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John Ritter Biography

Birth Name:
Johnathan Southworth Ritter
Birth Place:
Burbank, California, United States
Profession
Actor, producer

Fast Facts

  • Was student body president at Hollywood High School
  • Appeared for five seasons as a minister on the CBS family drama The Waltons
  • Executive-produced the Richard Lewis-Jamie Lee Curtis sitcom Anything but Love; also appeared as a rival of Lewis's character
  • Played a homicidal suitor in a 1997 episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer
  • Provided the voice of the larger-than-life pooch on the animated children's series Clifford the Big Red Dog and in the film Clifford's Really Big Movie; earned multiple Daytime Emmy nominations for Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program
  • Made his Broadway debut in 2000 in Neil Simon's The Dinner Party with fellow '70s sitcom star Henry Winkler

Awards

  • 2004Emmy-Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series: nominated
  • 1996Screen Actors Guild Awards-Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture: nominated
  • 1988Emmy-Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series: nominated
  • 1988Golden Globe-Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy: nominated
  • 1988People's Choice Awards-Favorite Male Performer in a New TV Program: winner
  • 1987Golden Globe-Best Performance by an Actor in a Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television: nominated
  • 1984Emmy-Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series: winner
  • 1984Golden Globe-Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy: winner
  • 1981Emmy-Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series: nominated
  • 1980Golden Globe-Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy: nominated
  • 1979Golden Globe-Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy: nominated
  • 1978Emmy-Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series: nominated

Relationships