Unreleased Footage Reveals Version of ‘Three’s Company’ That Never Aired

There’s a universe in which ‘70s sitcom Three’s Company didn’t invite horny viewers to “come and knock on our door.” And even if they did, they probably wouldn’t have recognized John Ritter’s roommates if either of them answered. 

Entertainment publicist Danny Deraney recently shared the opening credits from the original pilot of Three’s Company, and it’s like a bizarro-world version of the popular sitcom. Only a few elements remain the same — mainly Norman Fell and Audra Lindley as the Ropers, the meddlesome and undersexed landlords, respectively.

The rest looks familiar yet strange. The theme song has the same bouncy melody, but a cheerful “doo-doo-doo-doo-doo” replaces lyrics that promised “where the kisses are hers and hers and his, three's company too.” 

There’s breakout star John Ritter, but he’s “David” instead of the familiar Jack Tripper. As for Chrissy and Janet? Both the characters and actresses have been replaced with comedy doppelgangers. Instead of Joyce DeWitt, there’s Valerie Curtin (cousin of SNL’s Jane) as Jenny. Replacing Suzanne Somers is the similarly named Suzanne Zenor as Samantha. And the producers completely cheaped out on the credits, superimposing actors’ faces over a static image of a Southern California apartment complex.

A surprising name was behind this original pilot — Larry Gelbart, hot off the award-winning M*A*S*H. Gelbart’s Emmy-winning serio-sitcom about the Korean War was in another universe of sophistication from the jiggle comedy of Three’s Company, which is why he wanted nothing to do with the lowbrow concept. 

But ABC head honcho Fred Silverman called in a favor and Gelbart penned a script in with Jack, er, David as a filmmaker, Jenny a DMV employee and Samantha an aspiring actress. The pilot associated with this opening credit sequence nearly made it onto ABC’s schedule but was passed over for another show at the last minute. CBS swooped in with a cry of, “We’ll take it!” A nervous ABC agreed to add Three’s Company to their mid-season schedule, but only with a mostly new cast. 

The new pilot marked a tonal shift to an all-out sex farce, full of tight T-shirts, innuendo and bawdy misunderstandings. DeWitt was in, but the part of Chrissy went to an actress named Susan (that name again!) Lanier. ABC liked this pilot better, with the exception of Lanier. Based on her recent appearance on The Tonight Show, Somers was brought in for a third pilot — the one that finally landed a Tuesday night timeslot.  

The result? The highest-rated midseason show in history, at least to that point. Sometimes, the third time’s the charm. The tight T-shirts didn’t hurt either.