace him. This is the first episode to air on ABC; Mary Ann Mobley takes over for Dixie Carter in the role of Maggie.
172 "Sam's Missing" (2) September 27, 1985 0805 Sam manages to call home and tell Arnold where he is.
173 "Bully for Arnold" October 4, 1985 0802 A tough guy (played by Forest Whitaker) wants Arnold to take care of his girlfriend while he is away, but the girl develops feelings for Arnold.
174 "Love on the Run" October 11, 1985 0801 Mr. Drummond and Maggie are too busy to spend time together, which has Sam worried that their marriage may be in trouble, so he and Arnold put together a romantic evening for the two of them.
175 "Willis Goes to College" October 18, 1985 0807 Willis has a hard time adjusting to college, so he decides to drop out. However, he changes his mind when he finds out he's not the only one having trouble adjusting.
176 "Arnold's Job" October 25, 1985 0803 Arnold hopes to become a photojournalist and ends up getting a job at a newspaper, but he becomes disillusioned when he's asked to run errands instead of taking pictures.
177 "A Tale of Two Teachers" November 8, 1985 0808 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar returns as Arnold's teacher (see episode 104) and has Arnold take over teaching the class for one day. Arnold isn't thrilled about the assignment at first, but after reading the assigned book he gets excited about the opportunity. His classmates, however, give him a hard time.
178 "So You Want to be A Rock Star" November 15, 1985 0810 Arnold tries to learn the saxophone to impress a girl, but is so bad that his friends try to kick him out of their group. Clarence Clemons guest stars.
179 "Speak No Evil" November 29, 1985 0809 Arnold and his friends find out that a racist group will be on campus, so they decide to interrupt their meeting by throwing rotten food at them. When Mr. Drummond finds out, he objects to Arnold's behavior, saying the group has as much right to speak as everyone else because of the First Amendment. This leads to the rest of the family choosing sides, but soon Arnold comes around and sees things his dad's way.
180 "Arnold's Bad Rep" December 6, 1985 0812 Arnold tells his friends that he went all the way with a girl, which leads to her deciding to go all the way for real - which Arnold isn't ready for.
181 "It's My Party and I'll Cry If I Want To" December 13, 1985 0806 Sam manages to get a popular childrens' show host for his birthday party, but is disappointed when his friends are more interested in the guest than in him.
182 "Arnold's Initiation" January 10, 1986 0813 Arnold pulls a prank at the local burger place in order to get into a club, but his prank causes a retarded man (John Schuck) to get fired from the place, so Arnold tries to make things right.
183 "Bulimia" January 17, 1986 0811 Kimberly develops bulimia.
184 "Sam's Big Brother" January 24, 1986 0814 Sam begins to hang out with Willis a lot more than with Arnold, making Arnold feel left out.
185 "Arnold's Tangled Web" January 31, 1986 0815 Arnold tries to hide a poor grade from Mr. Drummond, but in order to maintain his ruse his efforts become more and more complicated.
186 "Lifestyles of the Poor and Unknown" February 7, 1986 0816 Sam gets into a fight at the burger place with a kid who is repeatedly picking on him, but he finds out the kid is really a foster child and is jealous of what Sam has.
187 "The Big Bribe" February 21, 1986 0817 Willis gets the sister of one of his old girlfriends (played by Robin Givens) to go out with Arnold by giving her concert tickets. When Arnold finds out he is angry at what Willis did, but it turns out the girl likes Arnold for real.
188 "The Photo Club" February 28, 1986 0818 Arnold and Lisa get stuck working together on a school assignment, and get locked in their school's dark room. This leads to the two of them coming to an understanding about their adversarial relationship, and they both end up liking each other, but it doesn't last.
189 "The Front Page" March 7, 1986 0819 Arnold finds out that athletes at school are using steroids, so he goes undercover to expose the story.

[edit] References and notes

General sources

Notes

  1. ^ a b This episode was originally produced for Season 3 but was postponed because of a writer's strike. Diff'rent Strokes Episode Guide - Diff'rent Strokes Season Episodes - TV.com.