Overview
- Watson died on Dec. 26 in Colorado Springs after a brief hospitalization for bleeding, her brother told TMZ, and no further medical details have been released.
- Born with osteogenesis imperfecta, she used a wheelchair and became an early, authentic presence of disability on network television.
- She appeared in four Diff’rent Strokes episodes, including the notable installments "Kathy" (1982) and "Kathy’s Olympics" (1984), a role she later said was written for her.
- After leaving acting, she founded Train Rite to train shelter dogs as service animals and was later linked to Couiffie’s Ranch supporting independent living for people with disabilities.
- In a 2020 interview, she credited producer Norman Lear for advancing representation and reflected that she would have stayed in the industry if given the chance again.