Imagine a world where “Three’s Company” didn’t feature Suzanne Somers bouncing around Apartment 201 — well, if auditions had turned out differently, that might have been the case. The classic ABC sitcom — which followed the hilarious misadventures of roommates Jack Tripper (John Ritter), Janet Wood (Joyce DeWitt), and Chrissy Snow (Somers) — originally looked to a very different star to play its resident “dumb blonde” typist.
Late “WKRP in Cincinnati” alum Loni Anderson auditioned and screen tested for the breakout role of Chrissy Snow. While she delivered an impressive audition, Ritter spotted what he felt would be a major flaw with casting her: she was just too stunning to make the show’s premise believable.
The central conflict of “Three’s Company” relied on the trio being everyday people struggling to make ends meet under the watchful eye of their nosy landlords, Stanley and Helen Roper (Norman Fell and Audra Lindley). In Chris Mann’s 1998 behind-the-scenes book “Come and Knock on Our Door: A Hers and Hers and His Guide to ‘Three’s Company,'” Ritter recalled his immediate reaction to Anderson’s audition. “She was too beautiful, too savvy,” Ritter explained. “No one would believe she couldn’t live in her own apartment, that she would have to struggle to get the rent paid. But I don’t know why she didn’t get it. She did a great audition.”
Loni Anderson landed a guest-star role in the Season 2 finale of Three’s Company
Ultimately, the role of Chrissy went to Suzanne Somers, who played the part for five seasons. But it seems Loni Anderson’s tape left an impression, as producers eventually found a place for her on the show.
Anderson popped up in the Season 2 finale, “Coffee, Tea, or Jack,” which first aired in May 1978. She played Susan Walters, a flight attendant and former love interest of Jack’s who once broke his heart. Susan sashays back into Jack’s life right as Janet and Chrissy are planning a surprise birthday party for him; fearing Jack and Susan’s rekindled flame will end in heartbreak all over again, the concerned roommates do everything they can to pry Jack away from his dazzling ex.
Missing out on a full-time stint on “Three’s Company” didn’t slow Anderson down, though. Just months after her guest spot on the beloved ’80s sitcom, the TV legend landed her career-defining role as Jennifer Marlowe on “WKRP in Cincinnati,” earning multiple Emmy and Golden Globe nominations. In 1980, she also starred alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger in the made-for-TV biopic “The Jayne Mansfield Story,” in which she portrayed the titular ’50s-era actress.