Laughter is calling for you!
On TikTok on Sept. 28, 2024, Jason Ritter did his best impression of his late dad John Ritter after a commenter asked him to try.
“Can you do the creep face your dad used to do chasing the girls around the apartment on 3’s company…. That was always my favorite thing,” Bjorn and Merina wrote to Jason, 44, an actor himself.
“Um, is it this one, the one that’s like …” Jason asks in the clip before nailing the face. “Is it that weird one?”
It definitely was: among the nearly 20,000 comments are notes from people like, “Core memory unlocked,” and, “The way I watched this thinking this guy look just like John Ritter before I realized it was his son.”
@jasonritter1980 They can put clips in my hair, but they can never stop me from messing it all up with a silly dance! (Sorry Rheanne) What did you all think of Matlock last night?? Did you watch? You did!? Thank you!! You didn’t? That’s ok!! There’s a twist so if you’re interested, try to see it before Geoff spoils it for you!! Or you know, whatever your version of Geoff is in your life! (If you don’t have a Geoff, you’re probably the Geoff) (I’m for sure the Geoff in my life) (I like talking about shows and their secrets!! And I’m a prompt watcher of shows!!) (isn’t that part of the fun of weekly television?? That the next day you get to discuss and theorize!!) (sue me for being excited about a mystery!!) (geoffs of the world, unite! Mainly so we can talk without spoiling things for people) Unrelated, do you think parentheses can be overused??? Or punctuation???!? I just heard Matlock is 100% on Rotten Tomatoes! I have no idea if that’s true but I’m scared to exit Tiktok and have all of this erased. So I’m sorry if that’s misinformation!! I will check and do an applogy video if I’m wrong. Maybe I shouldn’t have said it. But exciting if true!! Anyway, if you’re looking for a new show, try our show! Matlock! Like the theme song! I’m just sharing my things, guys! And also I wanted to say thank you from the bottom of my heart for all the kindnesses you’ve provided me… the internet is a wild place and I feel so lucky to have such nice and lovely people in my orbit… thank you for making the world a better place with your decency and kindness!! Mama tot would be proud ❤️
♬ Matlock – Theme from the Television Series – Dominik Hauser
Other comments were particularly moving, including one that elicited a thankful reply from Jason.
“I was born and raised in LA, a daughter of Mexican immigrants. We only spoke Spanish at home. But I watched 3s Co. bc John Ritter transcended language. He brought joy to us as a family, even though we didn’t fully understand the language,” the commenter wrote. “To this day, he’s the only celeb I’ve cried for at their death. He keeps me laughing on Pluto TV. May he be resting in paradise.”
Prior to his sudden death in 2003 at the age of 54, John had a lengthy television résumé that included his beloved role as Jack Tripper on Three’s Company from 1976 to 1984, plus Hooperman, Hearts Afire, 8 Simple Rules and a slew of films, as well.
Of Three’s Company, in which he played a beleaguered roommate to Janet Wood (Joyce DeWitt) and Chrissy Snow (the late Suzanne Sommers), John said on an episode of Late Night with Conan O’Brien in 1997, “It’s like Chinese food, you watch it and a half an hour later you’re ready for more comedy. People still seem to like it.”
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He remembered how every so often, “people would put the show down and say it’s not as good as Taxi,” another hit series of the time. But once Lucille Ball defended the show in a retrospective she hosted, he said, it helped the series’ reputation and bonded the two stars.
On Sept. 11, 2003, John collapsed on the set of 8 Simple Rules and died from a “dissection of the aorta,” a previously undetected flaw in the main artery from the heart, according to his publicists. In the nearly two decades since, his widow, actress Amy Yasbeck, has dedicated her time to creating the John Ritter Foundation for Aortic Health, which brings awareness to the issue.
Jason — one of John’s four children from his two marriages — has often spoken of his father’s legacy, too.
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“The certain drive that people like my dad have to make people laugh, it infiltrates every aspect of his life. He loved making friends laugh, he made jokes throughout every dinner and very hangout time afterwards,” Jason shared in a 2018 interview with Larry King. “I think he put horrible things in his teeth at every single meal and said, ‘Do you think I need to see a dentist?’ “
Jason — who is married to Yellowjackets star Melanie Lynskey, with whom he has one child — can next be seen in the new Matlock reboot.
