SALT LAKE CITY — Former child television star Gary Coleman is in critical condition near his Utah home with what his family calls a “serious medical problem.”
 |
Utah Valley Regional Medical Center spokeswoman Janet Frank said Coleman, 42, was admitted to the Provo facility on Wednesday but she couldn’t release any other details.
Coleman lives in Santaquin, which is 55 miles south of Salt Lake City.
The actor is best known for his stint on TV’s “Diff’rent Strokes,” which aired from 1978 to 1986.
In February, Coleman suffered a seizure on the set of “The Insider.”
Coleman’s Utah attorney, Randy Kester, said he had communicated by text message with Coleman’s wife, Shannon Price, and that the family did not want to release any additional details at this time.
“Anything they could say would be premature because they don’t know the full extent of his condition right now,” Kester told The Associated Press.
Price and her father released a statement Thursday to KUTV-TV saying Coleman was taken to the hospital with “a serious medical problem.” The statement asks for prayers, adding “we hope those prayers are answered and that Gary will be able to recover and return home soon.”
Coleman has lived in Utah since 2005, when he came here to star in the movie “Church Ball,” a comedy based on basketball leagues formed by members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He met Price on the movie set and married her in 2007.
Story continues below
Coleman has had a string of financial and legal problems, in addition to continuing ill health from the kidney disease he suffered as a child. Coleman has had at least two kidney transplants and has ongoing dialysis.
Last fall, Coleman had heart surgery that was complicated by pneumonia, Kester said.
In February, Coleman pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor criminal mischief charge related to an April 2009 domestic violence incident at his home. Recent health issues have caused several follow-up hearings in Coleman’s case to be delayed, Kester said.
