Hello i 2 and upset about the passing of John Ritter he was one of my favorite actors and always will be. but i was wondering how will they explain Johns charactor Death or Absense on the show 8 simple Rules. hope they say something respectfull. Like he just ran out on her and the kids for a las vegus showgirl or he left her to give with 2 girls in a apartment building. that be funny
Anyway im sadend to hear about John Ritters death, wish he hadnt gone

RIP

John Ritter.

No. If they're going to address it, They should have Paul die and have a memorial episode dedicated to John Ritter. Paul would never run out on his family.

I wonder if the show can really continue without him?

Originally posted by ClassicTVHits
I wonder if the show can really continue without him? I don't know if it can.

Originally posted by ClassicTVHits
I wonder if the show can really continue without him?


I think the show could possibly continue without him, but I honestly don't see how. :(

Originally posted by ClassicTVHits
I wonder if the show can really continue without him?


I think the show could possibly continue without him, but I honestly don't see how. :(

Originally posted by mr roper
No. If they're going to address it, They should have Paul die and have a memorial episode dedicated to John Ritter. Paul would never run out on his family.


Well said.

you think saying he ran out is respectful, no. i think they should do what mr roper said.

Originally posted by ClassicTVHits
I wonder if the show can really continue without him?

i dont think that it will be able too

As much as I absolutly love this show and don't want to see it go, I think they should just cancle it.. especially since the new season hasn't started yet. It wouldn't be the same without him, and I would hate to see someone replace him.

Since John's character is really the focal point of the "my" in the title, it would be kindof lame to see Katey's character become overprotective like John all of a sudden.

I mean it would make sense since her husband died, but it would change the entire feel of the show.

In fact, it won't be the same show.

They should end it.

Crimson and Clover


what did mr roper say?

Originally posted by sonyab
Crimson and Clover


what did mr roper say?

Originally posted by mr roper
No. If they're going to address it, They should have Paul die and have a memorial episode dedicated to John Ritter. Paul would never run out on his family.

I think they should air the new episodes and then somehow make a series finale where he dies and end it like that. Like someone said.. the title is 8 Simple Rules For Dating MY Teenage Daughter.

I think the appropriate thing to do is for ABC to run whatever shows were completed back to back in a 1-2 hour block, (kind of how they did this summer) then do a memorial episode, where the cast is on the set and talk about John Ritter, while showing some of his greatest moments on 8 Simple Rules.
That way the cast can say good-bye to us and to John respectfully.

I really like that idea spy.. that way the completed episodes won't go to waste, and it'll give the fans closer

Originally posted by tvspy
I think the appropriate thing to do is for ABC to run whatever shows were completed back to back in a 1-2 hour block, (kind of how they did this summer) then do a memorial episode, where the cast is on the set and talk about John Ritter, while showing some of his greatest moments on 8 Simple Rules.
That way the cast can say good-bye to us and to John respectfully.


That's a great idea and ABC should do it.

Originally posted by ClassicTVHits
I wonder if the show can really continue without him?

There's no way it continues. This show died with John Ritter. This was HIS show. They can't possibly continuie it. He was the primary reason this show was so funny and the reason it became a success.

I hope ABC does show whatever new episodes have already been completed. I have no idea how they should go about handling this issue. It certainly is a very tough one. This is pretty much unprecedented in sitcom history, isn't it? Actors have died during their sitcom runs before, but never one so central to the show.

Of course, this is all secondary right now, to the unfortunate tragedy of a 54 year-old man with 4 children passing away suddenly.

Originally posted by tvspy
I think the appropriate thing to do is for ABC to run whatever shows were completed back to back in a 1-2 hour block, (kind of how they did this summer) then do a memorial episode, where the cast is on the set and talk about John Ritter, while showing some of his greatest moments on 8 Simple Rules.
That way the cast can say good-bye to us and to John respectfully.

Yeah, I totally agree with that. I want them to air the episodes that are already filmed/in the can, but to try and do an episode without John Ritter to explain Paul's death? I don't think it would work. Besides, I highly doubt the cast would want to make a new episode without John, anyway.

I think your retrospective idea is great. Get the casts of 8 Simple Rules and Three's Company together, and celebrate the comedy/acting of John Ritter.

I think they should show all the new episodes and make a new one where Kate finds that he died in his sleep and they do a funeral for him and that ends the show. I love this show so much and I'd hate for them to just end it like this the show needs closure.

Originally posted by MandieR1980
I think they should show all the new episodes and make a new one where Kate finds that he died in his sleep and they do a funeral for him and that ends the show. I love this show so much and I'd hate for them to just end it like this the show needs closure.

