Stars From Three's Company You Didn't Know Died
Between the years 1977 and 1984, TV audiences were treated to countless laughs on the ABC sitcom "Three's Company," largely due to lines exchanged between John Ritter, Joyce DeWitt, and Suzanne Somers, the main stars. And here's something to think about: The premise of the show surrounded a man living with two women, which was considered pretty risqué back in the day. Yet the writers were able to push prime-time TV boundaries and still keep the show wholesome, which isn't an easy feat.
But it wasn't just the three main stars of the series that made it a classic — the co-stars, repeat guests, and actors who had one-time appearances also contributed greatly. Undoubtedly, fans have seen some "Three's Company" actors more than others since the show went off the air, due to occasional reunions and autograph signings. Other actors fell into obscurity, and many have passed away, sadly. These are the "Three's Company" sitcom stars that have died since the show's run.
John Ritter had a heart condition
John Ritter, who played Jack Tripper on "Three's Company," died of an aortic dissection at age 54 in Burbank, California. He became ill while on the set of his ABC sitcom "8 Simple Rules... for Dating My Teenage Daughter," as the Chicago Tribune reported. He was eventually taken to Providence St. Joseph Medical Center for surgery and died around 10:00 p.m. on September 11, 2003. "I'm shocked and heartbroken and so sad for his family," said his "Three's Company" co-star Joyce DeWitt. "I cannot find words to express my sorrow, such a great loss to the joy in the world." The cause of Ritter's death, Cedars-Sinai described an aortic dissection as " a tear that develops along the inner layer of the aorta."
Ritter's widow Amy Yasbeck, as well as her children with the actor, filed a wrongful death suit in 2004 against Providence St. Joseph Medical Center, claiming the staff wrongfully said Ritter was having a heart attack, and he should have been saved. But in 2008, a California jury determined that cardiologist Dr. Joseph Lee and radiologist Dr. Matthew Lotysch weren't negligent in the late actor's death, People reported. It was also revealed that Ritter didn't follow up with a specialist after Lotysch advised him to do so after having a body scan.
Suzanne Somers pioneered the 'Jiggle TV' trend
Suzanne Somers was more than just the breakout star of "Three's Company" when the tawdry sitcom launched in 1976. She was also a big part of ABC President Fred Silverman's mandate to boost his network's ratings with his "Jiggle TV" strategy of introducing scarcely-garbed women to primetime slots. The idea worked so well that shows like "Three's Company" and "Charlie's Angels" became must-ogle fodder overnight. Somers, who played voluptuous, albeit vacuous, roomie Chrissy Snow, quickly outpaced co-stars John Ritter and Joyce DeWitt in popularity.
Five seasons later, and feeling she should be financially rewarded as much as her male co-star, Somers demanded that her episodic pay be raised from $30,000 to $50,000. "I've been playing what I think is one of the best dumb blondes that's ever been done, but I never got any credit," she said to The New York Times. "I did it so well that everyone thought I really was a dumb blonde." Instead, ABC fired her, after which Somers eventually parlayed her celebrity into a lucrative fitness revenue stream that started with promoting Thighmaster, a workout product that she believed generated $15 million in sales.
Sadly, Somers was a day short of her 78th birthday when she died on October 15, 2023, of breast cancer. "I'm sure Suzanne was greeted by Angels into the loving wisdom waiting for all of us on the other side," said DeWitt of the star's passing to People, "and I hope that will assist her family's hearts in healing as they travel through this difficult time."
Don Knotts was praised for being 'gracious'
On February 24, 2006, the television world lost a comedic genius in Don Knotts. The veteran actor died on that day at 81 years old, due to lung cancer, at Los Angeles' UCLA Medical Center. Knotts, a native of West Virginia, played landlord and wannabe-playboy Ralph Furley on "Three's Company" from 1979-1984. He joined the show after Norman Fell and Audra Lindley, who played the original landlords, left for their spin-off series, "The Ropers." As many probably know, Knotts captured hearts and tickled funny bones in the 1960s by playing the lovable Barney Fife on "The Andy Griffith Show." "Don meant everything. Don made the show," Griffith told The Washington Post, adding that he'd "lost a lifetime friend."
