After four seasons on ABC’s Emmy-winning comedy series, the actress — whodied Sundayat age 76 — had become the show’s “breakout star,” friendSue Camerontells PEOPLE.
“She didAmerican Graffitiand the picture of her in that car inAmerican Graffitigot her everything,” said Cameron, a former director of daytime television for ABC. “When she gotThree’s Company, she exploded as a star, and she really was the one.”
‘Three’s Company’ stars Joyce DeWitt, John Ritter and Suzanne Somers.ABC Photo Archives/Disney/Getty
ABC Photo Archives/Disney/Getty
In light of her success,Somers believed she should receive a significant pay hike from $30,000 an episode to $150,000 an episode, which would put her at equal standing with her male costarJohn Ritter.
The year was 1981, and Somers' request was not well-received.
“A man I didn’t know introduced himself,” recalls Hamel, “and he said, ‘I’m a very good friend of your very good friend. I came out of a meeting today, and they have decided to hang a nun in the marketplace, and Suzanne Somers is going to be it.”
When Hamel, 87, demanded an explanation, the tipster explained executives wanted “to stop women from demanding to be paid what men are making.”
Somers was fired the morning after, according to Hamel. His first thought was: “You just destroyed some of the greatest chemistry on television.”
Somers was distraught over the decision at the time, later tellingEntrepreneurin 2020: “I didn’t plan to be the unofficial first feminist when I demanded equal pay.”
After she was fired, Somers became unmoored. “I probably would have never left network series,” shetold PEOPLEin 2020. “I would have kept on going and probably been in every sitcom after that were it not to end the way it ended. But I was ostracized. So I went away.”
With Hamel’s help, however, Somers reinvented herself. “I’d love to have a show in Las Vegas,” she confessed to her husband.
Steve Granitz/WireImage
Hamel became Somers’ manager in the early 1980s to help her land more career-oriented, long-term deals. The two struck gold when they bought the rights for theThighMaster, which became a national sensation and elevated Somers to fitness icon status on par withJane Fonda.
“We realized every woman alive at some point would love a ThighMaster,” Hamel tells PEOPLE. “We went back to the group that owned the rights, we made the deal, changed the color combination, called it a ThighMaster, produced the commercial, and we were off and running. And the very first day it became a huge success.”
Somers also prudently expanded her business in the years that followed to include dozens of products, including essential oils and air purifiers, although her work took a backseat once thebreast cancerthat she had first been diagnosed with in 2000 returned in 2023.
Ilya S. Savenok/Getty
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More than four decades after her run onThree’s Companywas unceremoniously cut short, Hamel tells PEOPLE his wife would want to be remembered for her work as the “delicious character” of Chrissy.
“She brought joy into everybody’s heart with that character. It was lovable and beautiful, and it was exactly what she wanted,” he says, comparing the show to classic sitcoms includingI Love Lucy. “It’ll play forever.”
source: people.com