I can definitely see it from your point of view, but I think the most classy thing to do would be an out-of-character retrospective on John Ritter. That would be a great way to end the series.

Either don't continue the show or Bring Richard Kline as his brother or something like that.

I don't think the show should continue.... the comedy between John Ritter and Kaley Cuoco/Amy Davidson was the main point of the show and what much of the laughs were derived from. It wouldn't work with another father or no father

Whether or not ABC airs the episodes he had completed filming, I'm sure they will surface - maybe in a DVD or something. I DO think ABC should have an out-of-character tribute to him to end the show.

Maybe they could tailor a new sitcom that may use any cast members interested to eventually take "8SR" time slot

However, if I was involved in the show that would be the LAST thing on my mind right now

Im not sure what will happen, but i really really wish for the show to continue.

Probably they can take a u-turn, and show America what it's like to lose a father? Idontknow...

John Ritter's Death really upset me i'm only 18 and i have been watching him in various shows and movies for a long time and i truly appreciate his talented sense of humor.

I love this show a lot and would hate to see it end butt i realize it's not a show without John Ritter. (not saying anything bad about the other actors and actresses) This is the best family sitcom i've seen since growing pains.

Here's what i would do if i was to have the show continue have them explain Pauls Death somehow and have a real at home type of actor like henry winkler who was a friend of ritters, play a relative of pauls who moves into the house the helps kate out with the kids and other things. Take it serious for a few episodes then slowly get into some comedy on the show. During this episode they should have the cast tell a john ritter story before a commercial break and extend the show to a speacil 1 hour tribute.
But they should air the epsodes the already filmed 1st.

and didn't the first season end with kate being pregnate?

GOD BLESS JOHN RITTER AND HIS FAMILY AND THANKS FOR MANY YEARS OF HILARIOUS ANTICS, GREAT SHOWS,AND MOVIES.

I think they should address the problem, by having the character die as well. Although this is a very sad theme, especially for a sitcom- it would show the world that life it's really perfect, and death does come about to the "perfect" family.

Crimson and Clover

ohhh I thought you ment that mr roper on three's company said something.. ok nevermind..

Originally posted by sonyab
Crimson and Clover

ohhh I thought you ment that mr roper on three's company said something.. ok nevermind..

oh LOL well that would be impossible seeing as he passed away in 1998

tvspy.

I think that's a great idea, they can throw in some bloopers too.

I believe they should cancel production, air all the episodes they have done for season 2, and then rerun the series on ABC Family.

Crimson and Clover

haha no no I thought you ment he said something along time ago on three's company.. :)

does anybody notice that John ritter's son jason looks just like john when john was younger? he acts a little like his father and talks a little like him.. very freaky.. :) he is going to remind me of his father..

i dont think they should continue the show. it was my favorite show and i couldnt wait for the new season to start but the show is called 8 Simple Rules For Dating My Teenage Daughter, you cant have the show without a father. and i have watched shows when one season they have one guy playing a character and the next season it is a new guy, it ruins the show. it confuses people and no two actors act the same.

RIP john ritter. . . :crying:

If they decide to continue this show and replace John, I am never, ever, ever watching it again. How can you replace John? He's the reason so many people started watching this show in the first place. I don't know what they should do, but they should definitely not replace John...

Originally posted by Shane West's Angel
If they decide to continue this show and replace John, I am never, ever, ever watching it again. How can you replace John? He's the reason so many people started watching this show in the first place. I don't know what they should do, but they should definitely not replace John...
i would watch the show if it continued
i wouldnt watch the show if he got replaced

I might Watch the show if it continued but if they just replaced John's character with another actor, then I deffinately would not watch.

I think that they should end the show but not until they tape a final episode w/o John Ritter. In that episode they tie up all loose ends that the show has with the characters...
I think it could be a 1 hour special episode with the 1st half being the show, where the show deals with the death of Paul (John Ritter) and then to end the episode and series you could do like Roseanne did in a sort of way, you could have Katey Sagals character talking about how things turn out for each person, like one gets married, one is a professional artist, who and when the kids get married how many grandkids she has you know highlights etc... I dont think it should be like roseanne where it was all a dream but where the events are summed up and the story is told. You could have Katery Sagal sitting in her living room after Pauls funeral or telling Paul how great the kids turned out, or about the marriage or birth of a grandkid (you would have her set in time in the future) talking to everyone, then for the last 1/2 hour you could have the whole cast + crew and even 3's Company cast and crew step on stage and talk about John Ritter in a memorial.....

