PROVO, Utah (AP) — Gary Coleman, the adorable, pint-sized child star of the smash 1970s TV sitcom Diff’rent Strokes who spent the rest of his life struggling on Hollywood’s D-list, died Friday after suffering a brain hemorrhage. He was 42.

Life support was terminated and Coleman died at 12:05 pm local time with family and friends at his side, Utah Valley Regional Medical Centre spokeswoman Janet Frank said.

Coleman, with his sparkling eyes and perfect comic timing, quickly became a star after Diff’rent Strokes debuted in 1978. He played Arnold Jackson, the younger one of a pair of African-American brothers adopted by a wealthy white man.

His skeptical “Whatchu talkin’ ’bout?” — usually aimed at older brother Willis — became a catchphrase.

“It’s unfortunate. It’s a sad day,” said Todd Bridges, who played Willis. “It’s sad that I’m the last kid alive from the show.”

The series lives on thanks to DVDs and YouTube. But its equally enduring legacy became the troubles in adulthood of its former child stars.

In 1989, Bridges was acquitted of attempted murder in the shooting of a drug dealer. The then 24-year-old Bridges testified he became depressed and turned to drugs after Diff’rent Strokes was canceled.

Dana Plato, who played the boys’ white, teenage sister, pleaded guilty in 1991 to a robbery charge. She died in 1999 of an overdose of painkiller and muscle relaxer. The medical examiner’s office ruled the death a suicide.

Coleman’s popularity also faded when the show ended after six seasons on NBC and two on ABC.

He remained estranged until his death from his parents Sue and Willie Coleman, who said they learned about his hospitalisation and death from media reports.

Sue Coleman said she wanted to reconcile and had been patiently waiting for her son to be ready.

“One of the things that I had prayed for was that nothing like this would happen before we could sit with Gary and (wife) Shannon and say, ‘we’re here and we love you’,” Sue Coleman said. “We just didn’t want to push him.”

She would not discuss the cause of the estrangement.

In 1989, when Gary Coleman was 21, she filed a court request trying to gain control of her son’s $6 million fortune, saying he was incapable of handling his affairs. He said the move “obviously stems from her frustration at not being able to control my life”.

Coleman chafed at his permanent association with Diff’rent Strokes but also tried to capitalize on it through minor reality shows, endorsements and other TV appearances.

His role as a car-washing plantation slave in the 2008 conservative political satire An American Carol was cut from the final print.

The diminutive actor also appeared in last year’s Midgets vs Mascots, a film that pits little people against mascots in a series of silly contests for a chance to win $1 million.

Coleman met with producers of the film earlier this year to ask them to remove a brief scene of frontal nudity that he says he didn’t authorize.

His adult life also was marked with legal, financial and health troubles, suicide attempts and even a 2003 run for California governor.

Coleman suffered continuing ill health from the kidney disease that stunted his growth. The condition required dialysis and at least two transplants. As an adult, his height reached only 4 feet 8 inches.

He suffered the brain hemorrhage Wednesday at his Santaquin home, 55 miles south of Salt Lake City.

A statement from his family said he was conscious and lucid until midday Thursday, when his condition worsened and he slipped into unconsciousness. Coleman was then placed on life support.