Plato began having drug and alcohol problems early in life. At age 14, she overdosed on Valium. She also, by her own admission, drank and used recreational drugs during her years on Diff'rent Strokes.

In 1988, Plato's adoptive mother, Kay, died from scleroderma. Shortly thereafter, Plato's marriage to Lanny Lambert began to fall apart. The couple officially divorced in 1990, with Lambert getting Read more...

On May 7, 1999, Plato appeared on The Howard Stern Show, where she told Stern and Robin Quivers that she was engaged to the 28-year-old Robert Menchaca, and that he was managing her career. She was frank about her situation, discussing her financial problems and past run-ins with the law. She admitted to being a recovering alcoholic/drug addict, but claimed that she had been sober for more than Read more...

Kay Plato began taking Dana to auditions when she was very young. By the age of seven, Dana began doing television commercials, reportedly appearing in over 100 spots for companies as diverse as Kentucky Fried Chicken, Dole, and Atlantic Richfield. She claimed she was offered two highly sought-after movie roles: the part of possessed child Regan MacNeil in the 1973 film, The Exorcist, and the starring Read more...