Actress Suzanne Somers Is Dead

Somers died from breast cancer on October 15th, 2023. Born October 16th, 1946, Somers died one day shy of her 77th birthday. According to her publicist, she died peacefully at home with her husband and son by her side. Somers had breast cancer for over 23 years, She was first diagnosed in 2000.  

She began acting in the late 1960s, earning her first credit in the Steve McQueen film “Bullitt.” But the spotlight really hit when she was cast as the blonde driving the white Thunderbird in George Lucas’s 1973 film “American Graffiti.” Her only line was mouthing the words “I love you” to Richard Dreyfuss’s character.

At her audition, Lucas just asked her if she could drive. She later said that moment “changed her life forever.”

Somers would later stage a one-woman Broadway show entitled “The Blonde in the Thunderbird,” about her life, which drew largely scathing reviews.

She appeared in many television shows in the 1970s, including “The Rockford Files,” “Magnum Force” and “The Six Million Dollar Man,” but her most famous part came with “Three’s Company,” which aired on ABC from 1977 to 1984 — though her participation ended in 1981.

On “Three’s Company,” she was the ditzy blonde opposite John Ritter and Joyce DeWitt in the roommate comedy.