Born in Zion, Illinois, Coleman grew up with his adopted parents, and a kidney disease; due to the corticosteroids and other medications used to treat it, his growth was limited to 4 ft 8 in (142 cm).

He caught the attention of a producer after acting in a pilot for a revival of The Little Rascals (1977), who decided to cast him as Arnold Jackson in the sitcom Diff'rent Strokes (1978–1986), a role which launched Coleman into stardom.

Coleman struggled financially in later life; in 1989, he successfully sued his parents and business adviser over misappropriation of his assets, only to declare bankruptcy a decade later.

Very few details of Coleman's medical history have been made public, although his battles with issues such as growth deficiency, substance abuse, and depression during his life earned significant media coverage.

He had been admitted two days earlier after falling down the stairs at his home in Santaquin and striking his head, resulting in an epidural hematoma.

[2] Due to focal segmental glomerulosclerosis, a kidney disease, and the corticosteroids and other medications used to treat it, his growth was limited to 4 ft 8 in (142 cm),[3][4] and his face kept a childlike appearance even into adulthood.

[9][10] His work on the Little Rascals pilot caught the attention of an executive,[10] and in 1978 Coleman was cast as Arnold Jackson in Diff'rent Strokes, playing one of two black brothers from Harlem adopted by a wealthy white widower in Manhattan.

According to Bridges' autobiography Killing Willis, Coleman was forced to work long hours on the set of Diff'rent Strokes despite his age and debilitating health problems, which contributed to him feeling depressed and withdrawn from the rest of the cast.

[11] A Biography Channel documentary estimated that Coleman was left with a quarter of the original amount of money he received from his years on Diff'rent Strokes after paying his parents, advisers, lawyers, and taxes.

[citation needed] In 1979, Coleman made his television film debut playing the lead in The Kid from Left Field, a baseball comedy.

[20] In 1981, Coleman made his feature film debut with the comedy On the Right Track, headlining as Lester, a young shoeshine orphan who lives in a locker in a train station, who achieves fame for having an uncanny talent for gambling on horses.

The film was financially successful,[35] but received resoundingly negative reviews,[36] with critic Roger Ebert writing "... movies like this don't really have room for brilliant performances.

[57] The adventure game was critically acclaimed, considered one of the best of its genre and has a strong legacy due to its feel, graphics, and voice acting.

[58][59][60] Jeff Green of Computer Gaming World gave it a rave review and that Coleman "played wonderfully" a "shifty character.

[70] Coleman lived in Santaquin, a small town about 50 miles (80 km) south of Salt Lake City, Utah, from 2005 until his death.

Coleman pleaded no contest to one count of assault, received a suspended jail sentence and was ordered to pay Fields' $1,665 hospital bill and to take anger management classes.

[78] In 2007, Coleman was cited for misdemeanor disorderly conduct in Provo, Utah, after a "heated discussion" in public with his wife, Shannon Price.

In the parking lot, Coleman allegedly backed his truck into Rushton, striking his knee and pulling him under the vehicle, before hitting another car.

[84][85][86] Months before his death in 2010, Coleman was arrested on an outstanding domestic assault warrant in Santaquin, booked into the Utah County Jail[87] and released the following day.

"[90] He lost $200,000 on an arcade that he had named the Gary Coleman Game Parlor, which was located at Fisherman's Village in Marina del Rey, California.

[91][92] Ongoing medical expenses contributed significantly to Coleman's chronic financial problems and sometimes compelled him to resort to unusual fundraising activities.

Items included his couch, a "tiny pimp suit" with matching gold Nikes and an autographed ice scraper.

The controversy was exacerbated by a photograph published on the front page of the tabloid newspaper Globe depicting Price posed next to a comatose, intubated Coleman under the headline, "It Was Murder!"

[105] The hospital later issued a statement confirming that Coleman had completed an advance healthcare directive granting Price permission to make medical decisions on his behalf.

[106] An investigation by Santaquin police was closed on October 5, 2010, after the medical examiner ruled Coleman's death accidental and no evidence of wrongdoing could be demonstrated.

Price said that had she been granted disposition, she would have scattered the ashes at the Golden Spike National Historic Site in Utah as a tribute to Coleman's lifelong love of trains.

"[110] Mike Hogan from Vanity Fair wrote on his career, saying "He was unquestionably a superstar, overshadowing them with his radiant charisma and boundless energy, but the kidney condition that enabled him, even as a teen, to play the world's most precocious little brother on TV also complicated his life in ways most of us will never understand.

"[111] Actress Lucille Ball stated in a 1980 interview with People magazine that although she rarely watched sitcoms, "I love Gary Coleman.

[114] The show's creators, Jeff Marx and Robert Lopez, have said the Coleman character personifies one of Avenue Q's central themes: that as children we are told we are "special", but upon entering adulthood, we discover that life is not nearly as easy as we have been led to believe.

In the 2021 Diff'rent Strokes special, actor Kevin Hart played Coleman's signature character of Arnold Jackson.