The physical comedy (which in itself was greater emphasized over the rather tired sex jokes) arguably got better when they added Priscilla Barnes and got rid of the tired dumb blonde role.

I agree, but I think that's more because Joyce learned to hold her own with John. Probably the most memorable was when Terri thought she was getting a promotion and Janet ended up posing as Larry's wife. Priscilla was the perfect straight person in that episode, and it was a nonstop riot. Too bad they never went back to that. Suzanne learned a lot on the show, but I don't think she really had physical comedy yet, though she was outstanding when Chrissy and Jack made their bet.

Exactly, because the "Terri" character help made the show very interesting

The physical comedy (which in itself was greater emphasized over the rather tired sex jokes) arguably got better when they added Priscilla Barnes and got rid of the tired dumb blonde role.
Well the show had to evolve, but no, I don't think it was ever as good again as it was during the first two seasons. The sex humor is what put the show on the map and what people still remember these days. No one makes a big deal about Jack's Bistro. I didn't care for the Terri character.

I actually like the Terri episodes the best. She was my favorite of the three blondes.

I actually like the Terri episodes the best. She was my favorite of the three blondes.

I've read elsewhere, an alternate opinion that Terri's character was fine in her first season because she was the outsider trying to fit in and those misunderstanding plots the show loved to do were more plausible with someone new in the apartment who didn't know the others. But for the last two years, Terri alternated between being a blonde Janet with moments of ditsiness that just didn't work. Terri was already established in her first year as being competent at her work and generally pretty sensible.

I've read elsewhere, an alternate opinion that Terri's character was fine in her first season because she was the outsider trying to fit in and those misunderstanding plots the show loved to do were more plausible with someone new in the apartment who didn't know the others. But for the last two years, Terri alternated between being a blonde Janet with moments of ditsiness that just didn't work. Terri was already established in her first year as being competent at her work and generally pretty sensible.
A "sensible" character in a sitcom is a boring one. That's why I'd even take Cindy over Terri. Terri is a boring character.

It is a shame that they did not use Priscilla Barnes better. When she was given a chance to shine she really made it work, but in a lot of episodes she was written as an after-thought.

A good example is "Two Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest." That episode belongs to Jack and Janet (and guest star Jeffery Tambor). Terri is the character that sets the plot in motion, but she doesn't really matter. She could've been anyone. Excellent episode, but bad for Terri.

It is a shame that they did not use Priscilla Barnes better. When she was given a chance to shine she really made it work, but in a lot of episodes she was written as an after-thought.

A good example is "Two Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest." That episode belongs to Jack and Janet (and guest star Jeffery Tambor). Terri is the character that sets the plot in motion, but she doesn't really matter. She could've been anyone. Excellent episode, but bad for Terri.
I love this episode! I prefer Chrissy eps. I liked the Terry eps that did not involve Jack's Bistro. Pretty much any episode featuring Jack's Bistro was horrible.

A "sensible" character in a sitcom is a boring one. That's why I'd even take Cindy over Terri. Terri is a boring character.

I disagree. I actually prefer sensible characters because I feel that dumber ones tend to grow stale and wear on me.

I do wonder how Three's Company in general holds up in front of a modern audience? I would imagine in our more PC world, the premise of it being scandalous to have two girls and a guy living together with one of them pretending to be gay would be attacked endlessly by the social justice warriors.

I do wonder how Three's Company in general holds up in front of a modern audience? I would imagine in our more PC world, the premise of it being scandalous to have two girls and a guy living together with one of them pretending to be gay would be attacked endlessly by the social justice warriors.

:lol: I think I might qualify as an SJW and Three's Company is my absolute favorite show ever. You might be surprised! I have found that TC transcends all our lowly human designations. People like what they like.

Not on topic, but I don't want to start a new thread.

Last night I saw both Priscilla Barnes and Norman Fell on the same Murder She Wrote episode. Of course, they didn't work together on TC.

Not on topic, but I don't want to start a new thread.

Last night I saw both Priscilla Barnes and Norman Fell on the same Murder She Wrote episode. Of course, they didn't work together on TC.

Yes! I think it's a horse-racing episode. Fun to see them together.

In another MSW episode I think Richard Kline plays a sleazy CEO who either gets murdered or is the murderer. His character is basically Larry with a lot of money. :lol:

I think what makes the later seasons great was that the writers were able to go out and create stories of their own and things got wild. In the earlier seasons, it was almost a scene for scene rip-off of Man About the House.

If they aged better it's because the Terri episodes were just better than the Chrissy episodes and there's NO doubt about it!

There are a few exceptions but Chrissy's dumb blonde act was getting REALLY stale and Suzanne admitted that herself!

I actually like the Terri episodes the best. She was my favorite of the three blondes.

