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Comedian John Ritter was born today in 1948. Read more about the beloved actor, whose sudden death one year ago at age 54 shocked his fans.
Comedian John Ritter was born today in 1948. Read more about the beloved actor, whose sudden death one year ago at age 54 shocked his fans this past year.

Born in Burbank, California, Jonathan Southworth Ritter, John Ritter was the son of a legendary country singing musician/actor (Tex) and his wife (Dorothy Fay), who was also an actress. He attended Hollywood High School, where he was a student body president, the University of Southern California, where he majored in Psychology and minored in Architecture. He changed his major to Theater Arts, and graduated in 1971 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Drama. His acting debut was on an episode of “Hawaii Five-O” (1968). Ratings hit, “Three’s Company” debuted in 1977, where Ritter played Jack Tripper. Ritter won a Golden Globe in 1983 for Best Performance by an Actor, and one year later, won an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series, after being nominated twice.

Ritter’s box-office films, included Skin Deep (1989), Problem Child (1990) and Sling Blade (1996). In 1999, he was also nominated for an Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series, playing the role of George Madison on an episode of “Ally McBeal” (1997). Soon afterwards, he landed his last television role in “8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter” (2002), based on the popular book. On this sitcom, he played Paul Hennessey, a loving, yet rational dad, who laid down the ground rules for his six children. The show won a People’s Choice Award for Best New Comedy. and also won for Favorite Comedy Series by the Family Awards!

In 2003. Ritter felt ill while rehearsing on set, and was rushed across the street to Providence St. Joseph Medical Center in Burbank, California, where he was diagnosed with an aorta dissection, which meant in layman’s terms, an unrecognized flaw of the heart. He underwent surgery and died on September 11, 2003, just days shy of his 55th birthday. Ritter’s eldest son, Jason, plays the role of Kevin, a young man who was a high school sport star but is now paralyzed for life in the highly-rated drama “Joan of Arcadia” (2003).

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