In May, Kaley Cuoco co-chaired and co-hosted An Evening From The Heart gala to benefit the John Ritter Foundation for Aortic Health. Cuoco paid tribute to her former TV dad Ritter, who passed away during the run of the show, 8 Simple Rules. Cuoco shared that she still held on to one great piece of advice from the sitcom legend that made her a successful star in The Big Bang Theory.
Ritter died at the age of 54 due to an undetected thoracic aortic dissection. The John Ritter Foundation works to raise awareness regarding this health issue through research, education, and advocacy. The gala was also attended by Ritter’s family and his Three’s Company sitcom co-stars Joyce DeWitt and Priscilla Barnes.
Kaley Cuoco Took Advice From John Ritter To Make Her TBBT Audience Love Her
Kaley Cuoco played Bridget Hennessey, the elder daughter of the Hennessey family in 8 Simple Rules. It was Cuoco’s first notable role before she went on to become one of TV’s highest-paid actresses in The Big Bang Theory. Playing her father in the 2002 sitcom was John Ritter, the Emmy-winning TV legend.
Ritter unexpectedly died during the second season of the show, which deeply impacted Cuoco and the rest of the cast. His death was written into the show. Cuoco remembered her on-screen dad during a recent gala event to benefit the John Ritter Foundation for Aortic Health. She shared with Access Hollywood that the actor remained special to her and a lot of other people.
She shared that she still carried around one word of advice that Ritter had given her during the run of 8 Simple Rules. Cuoco shared that she would often mess up in front of the live audience during the show and Ritter encouraged her to mess up even more. He shared that the live audience would love to see her mess up.
The Flight Attendant star began noticing that Ritter would intentionally mess up his lines, which the audience absolutely loved. Cuoco revealed that she has been doing the same for the last 20 years and shared that Ritter’s advice of not taking things too seriously worked out well for her. Cuoco shared with Access Hollywood:
I remember when I would mess up in front of the audience, he’d go, ‘They love it! They love it! They love when you mess up.’ And I go, ‘What?’ He’d go, ‘Sometimes, I do it on purpose.’ I started watching him purposefully mess up and make these mistakes, and the audience would go crazy.
I’ve literally taken that with me for 20 years. He gave everyone what they wanted. He was the class clown. He never took himself too seriously, and I think we need to get a little bit back to that, not taking ourselves too seriously.
Cuoco has managed to garner an insane fanbase along with her co-stars from The Big Bang Theory. Cuoco has talked about the live audience, comparing them to The Hunger Games fandom. Ritter’s advice holds true as the bloopers from the live taping have received a lot of love from fans.
Kaley Cuoco Would Do Anything That Has John Ritter’s Name Attached To It
Kaley Cuoco shared with Access Hollywood that John Ritter had touched her life like no one else in the industry. She shared that the year and a half that she spent with the actor had an impact on her life that lasted far beyond that. She shared that she would happily take part in anything related to Ritter.
She further added that she was happy to be part of the Foundation’s activities as it helped raise awareness of an awful disease that took Ritter’s life. She shared:
When you think about it, I spent a year and a half with him only, and the way he touched my life has far exceeded that one and a half years. So, I will always do anything that has his name attached to it, and especially to raise awareness regarding what happened to him and how awful it can be for some of these families. I will always be the voice for this exact thing.
Cuoco also shares a good relationship with Ritter’s family. Ritter shared two sons, actors Jason and Tyler Ritter, and a daughter Carly with first wife Nancy Morgan. He has a son, Noah, with his widow Amy Yasbeck. Cuoco shared with PEOPLE, “I will do anything for his wife and his kids. And I’m so really very proud to be here and honoring him.”
8 Simple Rules is now available for streaming on Disney+. The Big Bang Theory is now available for streaming on Max.
