There’s a universe where the ’70s sitcom Three’s Company doesn’t invite lecherous viewers to “come knocking on our door.” And even if they did, they probably wouldn’t recognize John Ritter’s roommates if either of them answered.
Entertainment publicist Danny Deraney recently shared the opening credits from the first episode of Three’s Company, and it’s like a weirdo version of the iconic sitcom. Only a few elements remain the same—primarily Norman Fell and Audra Lindley as the Ropers, the meddling, unappealing landlords.
The rest looks familiar but strangely alien. The theme song has the same upbeat tune, but a cheerful “doo-doo-doo-doo-doo” replaces the lyrics, promising “where the kisses are hers and hers and his, three’s company too.”
Breakout star John Ritter is there, but he’s “David” instead of the familiar Jack Tripper. And what about Chrissy and Janet? Both characters and actors are replaced with identical comedians. Instead of Joyce DeWitt, there’s Valerie Curtin (cousin of SNL’s Jane) as Jenny. In place of Suzanne Somers is the similarly named Suzanne Zenor as Samantha. And the producers completely skimped on the credits, superimposing the actors’ faces onto a still image of a Southern California apartment complex.
A surprising name is behind this first episode—Larry Gelbart, fresh off his M*A*S*H award win. Gelbart’s Emmy-winning, serious Korean War sitcom was in a different, more sophisticated universe than the jiggle comedy of Three’s Company, which is why he wanted nothing to do with the banal concept.
But ABC boss Fred Silverman asked Gelbart to write a script with Jack, er, David as a filmmaker, Jenny as a DMV worker, and Samantha as an aspiring actress. The first episode, which featured this opening intro, almost made it onto ABC’s schedule but was passed over for another show at the last minute. CBS swooped in with a cry of “We’ll take it!” A nervous ABC agreed to add Three’s Company to its midseason schedule, but only with a mostly new cast.
The new first episode marked a tonal shift into a full-on sex farce, full of tight T-shirts, innuendo, and smutty misunderstandings. DeWitt was cast, but the role of Chrissy went to an actress named Susan (there’s that name again!) Lanier. ABC liked the first episode better, except for Lanier. Based on her recent appearance on The Tonight Show, Somers was brought in for the third episode—which eventually aired in its Tuesday night timeslot.
The result? The highest-rated midseason show in history, at least up until that point. Sometimes, the third time’s lucky. The tight T-shirts didn’t hurt, either.
Mel Brooks Didn’t Want ‘Young Frankenstein’s Most Memorable Scene’
Gene Wilder and Mel Brooks “got along” when they made Young Frankenstein, Brooks wrote in his memoir All About Me: My Remarkable Life in Show Business. But their disagreement over a key scene was so intense that the two friends nearly came to blows.
What scene was that? Wilder had the bright idea that Dr. Frankenstein and his newly created Monster, played by Peter Boyle, would join in on the musical number “Puttin’ on the Ritz.” Brooks agreed that it was a very funny idea, but he had good reasons for not wanting to shoot the scene. “I said, ‘No, no, no, we can’t do that,’” Brooks told the Los Angeles Times, as reported by Far Out. “It would make the scene silly.”
On the surface, Brooks’ reasoning made no sense. Wasn’t “silly” the goal? Of course, but only within the context of the comedy’s reality. “It was too far-fetched. I was afraid it would make the script unbelievable,” he said in his memoir, arguing that the musical number “would tear apart the continuity of the movie.”
Wilder countered—the scene made perfect sense: “It demonstrates how incredible Frankenstein was to create.”
But was it simply a joke? “My movies aren’t about jokes,” Brooks told the Los Angeles Times. “They’re about behavior, and behavior can be funny.”
The creative clash became so heated that it nearly degenerated into a fistfight. After the two men calmed down, Wilder offered a compromise: “Do me a favor. Reshoot the film, and we’ll see. If it doesn’t work, I promise we’ll take it out.”
