John Ritter
John Ritter Ritter at the 1988 Emmy Awards Born Jonathan Southworth Ritter (1948-09-17)September 17, 1948 Burbank, California, U.S. Died September 11, 2003(2003-09-11) (aged 54) Burbank, California, U.S. Cause of death Aortic dissection Education Hollywood High School Alma mater University of Southern California Occupation Actor, comedian, voice-over artist Years active 1968–2003 Notable work(s) Jack Tripper on Three's Company Spouse(s) Nancy Morgan (m. 1977; div. 1996) Amy Yasbeck (m. 1999–2003) Children Jason Ritter Tyler Ritter Carly Ritter Stella Ritter Parents Tex Ritter Dorothy Fay Jonathan Southworth "John" Ritter (September 17, 1948 – September 11, 2003) was an American actor, comedian, and voice-over artist. Ritter was best known for playing Jack Tripper on the hit ABC sitcom Three's Company, for which he won an Emmy and a Golden Globe Award in 1984. He was the son of famous country/western 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". Ritter died from an aortic dissection on September 11, 2003. His death occurred shortly after the production of an episode for the second season of 8 Simple Rules.