Joyce DeWitt

**Joyce DeWitt** (born April 23, 1949) is an American actress who's best known for her role as Janet Wood on the ABC-TV sitcom series *Three's Company*.

## Early Life

Joyce DeWitt was born 23 April 1949 in Wheeling, West Virginia, and grew up in Speedway, Indiana, a suburb of Indianapolis. She is of Italian descent on her mother's side. She competed in speech and debate through the Indiana High School Forensic Association. After she received a Bachelor's degree in theater from Ball State University, she moved to California to earn her master's degree from the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA).

## Career

Young Joyce began appearing on stage at the age of thirteen. While attending UCLA, she worked as a secretary until her debut on *Baretta*. While performing in summer stock theater in the year following her graduation, a director and UCLA Theater professor convinced her to go to California for the school's Master of Fine Arts program.

In the fall of 1976, Joyce auditioned for and was picked for the role of Janet Wood on the ABC-TV series pilot *Three's Company*, a job she obtained after being cast in what was the show's second pilot.

After *Three's Company* ended in 1984, DeWitt appeared in an episode of *Finder of Lost Loves* in 1984, after which she quit acting for several years. She resumed acting with a part in a production of *Noises Off* at Michigan's Cherry County Playhouse in June 1991. She later appeared in the 1995 TV comedy film *Spring Fling!*, and made appearances in "The Pinky Protocol", a 1997 episode of *Pinky and the Brain*, an episode of *Cybill*, and a cameo on the penultimate episode of *Living Single*. Her 2000s works includes TV shows such as *Hope Island*, *18*, *The Nick at Nite Holiday Special*, and *Call of the Wild*.

DeWitt went to co-produce and host the 2003 NBC-TV television film *Behind the Camera:The Unauthorized Story of Three's Company*, with actress Melanie Paxson portraying her during her time on *Three's Company*. In late 2008, she also earned a part in an independent film called *Failing Better Now*.

In 2011, DeWitt starred in the play *Miss Abigail's Guide to Dating, Mating & Marriage* in New York.

DeWitt appeared on Suzanne Somers' talk show, *Suzanne Somers: Breaking Through*, during which she and Somers reminisced about their time on *Three's Company* together, Somers apologized for the conflict that arose between them, and they exchanged anecdotes about the last time they each spoke to John Ritter.

## Charity Work

DeWitt participated with members of the House and Senate at the Capitol Hill Forum on Hunger and Homelessness, and has hosted presentations for the Family Assistance Program of Hollywood. She hosted the International Awards Ceremony at the White House for the Presidential End Hunger Awards, and co-hosted, with Jeff Bridges, the World Food Day Gala at the Kennedy Center.

## Filmography

### Film

* *Airplane II: The Sequel* (1982) - Juror
* *Call of the Wild*

### Television

* *Baretta* (1975) - Jill
* *Most Wanted* (1976)
* *Three's Company* (1977–1984) - Janet Wood/Dawson
* *With This Ring* (1978) - Jilly Weston
* *Supertrain* (1979) - Natalie Smithburne
* *The Ropers* (1979) - Janet Wood
* *The Love Boat* (1979) - Jackie Landers
* *The B.B. Beegle Show* (1980) - Herself
* *Steve Martin: Comedy Is Not Pretty* (1980) - Love God's Date
* *Finder of Lost Loves* (1984) - Lynn Powell
* *The Berenstain Bears* (1985–1987) - voices
* *Spring Fling!* (1995) - Linda Hayden
* *Living Single* (1998) - Herself
* *Hope Island* (2000) - Laetitia Barton, Laverne Cranston
* *The Nick at Nite Holiday Special* (2003) - Miss DeWitt, The Housekeeper
* *The 3rd Annual TV Land Awards* (2005) - Susan Mayer

### As Producer

* *Behind the Camera:The Unauthorized Story of Three's Company* (2003)

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Bettelou Peterson (1991-07-21). Joyce DeWitt has quit acting. The Times/Beaver Newspapers. Retrieved on 2009-12-29.
2. ↑ Heyman, Marshall (June 2, 2011). "Sitcom Star Takes the Stage". *The Wall Street Journal*.
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Three's Company Reunion with Suzanne Somers and Joyce DeWitt". YouTube. February 2, 2012. Retrieved July 13, 2012.
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 "Seven Questions with Joyce DeWitt of Three's Company; The 63rd Primetime Emmy Awards Nominations". Sitcoms Online. July 14, 2011
5. ↑ Cast & Creative. MissAbigailGuide.com. accessed July 30, 2011.

## External Links

* Joyce DeWitt Biography
* Joyce DeWitt's official website
* Joyce DeWitt links at FreeOnes
* Joyce DeWitt at Babepedia
* Joyce DeWitt article at *Wikipedia*