Suzanne Somers

Here is a profile of Suzanne Somers — her life, career, controversies, and memorable quotes.

Suzanne Somers – Life, Career, and Quotes

Suzanne Somers (1946–2023) was an American actress, author, and entrepreneur. Best known for Three’s Company, she also promoted health, wellness, and alternative medicine. Explore her life, controversies, books, and quotes.

Introduction

Suzanne Somers was a multifaceted figure: actress, author, businesswoman, and health advocate. She became a household name for her role as Chrissy Snow in the 1970s sitcom Three’s Company, and later starred in Step by Step. Beyond acting, she wrote over 25 books, many focused on health, aging, and wellness, and became known for endorsing bioidentical hormone therapy and alternative medical approaches. Her bold persona, entrepreneurial spirit, and willingness to challenge conventional medicine made her both influential and controversial.

Early Life & Background

Birth name and date: Suzanne Marie Mahoney, born October 16, 1946, in San Bruno, California.
Family & upbringing: She grew up as the third of four children in a working-class Irish-Catholic household. Her mother worked as a medical secretary; her father labored as a gardener and was reportedly an alcoholic with a volatile temperament.
Somers struggled academically, in part due to dyslexia, and had friction at home; she was even expelled from school in her early teens over behavior.
After high school, she briefly attended Lone Mountain College (San Francisco) but withdrew when she became pregnant and married at age 19.

These early hardships seem to have shaped her tenacity, public persona, and later advocacy for taking charge of one’s body and health.

Acting Career & Rise to Fame

Early Acting & Breakthrough in Three’s Company

Somers began pursuing acting in small roles in the late 1960s and early 1970s, modeling and doing bit parts in film and TV.
In 1977, she was cast as Chrissy Snow on the sitcom Three’s Company, replacing earlier castings after pilot trials. Her character—a stereotypical “blonde bubblehead”—became iconic.
During contract renegotiations, she pushed for higher pay, and conflicts followed. The producers responded by dramatically reducing her screen time and eventually dismissing her. Somers sued the producers, though outcomes favored the producers in arbitration.

Later Television & Other Roles

Somers later starred as Carol Foster Lambert on Step by Step (1991–1998), a family sitcom on ABC’s TGIF lineup.
She also appeared in She’s the Sheriff (1987–1989), a syndicated sitcom in which she played a widow-turned-sheriff.
Beyond sitcoms, she worked in infomercials (notably promoting the ThighMaster), hosted a daytime talk show (though it ran only one season), and made other media appearances.

Her media career gave her a platform which she leveraged into writing and wellness advocacy.

Author, Wellness Advocate & Controversies

Books & Wellness Focus

Somers authored more than 25 books, including:

Autobiographies: Keeping Secrets, After the Fall: How I Picked Myself Up, Dusted Myself Off, and Started All Over Again
Health, aging, and hormone books: Ageless: The Naked Truth About Bioidentical Hormones, Get Skinny on Fabulous Food, Eat Great, Lose Weight, The Sexy Years, among others.
Poetry: Touch Me: The Poems of Suzanne Somers was a poetry collection she published earlier in her career.

Somers emphasized bioidentical hormone replacement therapy, alternative cancer treatments, nutrition, detoxification, and “living well” wellness strategies. Her public advocacy often challenged mainstream medical consensus.

Medical Controversies & Criticism

In 2000, she was diagnosed with breast cancer; she opted for lumpectomy and radiation, but declined chemotherapy.
In 2008, she publicly announced that cancer had returned—later revealed to have been a misdiagnosis.
Her book Knockout promoted alternative cancer therapies. The American Cancer Society and many medical professionals criticized her for presenting unproven and potentially dangerous approaches.
She was vocal about issues like fluoride toxicity and linked diet/toxins to acts of violence in public statements, drawing criticism for unsupported claims.

While her wellness advocacy won her supporters, many health experts viewed her as a promoter of medical misinformation.

Legacy & Impact

She broke barriers for actresses in negotiating for pay and control in television, prominently challenging the status quo in Three’s Company.
Her entrepreneurial turn—using her public persona to build a wellness brand and media empire—is a model for personal branding.
She inspired devoted fans who believed in her wellness philosophy and message of self-empowerment.
Because of her controversial health claims, she remains a cautionary example in discussions about celebrity influence in medical discourse.

Somers died on October 15, 2023, one day before her 77th birthday, after a long battle with breast cancer.

Selected Quotes

Here are a few memorable quotes from Suzanne Somers:

“Forgiveness is a gift you give yourself.”
“Codependence – Someone who lives someone else’s life.”
“Be grateful for the highs — and be grateful for the lows — 'cause it's in the lows where you learn.”
“Throughout my life, I have tried to share my philosophy that getting and staying healthy doesn’t have to feel like work. I don’t diet or slave away in a gym — what I do is make excellent food choices.”
“Focus on eating real, whole, natural foods. As I love to say, if you can pick it, pluck it, milk it, or shoot it, you can eat it!”

These reflect her emphasis on self-care, wellness, and personal philosophy.