Early Days
The Facts of Life looked different later on than it did in the beginning. The show was centered around a group of girls at an elite boarding school called Eastland, but it got a little more complicated. The show actually started with seven girls in the first season – including Blair, Tootie, and Natalie – as well as some others who were quickly dropped from the show.
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Eastland Academy was a bit more crowded at first. These other new classmates included some stars we still know today – Felice Schachter, Julie Anne Haddock, Julie Piekarski, and Molly Ringwald. This was early in Molly Ringwald’s career, before Pretty in Pink and The Breakfast Club gave her more recognition. The producers “trimmed the fat” and let go of the extra girls because there was not enough content for them to work with.