In Memoriam: Suzanne Somers

Actress and fitness icon Suzanne Somers died on Sunday, October 15, 2023, following a long battle with breast cancer. She died just shy of her 77th birthday and was surrounded by family and friends, according to a statement from her publicist R. Couri Hay.

Somers perfected the bubbly, likeable funny girl as Chrissy Snow in the beloved 1970s sitcom Three’s Company. She returned to the character type in the ‘90s as Carol Foster Lambert, the matriarch of a blended family in Step by Step.

She was born Suzanne Mahoney on October 16, 1946, in San Bruno, California. After graduating high school, Somers escaped an abusive home, then had a few a troubled few years before becoming a prize model for The Anniversary Game. Her onscreen career began in ’68 with an uncredited role in Bullitt, then a few years later she starred in American Graffiti.

Following guest spots on shows like The Rockford Files, The Love Boat, and Starsky and Hutch, Somers landed the role of Chrissy Snow on Three’s Company. After starring in the first five seasons of the show, she posed for Playboy and became the spokeswoman for the Thighmaster.

Somers starred in the TV series She’s the Sheriff, then played herself in an episode of Full House and for a cameo in Serial Mom. Following Step by Step’s seven-season run, Somers went on to host and cohost talk shows and write several books on health and beauty and two autobiographies. She created the Suzanne Organics skin care and cosmetics line and appeared on Dancing with the Stars in 2015.