EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: LIVID SUZANNE SOMERS BLASTS TV KINGPIN CONSPIRACY

Somers_stry

Sexbomb SUZANNE SOMERS reveals the REAL reason she was booted off ‘Three’s Company’ in ENQUIRER Exclusive interview.

After showing off her amazing bikini body at age 67 in a National ENQUIRER photo exclusive, Suzanne Somers is now sharing another blockbuster – the untold story of why she left “Three’s Company” more than 30 years ago!

Suzanne starred opposite John Ritter and Joyce DeWitt as dim-witted blonde Chrissy Snow on the wildly popular ABC show from 1977 to 1981.

As The ENQUIRER reported at the time, Ritter’s contract made him the show’s highest paid cast member at a then-whopping $150,000 an episode.

Suzanne, meanwhile, earned $35,000 an episode. But when she asked for a salary increase at the beginning of the fifth season, ABC brass turned down her request and then fired her.

“At the height of my success on ‘Three’s Company,’ I was screwed out of my TV career 
by the producers and weak leaders at the network who concocted a plan to stop 
women in TV from asking to be paid the same as men,” Suzanne told The ENQUIRER.

“I was on the No. 1 show in the country, and dominated the dream demographic of women 18-49. Meanwhile, male actors with shows way down in the top 20 were earning 10 times more than me…10 times more!”

According to Suzanne, the plan to shaft women remained in place until Roseanne Barr’s breakout success on “Roseanne,” and both the male and female cast members of “Friends” won their demand for $1 million per episode.

“A major syndicator announced that by firing me from ‘Three’s Company,’ hundreds of millions of dollars were lost in back-end syndication,” Suzanne added.

“The ‘Three’s Company’ producer told the network he could ‘train another blonde like a seal’ to take over for me. But after auditioning every blonde in the Screen Actors Guild, he was never able to find anyone to do my job.

“It’s always about chemistry, and the chemistry between John, Joyce and me was 
beautiful.”

Despite the shabby treatment, Suzanne said: “I never got bitter. I got mad.”

And then she got even. Eventually ABC put Suzanne back in prime time in 1991, teaming her with “Dallas” hunk Patrick Duffy in the sitcom “Step by Step” that ran for seven 
seasons.

“Today I’m busier than ever with my e-commerce and retail businesses, my publishing career and my lectures here, in Canada, Europe and soon China,” Suzanne said. “And as of last month, my twenty-fifth book, ‘Knockout,’ is the No. 1 book in China. Now that’s a rush!”