Me too although Jenilee had the best body of the 3 blondes and even if you include Janet! :)

I disagree. I actually prefer sensible characters because I feel that dumber ones tend to grow stale and wear on me.

They don’t necessarily have to be dumb to be funny or wacky. It was just lazy writing to say “Since Chrissy was dumb, Terri’s going to be smart and sensible.” Bad as Janet already had the sensible role lined up. Cindy wasn’t really dumb; her main quirk was her clumsiness. They needed to find a hilarious quirk for Terri. She didn’t have to be dumb, but she needed to have a fault which they could exploit for laughs, which they never did develop for her.

If all else failed they could have done to Terri like the Penny character on TBBT: make her a drunk and promiscuous. But of course this was the Reagan 80’s. They wanted to maintain a “wholesome” image of the trio. Boring!

If all else failed they could have done to Terri like the Penny character on TBBT: make her a drunk and promiscuous.


:eek: I never thought of that possible character development but it would have been an interesting choice, that's for sure. Now I'm kinda wishing we'd have seen that.

Your comment got me thinking...do you think they never fully defined Terri's role because they didn't want another Suzanne situation? Like they didn't want Terri to be another breakout character like Chrissy ended up being? That may have led to Priscilla Barnes having too much power on set. The producers knew from her first month there that she was already unhappy about being on the show.

:eek: I never thought of that possible character development but it would have been an interesting choice, that's for sure. Now I'm kinda wishing we'd have seen that.

Your comment got me thinking...do you think they never fully defined Terri's role because they didn't want another Suzanne situation? Like they didn't want Terri to be another breakout character like Chrissy ended up being? That may have led to Priscilla Barnes having too much power on set. The producers knew from her first month there that she was already unhappy about being on the show.
I can see why Priscilla would have been unhappy on Three's as Terri was dull and couldn't have been much fun to play, as actors tend to prefer a character with a lot of quirks. More challenging that way.

:eek: I never thought of that possible character development but it would have been an interesting choice, that's for sure. Now I'm kinda wishing we'd have seen that.

Your comment got me thinking...do you think they never fully defined Terri's role because they didn't want another Suzanne situation? Like they didn't want Terri to be another breakout character like Chrissy ended up being? That may have led to Priscilla Barnes having too much power on set. The producers knew from her first month there that she was already unhappy about being on the show.

To answer your question, I'm sure they held back the Terri character to deliberately avoid another breakout character like Chrissy. It would definitely not be out of character for the Three's Company producers to do something like that.

so, Priscilla was unhappy with her part on "Three's Company" because of the way her character was written? I didn't know that. Always been curious about that.

I find that I do prefer the Terri episodes lately.

so, Priscilla was unhappy with her part on "Three's Company" because of the way her character was written? I didn't know that. Always been curious about that.

I find that I do prefer the Terri episodes lately.

I don't know about that. I'm just offering my two cents on the subject. I could understand why Priscilla would not like playing Terri because I find Terri dull. But to reiterate, that's just my opinion.

Thank you !

so, Priscilla was unhappy with her part on "Three's Company" because of the way her character was written? I didn't know that. Always been curious about that.

I find that I do prefer the Terri episodes lately.

No, it wasn't her role that bothered her, at least not at first. She was initially unhappy about the way she was treated by the producers. They basically policed everything she did down to how blonde her hair was. By her third episode she went to the head of the network and tried to quit, but they wouldn't let her.

Later on they gave her trouble about her contract. She wanted a 3-year contract and they wanted her to do a 5-year contract. She got her 3-years but they paid her less money as a penalty. She was uncomfortable with the instant fame and on top of all that at least one of the producers sexually harassed her. So yeah. She was not a happy camper.

Thank you for the explanation, JackJanetChrissy. Wow, that is really terrible. She did a good job despite all the turmoil.

No, it wasn't her role that bothered her, at least not at first. She was initially unhappy about the way she was treated by the producers. They basically policed everything she did down to how blonde her hair was. By her third episode she went to the head of the network and tried to quit, but they wouldn't let her.

Later on they gave her trouble about her contract. She wanted a 3-year contract and they wanted her to do a 5-year contract. She got her 3-years but they paid her less money as a penalty. She was uncomfortable with the instant fame and on top of all that at least one of the producers sexually harassed her. So yeah. She was not a happy camper.

I was aware of most of what you said, but I had never heard anything about the harassment. I was trying to find out more about this, but I could not find anything online about this? It would be interesting to read, if you know where I can find it. Thanks!

I was aware of most of what you said, but I had never heard anything about the harassment. I was trying to find out more about this, but I could not find anything online about this? It would be interesting to read, if you know where I can find it. Thanks!

