How John Ritter’s Sudden Death Changed ‘8 Simple Rules’ Forever

THREE'S COMPANY, John Ritter, 1977-84 — Everett Collection

What To Know

John Ritter became a beloved comedy icon through his role as Jack Tripper on Three’s Company.
He enjoyed a successful career in television and film, later returning to sitcoms with 8 Simple Rules, where he was working when he died suddenly from an aortic dissection in 2003.

When Three’s Company premiered on ABC in 1977, John Ritter became one of television’s most gifted physical comedians. As Jack Tripper, the culinary student who shared an apartment with Janet Wood, played by Joyce DeWitt, and Chrissy Snow, played by Suzanne Somers, Ritter became a comedy legend. The show ran until 1984 and sparked a career that would run for decades, until his tragic and sudden death in 2003.

Johnathan Southworth Ritter was born on September 17, 1948, in Burbank, California. He came from a show business family: his father was singing cowboy and actor Tex Ritter, and his mother was actress Dorothy Fay. Ritter attended Hollywood High School, then studied at the University of Southern California, where he later earned a degree from the School of Dramatic Arts.

Before Three’s Company, Ritter worked steadily in television and film. He appeared on shows including The Waltons, where he had a recurring role, and made early film appearances before finding the part that changed his career. In 1977, he was cast as Jack Tripper on Three’s Company, starring alongside DeWitt, Somers, Norman Fell, and Audra Lindley.

THREE'S COMPANY, Suzanne Somers, John Ritter, Joyce DeWitt, 1978

ABC/Everett Collection

While the show’s premise has not aged as well as some of its contemporaries, with Jack pretending to be gay so he could live with two female roommates under the watchful eyes of the Ropers, there is no denying Ritter’s remarkable talent in the role. He was fearless with physical comedy, whether he was tripping, hiding, panicking, or trying to talk his way out of another misunderstanding.

Ritter won both a Primetime Emmy Award and a Golden Globe in 1984 for Three’s Company. After the series ended, he briefly continued as Jack on the spinoff Three’s a Crowd. He later starred in Hooperman and Hearts Afire and appeared in films including Problem Child, Problem Child 2, Sling Blade, and Bad Santa. He also voiced the title character on Clifford the Big Red Dog.

In 2002, Ritter returned to network sitcoms with 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter. He played Paul Hennessy, a protective father trying to raise three kids with his wife Cate Hennessy, played by Katey Sagal. The show introduced him to younger viewers and gave longtime fans another chance to see him in a new kind of role. His kids were played by future The Big Big Theory star Kaley Cuoco, Better Call Saul‘s Amy Davidson, and Martin Spanjers.

Then, on September 11, 2003, everything changed. Ritter became ill while working on 8 Simple Rules and was taken to Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center in Burbank, California. He died that night from an aortic dissection, just days before what would have been his 55th birthday.

8 Simple Rules... for Dating my Teenage Daughter Kaley Cuoco, John Ritter, 2002-present

Everett Collection

The news stunned fans and colleagues. Ritter’s death felt especially shocking because he was in the middle of a career comeback and still actively working on a hit sitcom. 8 Simple Rules later addressed the loss of his character, Paul, as the family grieved on screen. It was an unusually emotional turn for a network comedy, made even harder by the fact that the cast was mourning Ritter in real life, too.

After his death, his widow, actress Amy Yasbeck, established The John Ritter Foundation for Aortic Health to raise awareness about thoracic aortic aneurysm and dissection. Yasbeck claims that he had been misdiagnosed in 2001 and at the hospital the day he died, which could have caused his untimely death. The foundation has continued its work for more than two decades, helping turn Ritter’s sudden death into a public health mission. More than 20 years after his death, fans still remember the shock of losing him so suddenly, but they also remember the joy he left behind.