Foxyangel0425
09-13-2003, 10:56 AM
Actor John Ritter dies
LOS ANGELES -- His role as the bumbling but lovable Jack Tripper helped make the comedy series "Three's Company" a smash hit. At the age of 54, John Ritter died last night of a heart problem at a hospital in the Los Angeles area.
Those who knew the actor are reacting with shock and disbelief.
His publicist says Ritter died from a flaw in his heart that apparently had gone unrecognized.
Ritter's portrayal of the bumbling but lovable Jack Tripper helped make the comedy series "Three's Company" a smash hit in the 1970s. Ritter revived his TV career recently with an ABC sitcom called "Eight Simple Rules ... For Dating My Teenage Daughter." The show was scheduled to begin a second season.
He also appeared in more than 25 television movies and a number of films.
Ritter's longtime assistant says he fell ill on the set of his new show yesterday.
Ritter had worried about type-casting after his run on the sitcom "Three's Company."
He played Jack Tripper, a bachelor sharing an apartment with two attractive women. The show was considered racy during its run from 1977 to 1984.
He once said in an Associated Press interview that after the sitcom's run, he would get scripts about "a young swinging bachelor on the make." He said he would reply, "No, I've done that."
Ritter described his time on the show as "an education" in quick-study acting. He says they didn't do retakes.
LOS ANGELES -- His role as the bumbling but lovable Jack Tripper helped make the comedy series "Three's Company" a smash hit. At the age of 54, John Ritter died last night of a heart problem at a hospital in the Los Angeles area.
Those who knew the actor are reacting with shock and disbelief.
His publicist says Ritter died from a flaw in his heart that apparently had gone unrecognized.
Ritter's portrayal of the bumbling but lovable Jack Tripper helped make the comedy series "Three's Company" a smash hit in the 1970s. Ritter revived his TV career recently with an ABC sitcom called "Eight Simple Rules ... For Dating My Teenage Daughter." The show was scheduled to begin a second season.
He also appeared in more than 25 television movies and a number of films.
Ritter's longtime assistant says he fell ill on the set of his new show yesterday.
Ritter had worried about type-casting after his run on the sitcom "Three's Company."
He played Jack Tripper, a bachelor sharing an apartment with two attractive women. The show was considered racy during its run from 1977 to 1984.
He once said in an Associated Press interview that after the sitcom's run, he would get scripts about "a young swinging bachelor on the make." He said he would reply, "No, I've done that."
Ritter described his time on the show as "an education" in quick-study acting. He says they didn't do retakes.