Fred Berry and Ernest Thomas walked off the show during the second season, demanding more money and better dressing rooms. Their demands were met. After the third season, Berry and Thomas convinced Haywood Nelson to join them in another walkout demanding more money. Even though the show ranked 29th in the 1978-79 season, ABC canceled it rather than deal with their demands.
On the show, Roger and Dee's parents were divorced. Their father disappeared after he remarried in 1977. Mabel King wanted the Thomas family to have a mother and a father. The producers' refusal contributed to her decision to quit her role in 1978. King was also unhappy with her reduced role in the series.
Eric Monte sued the producers, claiming he did not receive proper credit as the creator of the series. A title card at the very end of the end credits read "Suggested by the American-International picture Cooley High (1975), written by Eric Monte". He also claimed that he was promised a credit as a producer. He received an out-of-court settlement.
On September 7, 1977, Danielle Spencer was involved in a serious car accident while riding with her stepfather, Tim Pelt, in Pacific Palisades, CA. Pelt died in the collision, trying to shield Spencer. The accident left Spencer in a coma for a few days. When she was able to return to the show, her character's new hairstyle included bangs to cover injuries on her forehead, and her scenes were blocked to limit her physical movement. Twenty-seven years later, she developed a spinal condition and difficulty walking due to her injuries, requiring surgery and physical therapy. In 2018, she had emergency brain surgery to correct a hematoma, another result of the accident.