"When Don agreed to come on the show, we were absolutely astounded that this amazing, creative, extraordinary talent had agreed to come and join our cast," his "Three's Company" co-star Joyce DeWitt shared on "Larry King Live" after Knotts' death. "And of all the people that you would ever meet in Hollywood, Don was absolutely the most unassuming, graceful, gracious man you could ever know." In between "The Andy Griffith Show" and "Three's Company," Knotts — whose real first name was Jesse — left TV to work on the big screen and starred in films including "The Incredible Mr. Limpet" in 1964, "The Apple Dumpling Gang" and its sequel in the 1970s, and the hilariously titled "The Reluctant Astronaut" in 1967.
Ann Wedgeworth was fired after 9 episodes
She was known as the older neighbor whose daily mission was to create some hanky-panky with Jack Tripper, John Ritter's character. We're talking about Ann Wedgeworth, who played Lana Shields on "Three's Company" in 1979. She died in 2017 in her New York City-area home at 83 after suffering from a lengthy illness, per The Hollywood Reporter. Wedgeworth appeared on the show in Season 4 but was gone after just nine episodes.
"They didn't let her part evolve into something groovier," the actor's daughter Diánna Martin told The Hollywood Reporter. Wedgeworth had also discussed being abruptly let go and shared how difficult it was. "It was horrifying," she told People in 1980. "I had no warning or explanation. Suddenly everyone was very cold to me. I went to tell John goodbye and he was shocked — no one had told him. Joyce DeWitt, at least, called to say something to me about it."
Before ever lusting after Ritter's character, Wedgeworth acted on Broadway, appearing in the show "Make a Million" in 1958. She also nabbed a Tony award for best performance by a featured actress for playing Faye Medwick in the 1977 Neil Simon play "Chapter Two." One of her film credits is 1973's "Scarecrow," which also starred Gene Hackman and Al Pacino. And on the small screen, she played Merleen Elldridge on "Evening Shade."
William Pierson played a dean
William Pierson played the demanding Dean Travers at Jack Tripper's cooking school from 1977-1981. He died in Newton, N.J. of respiratory problems in 2004 at 78 years old, per The San Diego Union-Tribune's Legacy. Pierson was born in Brooklyn, New York on July 17, 1926, and was survived by his two brothers, Howard and Jeffrey.
One memorable episode featuring Pierson was titled "Teacher's Pet," where Travers' niece takes Tripper's cooking class and offers to exchange some romantic time for an A grade. Pierson is seen in another "Three's Company" episode called "Jack's Graduation," where one of Tripper's classmates covertly swaps dishes with him, which makes him fail his cooking exam and puts him in danger of not graduating.
Besides "Three's Company," Pierson is also known for playing Marko the Mailman in the 1953 film "Stalag 17" and in the previous Broadway production by the same name. He appeared in classic '80s sitcoms including "Diff'rent Strokes" and "Facts of Life." In fact, he had been been acting on either stage, film, or television since 1947, the year he was a cast member in the Broadway musical "High Button Shoes."
Paul Ainsley said he wasn't paid much
Paul Ainsley was a pretty important character on "Three's Company": Jim the Bartender. It's not that he said a whole lot when he appeared on the show from 1977-1980. But he was the person who kept the drinks going at the fictional watering hole The Regal Beagle so that various problems could be worked out. Ainsley died on January 19, 2013, at the age of 67 due to "heart-related complications," per Playbill.
Besides the '80s sitcom, he also played King Herod in the first Broadway production of "Jesus Christ Superstar" in 1971, and he appeared in the 1981 production of "The Pirates of Penzance," as well. Other acting credits include guest spots on "Wings," "Babylon 5" and "The Bold and the Beautiful." Ainsley spoke about his time on "Three's Company" six years before his death, and he admitted to making barely any money back then.
"That was my first gig, and that was at basic minimum nothing because I had no lines, no nothing," he said in a 2007 interview on "Just My Show." "For some reason, the casting person ... and some other powers that be decided that I should come back when I was available. ... Because if I was working, they would bring someone else in." Ainsley remembered that he was in 18 episodes total, and his last episode was Don Knotts' first.
