John Ritter | |
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Ritter at the 1988 Emmy Awards
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Born |
Jonathan Southworth Ritter September 17, 1948 Burbank, California, U.S. |
Died | September 11, 2003 Burbank, California, U.S. |
(aged 54)
Cause of death | Aortic dissection |
Resting place | Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills) |
Education | Hollywood High School |
Alma mater | University of Southern California |
Occupation | Actor, comedian |
Years active | 1968–2003 |
Notable work | Jack Tripper on Three's Company |
Spouse(s) |
Nancy Morgan (m. 1977; div. 1996) Amy Yasbeck (m. 1999; his death 2003) |
Children | 4; including Jason Ritter and Tyler Ritter |
Parent(s) |
Tex Ritter Dorothy Fay |
Jonathan Southworth "John" Ritter (September 17, 1948 – September 11, 2003) was an American actor and comedian, best known for his role of Jack Tripper in Three's Company, for which he won an Emmy and a Golden Globe Award in 1984; also playing the same role in Three's a Crowd, he was the son of the late singing cowboy star Tex Ritter and the father of actors Jason Ritter and Tyler Ritter.
Ritter appeared in hundreds of films and television shows/episodes combined (and performed on Broadway), including It (1990), Problem Child (1990), Problem Child 2 (1991), and Bad Santa in 2003 (his final live action film which was dedicated to his memory). Prior to Clifford's Really Big Movie (posthumously released), Ritter received four Daytime Emmy Award nominations for his voice work on the children's television series, Clifford the Big Red Dog, in addition to many other awards Ritter was nominated for or won. Don Knotts called Ritter the "greatest physical comedian on the planet".