Patrick Duffy Mourns His Step By Step Wife Suzanne Somers: 'You Made Quite A Ripple, My Friend'
Patrick Duffy is paying tribute to his former Step By Step costar Suzanne Somers following the news of her death on Sunday.
"As with everyone who knew her, I was stunned yesterday by the news that my dear and deep friend Suzanne had passed," began Duffy in a statement to People. "For that brief moment it was unbelievable. But indeed she has passed. She beautifully passed through my life on this leg of her endless journey. My task now is to remain on the roadside as she continues on."
After mentioning some of the things he'll miss the most about his former costar — "the phone calls, the emails, the visits, and the meals and laughter" — he continued: "But the dialogue of deep and thoughtful, and silly and frivolous continues. My conversations with her now will be held solely through my daily Buddhist practice. I am not alone in wishing I had one more face-to-face with her and [her husband] Alan, but had we had that meeting last Friday, I would still be yearning for just one more today. It is the painful beauty of our present human reality. What strength and support I can muster I send to Alan and [her son] Bruce and her family and to her I say; When the stone of your life dropped in this pond you made quite a ripple my friend. Thank you."
Duffy played Somers' on-screen husband Frank Lambert in all seven seasons of the '90s ABC sitcom. The series, which ran between 1991 and 1998, followed Frank and Somers' Carol Foster as they attempted to blend their families after the pair spontaneously married.
Before her stint on Step By Step, Somers rose to stardom in 1977 thanks to another ABC sitcom: Three's Company. For five seasons she played Chrissy Snow opposite John Ritter and Joyce DeWitt, ultimately exiting amid a contentious salary dispute with the network. She was replaced by Jenilee Harrison at the start of Season 6.
Somers ended up suing ABC for $2 million, claiming that her Three's Company firing damaged her reputation in show business. The suit was eventually settled out of court.
She later pivoted from acting to health and fitness, becoming the spokesperson for the informercial-driven phenom Thighmaster. Her other TV credits include The Rockford Files, The Six Million Dollar Man, The Love Boat, One Day at a Time and She's the Sheriff. She also competed in Season 20 of ABC's Dancing With the Stars, finishing in ninth place.