Brad Blaisdell spoke highly of his cast mates
Brad Blaisdell had been acting since the early '70s. He played Mike the Bartender for three seasons on "Three's Company" after Paul Ainsley's character left. Then, after the show, Blaisdell appeared on series including "Knots Landing," "Matlock," and "ER."
He died of cancer on December 26, 2018, at 69, according to the Los Angeles Times' Legacy, and was survived by his wife Merilee Blaisdell, as well as daughter Hannah Blaisdell. Brad Blaisdell was also a singer and appeared in the Broadway shows "I Love My Wife" and "Going Up." He once talked about how kind people were to him on "Three's Company," which must have been a nice way to break into television.
"Working with John [Ritter] and Don Knotts, it was like going to college every day to learn how to do everything," said Blaisdell on "Just My Show" in 2007. "It was my first job in Los Angeles in front of a camera ... They couldn't have been nicer to me. Actually, I've never met another human being as nice as John Ritter."
Norman Fell adored his character
Throughout TV history, the issues that have arisen between tenants and their landlords, like on "I Love Lucy," have been used for countless laughs. That was certainly the case on "Three's Company," where many episodes focused on the relationship between landlord Stanley Roper, played by Norman Fell, and the characters Jack, Janet, and Chrissy. Fell died of cancer on December 14, 1998, in Woodland Hills, California, as reported by The Washington Post. He was on the ABC sitcom from 1977-1979 before joining his TV wife Audra Lindley in their own spin-off, "The Ropers." He also won a Golden Globe for playing Stanley Roper in 1979.
But before the award and "Three's Company" fame, Fell appeared in a bunch of TV shows and movies, including "The Rat Race" in 1960, starring Tony Curtis and Debbie Reynolds, and 1978's "The End," with Burt Reynolds and Dom DeLuise. It was Stanley Roper, however, that Fell is most remembered for, which is probably a good thing, since he remembered the role as one of his favorite parts.
"Stanley Roper was a great character to play," he once told the American Forces Network. "It was like sticking your head above a fence. You can suddenly breathe and really carry on. Also, a lot of things that I played in comedy were parts where I reacted to what other people were doing ... But Roper would instigate, so it was a whole new approach for me to do bizarre things."
Audra Lindley worked until the end
Similar to Norman Fell, Audra Lindley appeared in a long list of TV shows and films but is mostly known for her work on "Three's Company." Lindley played the afro-sporting, Kaftan-wearing Helen Roper, who was thirsty for some physical attention from Fell's Stanley Roper character, her husband. Lindley died of leukemia on October 16, 1997, in Los Angeles, California, at 79 years old. The Los Angeles Times reported that she worked up until one month before her passing, filming an episode of the sitcom "Cybill," where she played Cybill Shepherd's mom.
Lindley appeared on "Three's Company" from 1977-1979 before joining Fell in their spin-off "The Ropers," which ran from 1979-1980. For some reason, there aren't many online clips that show the Los Angeles native talking about the Helen character, but in one interview she said it nearly cost her a part in the 1982 film "Cannery Row."
"It almost kept me from getting it," she said in an interview posted on The Bobbie Wygant Archive YouTube channel. "[Director] David Ward saw some tape of Helen Roper and said, 'She's not right at all.'" But Lindley got the part of Fauna Flood anyway, which is just one of the many films she starred in during her nearly 60-year career.
Peter Mark Richman was hired on the spot
Peter Mark Richman played a reverend on "Three's Company" who happened to be Chrissy Snow's dad. Richman died of natural causes on January 14, 2021, in Woodland Hills, California at 93 years old. The Hollywood Reporter shared a statement from the actor's TV daughter, Suzanne Somers. "Comedy is musical. Peter Mark Richman and I understood the music from the very first time we appeared together on 'Three's Company,'" said Somers. "He knew his stuff. We lost a good one."
