Why Did Danielle Spencer, Dee from ‘What’s Happening??,’ Leave Hollywood?

Danielle Spencer, the actress who played the precocious Dee Thomas on What’s Happening!!, died on Aug. 11 at the age of 60.

The show, based loosely on the 1975 film, Cooley High, gave television some iconic characters as Roger “Raj” Thomas (Ernest Thomas), Freddy “Rerun” Stubbs (Fred Berry), and Dwayne Nelson (Haywood Nelson). Spencer played Raj’s youngest sister, best known for being “the brattiest kid on television” and her catchphrase, “Ooooh, I’m tellin’ Mama!”