It’s been over 40 years since “Three’s Company” first hit the airwaves — and there was a lot of backstage drama behind the notoriously sexy antics onscreen! The ABC sitcom centered on Jack Tripper (John Ritter) pretending to be gay so that he could outwit the prudish Mr. Roper while sharing the rent with Chrissy Snow and Janet Wood (Suzanne Somers and Joyce DeWitt). Hollywood reportedly is always looking for a “Three’s Company” reboot, but it’ll have to catch up to the sexy scandals that launched the careers of the classic sitcom’s stars…
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The day before production, the bosses still hadn’t chosen Chrissy — and were frantically going back through audition tapes for the role that would create one of the biggest sex symbols of the '70s. That's when they settled on single mom Suzanne. “I was so happy, I was finally going to make some money,” she said.
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Heather Locklear was among the ladies up for the role — and was sweating so profusely before her audition that she stuffed tissues under her arms. No one laughed at her performance until a tissue popped out of her top.
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Loni Anderson was also turned down for the role of Chrissy, but settled for a guest turn.
Billy Crystal missed out on the role of Jack. It took a few tries to get the pilot sold, too. One version of the show had Jack as a filmmaker and the women as aspiring actresses!
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John Ritter was the only "Three's Company" star to appear in all 174 episodes — but he still found time for fun! He was “very horny,” Suzanne later revealed. “The horniest guy I’ve ever known! The married actor even had sex with guest stars on the show, although Joyce didn't find out until years later, admitting: “I was in shock!”
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The show was a hit for showing off the ladies, but John exposed more than he bargained for in an episode titled “The Charming Stranger.” A viewer complained in 2001 when reruns showed an edited cut. John said, “I’ve requested they air both versions — because sometimes you feel like a nut, sometimes you don’t.”
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The show was a hit for showing off the ladies, but John exposed more than he bargained for in an episode titled “The Charming Stranger.” A viewer complained in 2001 when reruns showed an edited cut. John said, “I’ve requested they air both versions — because sometimes you feel like a nut, sometimes you don’t.”
One of the show's stars was also called on to do some extra exposure. The first season's opening credits had Jack falling off his bike while ogling a brunette — who was actually Suzanne in a wig!
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Suzanne and Joyce would later feud on the set, but agreed that the show's producers had no respect for the women on the show. “If you looked in the dictionary under ‘chauvinist,’ you would probably see the three little heads of our pro- ducers,” Joyce said.
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Suzanne and Joyce would later feud on the set, but agreed that the show's producers had no respect for the women on the show. “If you looked in the dictionary under ‘chauvinist,’ you would probably see the three little heads of our pro- ducers,” Joyce said.
Suzanne was ultimately fired after
she asked for a raise from $30,000 to $150,000 an episode to match John Ritter’s salary. Producers offered a $5,000 raise, but negotiations failed — and she was written out of the show right after she bombed with a starring role in the sexy comedy "Nothing Personal."
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Priscilla Barnes later stepped in to replace Suzanne — and quickly found herself caught in a scandal over nude photos that ended up in "Penthouse" magazine. She found out about the magazine's plans to publish the photos from a report in
The National ENQUIRER.
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Priscilla Barnes later stepped in to replace Suzanne — and quickly found herself caught in a scandal over nude photos that ended up in "Penthouse" magazine. She found out about the magazine's plans to publish the photos from a report in
The National ENQUIRER.
Suzanne wouldn't be happy with
ending up in "Playboy," either. The magazine found an old nude photo shoot of the star, and published the pics in 1980. "It makes me want to cry," she said at the time. Later, Suzanne changed her mind about that kind of thing.
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Suzanne and Joyce didn’t speak for 30 years after Suzanne left the show, only reuniting in 2012. Suzanne and John broke the ice a decade earlier — one month before he died suddenly on Sept. 11, 2003, from a tear in his aorta. He had called about her joining him and Joyce for a dream sequence on his new series, “8 Simple Rules.” She turned him down.
The day before production, the bosses still hadn’t chosen Chrissy — and were frantically going back through audition tapes for the role that would create one of the biggest sex symbols of the '70s. That's when they settled on single mom Suzanne. “I was so happy, I was finally going to make some money,” she said.
Heather Locklear was among the ladies up for the role — and was sweating so profusely before her audition that she stuffed tissues under her arms. No one laughed at her performance until a tissue popped out of her top.
Photo credit: Getty Images
Loni Anderson was also turned down for the role of Chrissy, but settled for a guest turn.
Billy Crystal missed out on the role of Jack. It took a few tries to get the pilot sold, too. One version of the show had Jack as a filmmaker and the women as aspiring actresses!
John Ritter was the only "Three's Company" star to appear in all 174 episodes — but he still found time for fun! He was “very horny,” Suzanne later revealed. “The horniest guy I’ve ever known! The married actor even had sex with guest stars on the show, although Joyce didn't find out until years later, admitting: “I was in shock!”
Photo credit: Getty Images
The show was a hit for showing off the ladies, but John exposed more than he bargained for in an episode titled “The Charming Stranger.” A viewer complained in 2001 when reruns showed an edited cut. John said, “I’ve requested they air both versions — because sometimes you feel like a nut, sometimes you don’t.”
Photo credit: Getty Images
One of the show's stars was also called on to do some extra exposure. The first season's opening credits had Jack falling off his bike while ogling a brunette — who was actually Suzanne in a wig!
Suzanne and Joyce would later feud on the set, but agreed that the show's producers had no respect for the women on the show. “If you looked in the dictionary under ‘chauvinist,’ you would probably see the three little heads of our pro- ducers,” Joyce said.
Photo credit: Getty Images
Suzanne was ultimately fired after
she asked for a raise from $30,000 to $150,000 an episode to match John Ritter’s salary. Producers offered a $5,000 raise, but negotiations failed — and she was written out of the show right after she bombed with a starring role in the sexy comedy "Nothing Personal."
Priscilla Barnes later stepped in to replace Suzanne — and quickly found herself caught in a scandal over nude photos that ended up in "Penthouse" magazine. She found out about the magazine's plans to publish the photos from a report in
The National ENQUIRER.
Photo credit: Getty Images
Suzanne wouldn't be happy with
ending up in "Playboy," either. The magazine found an old nude photo shoot of the star, and published the pics in 1980. "It makes me want to cry," she said at the time. Later, Suzanne changed her mind about that kind of thing.
Suzanne and Joyce didn’t speak for 30 years after Suzanne left the show, only reuniting in 2012. Suzanne and John broke the ice a decade earlier — one month before he died suddenly on Sept. 11, 2003, from a tear in his aorta. He had called about her joining him and Joyce for a dream sequence on his new series, “8 Simple Rules.” She turned him down.
Photo credit: Getty Images