JUST AN IDEA

Originally posted by tvspy
I think the appropriate thing to do is for ABC to run whatever shows were completed back to back in a 1-2 hour block, (kind of how they did this summer) then do a memorial episode, where the cast is on the set and talk about John Ritter, while showing some of his greatest moments on 8 Simple Rules.
That way the cast can say good-bye to us and to John respectfully.

:thumbsup: I like that idea. Great idea. :)

There is no 8SR without John, he was the star, the show centered mostly around his character, the promos featured John more than the other actors, this was John's show, he cannot be replaced, like Henry Winkler said "He's irreplaceable".

One the show, they could just have him have had a car accident or something, or just leave the show where it's at, just air the completed episodes, and then just cancel it. I can't imagine the cast going on without him.

I think for a last episode they should have a 1 hour show dedicated to him and show clips from the show and have people talk about him on it or soemthing, sorta like the did for that guy from All In The Family (Ithink) when they had a episode showing clips from the show and the castmates talking about him.

All of this discussion of the future of this show has got me thinking. I'm not a great fan of the show by any means (to me the humour was too set-up and a tad predictable in a typical sitcom way) so whether it stays or goes is of no great consequence to me (my fave John Ritter show was Three's Company). But I want to point out that some shows have continued on in the past without their main stars, no matter how vital they were to the cast:

Valerie/Valerie's Family/The Hogan Family when Valerie Harper was fired, the show killed off her character, the mother of the house, Valerie Hogan, and she was as much a focal point of the show as any of the kids. Surprisingly, it survived. Granted, the actress didn't die in real life, but the point I'm making is that it survived inspite of this major re-do.

NewsRadio When Phil Hartman was murdered, the show went ahead and killed off his character Bill. It was definitely an ultra serious episode, but it allowed the viewers to grieve along with the cast, albeit in character form. The show continued for another 2 seasons I believe.

There are a couple of others that come to mind, like Archie Bunker's Place where Archie lost his beloved Edith. Sure, she didn't pass away in real life, but if you were a fan of All in the Family you wept like a dog. And the prospect of Edith dying was something that would have been unthinkable early on in the show.

Some of you are suggesting they cancel 8 Rules..., and I can understand why, since continuiing on without him might seem a bit disrespectful. But it's clear that John loved the show and were it up to him, he'd want it to continue (if possible). If the show can conceive a way to survive without him and have a long run, that might be the best way to pay tribute to the great actor. I'm sure he'd want that.

In the meantime, I'd just like to publicly thank John Ritter for the many hours of hilarity that he gave me. My life was enrichened by his humour, especially in the guise of Jack Tripper, and he will live on in the hearts of those of us who appreciated him.

Enjoy heaven John. Hope you're having fun with Audra and Norman...


Respectfully,

Ed

i understand where you are coming from but the show was about him and his "struggles" with his daughters. and the show could continue without him if maybe the wife was just like him but she is more laid back in the show and was the complete opposite of him so if th show went on without him it wouldnt be 8 Simple Rules anymore

ABC should air the unaired episodes in a two hour tribute to John that will include remembrances from other cast members, and that should be the last episode. Period.

There should not be an episode where Paul dies, it would be too sad and not compatible with the light hearted humor of the show. Also it would not be necessary to have Paul die since the show should not go on anyway.

It is true that Edith Bunker died and Col. Blake died (on MASH) and those shows went on. But these shows, although sitcoms, were the groundbreaking series that also dealt with serious issues. It would be too serious for a show like 8SR.

i totally agree

Originally posted by southerngal
i understand where you are coming from but the show was about him and his "struggles" with his daughters. and the show could continue without him if maybe the wife was just like him but she is more laid back in the show and was the complete opposite of him so if th show went on without him it wouldnt be 8 Simple Rules anymore

The show Valerie later Valerie's Family and then The Hogan Family had the same setup. Valerie's focus was about the ups and downs of a mother raising 3 kids with an absentee airline father, and yet she was killed off and Sandy was brought in and the show still made it. I myself preferred it with Valerie Harper (I thought the show got sillier instead of funnier with the switchover) but my opinion aside, like it or not, the show persevered.

I'm not saying that they shouldn't cancel the show. I have no opinion either way, since I wasn't a gung-ho fan of the show (though I do love John Ritter & Katey Segal). It's up to them to decide if the show could work. They have to consider also whether John would've wanted it to continue.

The point I'm saying is that it *could* possibly work without John, even though that thought is totally undesirable, given the circumstances. And it wouldn't be seen as an improvement either. But I don't think John would want to have people prove their loyalty to him by turning on the show should it try to continue without him. He'd want it to continue, as raw as that may seem at the present moment.

I too hope that ABC does that special tribute that everyone is speaking about. He deserves it as do us John Ritter fans. He was something special and deserves to have a decent sendoff.

Ed