‘Three’s Company’ star Suzanne Somers has passed away aged 76 after a lengthy battle with cancer. It was the day before her 77th birthday.
One of the most storied sitcom stars of the 70s and 80s, Somers was also known for her starring stint in ABC’s Step By Step, where she played a single mom opposite Dallas alum Patrick Duffy.
Her publicist on Sunday confirmed she succumbed to her illness while surrounded by family at her California home. She said in a statement that it was an aggressive form of breast cancer that began plaguing the actress more than 23 years ago.
Moreover, the affliction was not the actress’s first bout with the disease – with her revealing herself this past July that she’s been struggling on-and-off with cancer since even before her break as Chrissy Snow on the popular program in 1977.
Now at rest, she is survived by her husband Alan, 87, and her 57-year-old son Bruce – both of whom had been present in anticipation of Somers’ birthday, her publicist said – in a statement sent to members of the media.
‘Three’s Company’ star Suzanne Somers has passed away aged 76 after a lengthy battle with cancer . It was the day before her 77th birthday
She is survived by her husband Alan and her son Bruce, who had been gathered at the star’s California home in anticipation of her birthday, her publicist said
One of the most storied sitcom stars of the 70s and 80s, Somers passed away peacefully at her home Sunday after a 23-year struggle with breast cancer – a disease that’s plagued her on-and-off since well before her stint as Chrissy Snow on the popular program
Sent out by longtime Somers confidant R. Couri Hay, it read: ‘Suzanne Somers passed away peacefully at home in the early morning hours of Oct. 15th.
‘She survived an aggressive form of breast cancer for over 23 years,’ it went on to reveal.
‘Suzanne was surrounded by her loving husband Alan, her son Bruce, and her immediate family. Her family was gathered to celebrate her 77th birthday.
‘Instead, they will celebrate her extraordinary life, and want to thank her millions of fans and followers who loved her dearly.’
Hay added that a private family burial should take place sometime this week, with a memorial for the acting icon slated for an unspecified day in November.
Once a fresh-faced Bay Area actress with only a handful of minor roles to her name, Somers’ big break came in the latter half of the 1970s, when she snagged the part of Snow, a ditzy 20-something who lived with a woman and a man posing as gay.
She quickly found recognition not only for her acting chops, but her newfound status as a sex symbol – a distinction earned over five years on the program.
Somers earned fames starring alongside John Ritter and Joyce DeWitt on Three’s Company in the 70s and 80s, a stretch that has since proved iconic in the annals of American TV
Once a fresh-faced Bay Area actress with only a handful of minor roles to her name, Somers’ big break came in the latter half of the 1970s, when she snagged the part of Snow, a ditzy 20-something who lived with a woman and a man posing as a homosexual
Somers was ultimately was from the show in 1981 following a contract dispute with producers – but her fame for the most part stayed, with a series of starring spots on multiple TV movies, and cameos on shows such as Full House
Somers was ultimately was from the show in 1981 following a contract dispute with producers – but her fame for the most part stayed, with a series of starring spots on multiple TV movies, and cameos on shows such as Full House.
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Within a decade, Somers was again graced with another plum primetime part – this time as the matriarch on the T.G.I.F. sitcom Step by Step, which ran for seven seasons until 1997.
This time, Somers – who wed second husband Alan in 1977 – stayed for the entire stint, during which she enjoyed a lengthy resurgence, along with hours of informercials for Thighmaster, an iconic partnership she once said earned her more than $300,000.
She went on to take a step away from acting in 2001 – but the impact she left on the American consciousness through her TV and film appearances hardly seemed to wane.
Even now, more than two decades later, she remains one of the most recognizable figures of the small screen.
But behind her success was several bitter bouts with cancer – ones she revealed in an interview this summer that have plagued her for the better part of a half-century.
Within a decade, Somers was again graced with another plum primetime part – this time as the matriarch on the T.G.I.F. sitcom Step by Step opposite Dallas’s Patrick Duffy, which ran for seven seasons until 1997
This time, Somers – who wed second husband Alan in 1977 – stayed for the entire stint, during which she enjoyed a lengthy resurgence, along with hours of informercials for Thighmaster, an iconic partnership she once said earned her more than $300,000
She went on to take a step away from acting in 2001 – but the impact she left on the American consciousness through her TV and film appearances hardly seemed to wane
Even now, more than two decades later, she remains one of the most recognizable figures of the small screen
She told Entertainment Tonight: ‘I have been living with cancer since my 20’s. And every time that little f***** pops up, I continue to bat it back,’
‘I do my best not to let this insidious disease control me,’
The red carpet fixture – who also appeared in early George Lucas work American Graffiti in 1973 – did not specify what type of cancer she had been battling at the time, but from her publicist’s statement, it is apparent it was the same malady that claimed her life Sunday.
At the time, she said she was making it through thanks to both Hamel and Bruce – her son with first husband Bruce Somers Sr. – her side.
‘My cancer is a disease that affected my whole family and once it hit me in my 20’s, Alan and I got even closer and every moment of every day was precious,’ she said.
‘We have not spent even one day apart in over 42 years. That’s the big upside of my cancer.’
Aside from Bruce and her husband, Somers also leaves behind younger children Steven and Leslie Somers, both of whom are married with multiple kids, who Hay on Sunday said will also miss their grandaughter.
‘There were all these plans and she was always working and dreaming and had brought her family into the business, and the grandchildren and step-children were all part of the business,’ the publicist told People in a separate statement, adding that she was ‘very engaged right to the end.’
In fact, just a few days earlier, she told the outlet that she looking forward to being with her ‘nearest and dearest’ on her special day, including her ‘beloved husband Alan [Hamel], our three children, Leslie, Stephen, and Bruce, [his wife] Caroline, plus our six wonderful grandchildren.’
She added that all of Somers’s ‘immediate family’ were present for her last moments.