Richman also played a lawyer named Andrew Laird on "Dynasty" from 1981-1984, and made guest appearances on "The Love Boat," "Fantasy Island," "Charlie's Angels," and "Star Trek," to name a few. The Philadelphia-born actor appeared in countless television programs, since his career dates back to the 1950s. He once talked about snagging the Reverend Snow role on "Three's Company" and revealed that it ended because of Somers being fired.
"I had a manager and she brought me in to meet the producers," Richman told Fox News in 2018. "I was hired just like that! I was hired for a guest star role. I was Suzanne Somers' father in the show, but she was contemplating the contract at the time. She wanted $150,000 per show. That finished me off and that finished her off. But I wasn't too surprised she was fired. But she seemed surprised."
Mickey Deems appeared on multiple episodes
When Mickey Deems died at 88 years old, "Three's Company" fans took to Twitter to mourn him and talk about the episodes he was in. Between the late 1970s and early 1980s, some of the characters Deems played on the series include a person named Mr. Harwood, another named Mr. Hubbard, a maitre d', and someone who delivered a singing telegram. He also appeared on the spin-off "The Ropers." One of his first TV appearances came in 1959 on the "The Phil Silvers Show," which led to a long career that stretched into the '80s.
On top of that, Deems acted on stage, appearing in the 1959 Broadway show "Golden Fleecing," 1960's "Vintage '60," and the off-Broadway production of " Anything Goes" in 1962. He wasn't a stranger to the big screen or small, and how's this for a coincidence? In 1969, Deems was in a TV movie titled "Three's A Crowd."
Deems reportedly communicated with the TVParty blog before his 2014 death. The actor shared that he started in entertainment as a musician and transitioned to comedy after World War II. "Anything Goes" was a favorite for the versatile performer, who is also known for creating and starring in the sitcom "Mack & Myer for Hire."
Rod Colbin was Cindy and Janet's boss
"Mr. Hadley was behaving badly."
That's a memorable line from Jack Tripper on a Season 5 "Three's Company" episode that featured Rod Colbin as Cindy Snow's boss, Mr. Hadley, who was caught cheating on his wife. Colbin, who also played Janet Wood's boss in an episode called "Hearts and Flowers," and Helen Roper's brother-in-law in "The Ropers," died in Denver, Colorado, following "a series of strokes" in 2007, per Variety. He was 83 years old.
Before landing on "Three's Company," Colbin appeared in numerous TV series, one of his first acting credits being 1951's "Somerset Maugham TV Theater." He also played a minister on the "The Twilight Zone" in 1986, and some of his film credits include "Frankenstein's Aunt Tillie," "John Hus" and "Yes, Giorgio." But perhaps Colbin was best known in Hollywood as an expert fencer, since he taught James Dean and Marlon Brando how to handle a sword for films. Plus, Colbin had a job as Katharine Hepburn's masseuse (via Variety), so it's evident that his career was far from run-of-the-mill. He was able to wear some different and very unique hats.
Dick Shawn played dear old dad
Even though he appeared in just one episode of "Three's Company" as Jack Tripper's father, it's safe to say that Dick Shawn made an impression on fans that will probably never disappear. Shawn's 1983 episode is titled "Like Father, Like Son," where his character paid a surprise visit to Jack, only for his son to tell him to butt out of his life after meddling. But Jack and his dear old dad were able to patch things up by episode's end.
Shawn died of a heart attack in 1987 at 63 years old while performing on stage at the University of California, San Diego. The audience at that performance at first thought his distress was part of the show until his son Adam requested assistance and a doctor helped. The late actor's career began in the 1950s, per his IMDb page, and he has at least 66 acting credits to his name. Some include playing Adolf Hitler in Mel Brooks' ″The Producers" and Sylvester Marcus in "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World" in 1963. On TV, he's been in everything from "The Lucy Show" to "Captain Kangaroo" to "Laverne & Shirley" to "Magnum, P.I."
"The fact that he died doing what he loved doing is poetic," said late actor Marty Ingels, according to UPI. Ingels added, "He never used any formulas or jokes per se ... He'd just get up with a stream of consciousness and sometimes he was brilliant or off the wall and they'd just carry him off stage."