I heard it on her TC reunion special on her podcast last year called Barnestorming. She talks about a party where one of the producers basically told her that he'd like to eff her but he doesn't "***** where he eats". Oh yeah and his wife was sitting across the room. Charming! Here's the link: https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/barnestorming/threes-company-40th-e581UfSFsEH/

I heard it on her TC reunion special on her podcast last year called Barnestorming. She talks about a party where one of the producers basically told her that he'd like to eff her but he doesn't "***** where he eats". Oh yeah and his wife was sitting across the room. Charming! Here's the link: https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/barnestorming/threes-company-40th-e581UfSFsEH/

Thanks for the link! I will listen to this when I get a chance. :)

The episodes with Terri were more fun to watch versus the Chrissy episodes. Seasons 7 and 8 was a lot better than 2 and 3. The seasons of Terri and Chrissy that were equally entertaining were seasons 4 and 7.

No, it wasn't her role that bothered her, at least not at first. She was initially unhappy about the way she was treated by the producers. They basically policed everything she did down to how blonde her hair was. By her third episode she went to the head of the network and tried to quit, but they wouldn't let her.

Later on they gave her trouble about her contract. She wanted a 3-year contract and they wanted her to do a 5-year contract. She got her 3-years but they paid her less money as a penalty. She was uncomfortable with the instant fame and on top of all that at least one of the producers sexually harassed her. So yeah. She was not a happy camper.

5 year contract?? But the show only lasted 8 seasons and she started in season 6! Were they planning on having 10 seasons of TC if she signed the 5 year deal?

5 year contract?? But the show only lasted 8 seasons and she started in season 6! Were they planning on having 10 seasons of TC if she signed the 5 year deal?

Yeah, that was the idea—in case the series went on for another five years. I'm sure there was a clause in there that provided for series cancellation. Series never know when they will be canceled so they want to lock in their stars for as long as possible. And every time a contract is renewed the actor can negotiate for a raise. The longer producers can delay a contract renewal the less money they have to pay and there's less risk of drama.

5 year contract?? But the show only lasted 8 seasons and she started in season 6! Were they planning on having 10 seasons of TC if she signed the 5 year deal?
TC was still a top 10 show when Priscilla signed up. Ratings increased quite a bit that year. Ratings also dropped big time after season 7.

TC was still a top 10 show when Priscilla signed up. Ratings increased quite a bit that year. Ratings also dropped big time after season 7.

I don't know why because Season 8 had some of the BEST episodes like I just saw yesterday on LOGO from my DVR. The Mondo Moose episode from Jack's high school years! :lol:

Yeah, that was the idea—in case the series went on for another five years. I'm sure there was a clause in there that provided for series cancellation. Series never know when they will be canceled so they want to lock in their stars for as long as possible. And every time a contract is renewed the actor can negotiate for a raise. The longer producers can delay a contract renewal the less money they have to pay and there's less risk of drama.

I wish it did not only because Season 8 was still FANTASTIC but John Ritter never had a hit nearly this big again in his career. 8 Simple Rules was the closest but it really wasn't THAT funny and nowhere NEAR the hit TC was.

I remember seeing John in an interview after TC ended and he said they were finding it harder and harder to find good scripts. He gave the example of the hiding the dogs episode from the Ropers which they rehashed into hiding the cats from Furley because they were desperate for storylines.

The strange thing is I'm sure Ritter and the producers knew that ideas were running out when they signed Priscilla in season 6 yet they thought they had 5 more years in them??

I wish Priscilla did it because she had won the equivalent of an actor's LOTTERY! If she didn't like the fame she never should've auditioned for a hit show!

I don't know why because Season 8 had some of the BEST episodes like I just saw yesterday on LOGO from my DVR. The Mondo Moose episode from Jack's high school years! :lol:
They had some good episodes that year. I think what happened was the whole ABC Tuesday lineup was collapsing because of the A-Team and NBC's Tuesday lineup. And they were starting to repeat some things. Still enjoyed the episodes though.

They had some good episodes that year. I think what happened was the whole ABC Tuesday lineup was collapsing because of the A-Team and NBC's Tuesday lineup. And they were starting to repeat some things. Still enjoyed the episodes though.

I don't think there was EVER a bad TC episode. There are 2 or 3 I don't particularly care for when Chrissy's dumb blonde act went TOO far and it just became STUPID!

That's why the show was rejuvenated with Cindy and then even more when Terri came.

I wonder if sometimes, Priscilla Barnes doesn't get enough credit for at the very least, keeping Three's Company afloat during the difficult transition away from the Chrissy/Suzanne Somers era. Even towards the end of the Chrissy era, the character was getting ridiculously "Flanderized" (https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Flanderization). In the first two seasons, Chrissy was merely ditsy in a laid back California beach bimbo type of way. But later on, Chrissy became a complete moron with the pigtails and the over the top mugging for the camera. By her last season, it's safe to suggest that Suzanne Somers' acting got one-note and obnoxious. When Terri came along it was probably at that point, more believable that she and Janet would be friends than seeing Janet be friends with Chrissy.