Kaley Cuoco remembers how late costar John Ritter ‘immediately grew to become my TV dad’ at “8 Easy Guidelines” desk learn

Kaley Cuoco received't neglect her first time working with the late John Ritter, when he performed her dad on the previous ABC sitcom 8 Easy Guidelines.

"I used to be 16 after we did our first desk learn, and I used to be taking part in the 'horny' sister," Cuoco instructed PEOPLE lately on the John Ritter Basis for Aortic Well being's Night from the Coronary heart L.A. Gala, the place she took half within the studying of a script from a earlier Ritter present, Three's Firm. "And so, I keep in mind I wore a really revealing costume to our desk learn."

Ritter, already a TV star on the time, was not amused.

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"When John walked in, he got here in, he didn't say something to me. He took his jacket off and put his jacket over me and he stated, 'You'll by no means costume like that once more, missy.' That was the very first thing he ever stated to me, and he immediately grew to become my TV dad."

The Emmy-winning sitcom, which costarred Katey Sagal, Amy Davidson, and Martin Spanjers, initially aired for 3 seasons, from 2002 to 2005. Cuoco performed Bridget, the eldest daughter of Ritter and Sagal.

Nonetheless, Ritter died in 2003, when he was 54, of a coronary heart concern referred to as an aortic dissection. He had been rehearsing a season 2 episode of his and Cuoco's sitcom, then referred to as 8 Easy Guidelines for Courting My Teenage Daughter, when he collapsed on set.

Cuoco, who's gone on to star on The Huge Bang Idea and The Flight Attendant, has famous the closeness that she felt with Ritter.

She recalled in a September 2018 interview with ET that he had stopped by her dressing room earlier than heading house in one in every of their final interactions.

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"He sat down on the sofa and he goes, 'I like you,' and I used to be like, 'I like you too, foolish man,'" Cuoco stated. "And he goes 'No, I would like you to know, I like you.' And I stated, 'I like you too,' after which he goes, 'That's it,' and he gave me a hug and that's the final time I noticed him."

Cuoco famous to PEOPLE that her time with the actor, who additionally appeared within the motion pictures Sling Blade and Downside Baby, had left an enduring impression.

"He modified the course of my life," she stated. "He was there at first for my profession. I spent a yr and a half with him, but it surely modified my life, my complete life."

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