Quick Facts
| Field | Details |
| Full Name | Suzanne Marie Somers (née Mahoney) |
| Born | October 16, 1946 |
| Place of Birth | San Bruno, California, USA |
| Died | October 15, 2023 (eve of her 77th birthday) |
| Cause of Death | Breast cancer |
| Nationality | American |
| Education | Lone Mountain College, San Francisco (briefly attended) |
| Profession | Actress, author, businesswoman, health advocate |
| Best Known For | Chrissy Snow on Three’s Company (ABC, 1977–1981) |
| Other TV Role | Carol Foster Lambert on Step by Step (ABC, 1991–1997) |
| Books | 26+ books on health, wellness, and lifestyle (multiple New York Times bestsellers) |
| Business | ThighMaster (launched 1990, $300M+ lifetime sales), SomerSweet, Forever Health |
| First Husband | Bruce Somers (married 1965, divorced 1968) |
| Son | Bruce Somers Jr. (born 1959, from relationship before first marriage) |
| Second Husband | Alan Hamel (married November 26, 1977; together since 1970) |
| Cancer | First diagnosed 2001; recurring 2023 |
| Net Worth at Death | Estimated $100 million |
Who Was Suzanne Somers?
Suzanne Marie Somers was an American actress, author, and entrepreneur who built one of the most diversified personal brands in the history of American entertainment — moving from television stardom to business success to health advocacy to bestselling authorship across a career that spanned more than five decades.
She was born on October 16, 1946, in San Bruno, California, and died on October 15, 2023 — the eve of her 77th birthday — from breast cancer, a disease she had lived with since her first diagnosis in 2001.
At the time of her death, her estimated net worth was $100 million. That figure was not built on her acting work alone. It was built on ThighMaster — the exercise product that became one of the best-selling fitness items in American retail history, generating over $300 million in lifetime sales — on 26 published books, multiple of which became New York Times bestsellers, on a series of health and wellness businesses, and on decades of speaking, television, and brand licensing income.
Her financial story is inseparable from one of the pivotal moments of her career: her 1981 dismissal from Three’s Company following a salary dispute in which she demanded equal pay to her male co-stars. The networks considered it a career-ending move. She proved them wrong — and spent the four decades that followed building something considerably more financially durable than any sitcom contract would have provided.
Early Life and Background
Suzanne Marie Mahoney was born on October 16, 1946, in San Bruno, California, into a working-class Irish Catholic family. Her childhood was defined by her father’s alcoholism — a presence she has described in detail across multiple interviews and books as shaping both the instability of her early years and the resilience that characterised her adult life. She grew up in a household where financial and emotional security were uncertain, and she developed early the self-reliance that would later enable her to rebuild her career multiple times from positions of apparent disadvantage.
She married briefly and early — wedding Bruce Somers in 1965, at eighteen, and divorcing in 1968. Their marriage produced no children; her son Bruce Somers Jr. had been born in 1959, before the marriage, and was given up for adoption before being reunited with Suzanne later in life. The circumstances of his birth and the subsequent reunion are documented in her 1988 autobiography Keeping Secrets, which became one of the most personal pieces of writing she published.
Education
Suzanne Somers briefly attended Lone Mountain College in San Francisco — a Catholic liberal arts college — but did not complete a degree there. Her real education came through the performing arts: years of acting classes, television auditions, and the accumulated experience of building a career through small roles and regional work before the break that changed everything.
She spent years in relative obscurity — appearing in local television, game shows, and small film roles — before a single casting decision transformed her life. Her audition for the role of Chrissy Snow in Three’s Company in 1977, when she was 30 years old, changed everything that followed.
Career
Three’s Company (1977–1981)
Three’s Company premiered on ABC in March 1977, and Suzanne Somers became an immediate sensation as Chrissy Snow — the cheerful, well-meaning, occasionally dim-witted blonde roommate whose physical comedy and warmth made her one of the most popular sitcom characters of the era. The show was one of ABC’s highest-rated programmes throughout its run, consistently ranking among American television’s most-watched series in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
In 1981, at the height of the show’s success, Suzanne made a decision that the industry immediately characterised as career suicide: she requested a salary increase to $150,000 per episode — the same rate being paid to her male co-star John Ritter. The production refused. She was written out of the show, then fired entirely, and replaced by new characters.
What the industry read as hubris, Suzanne later described as a matter of simple fairness. She was, she argued, the reason millions of viewers tuned in each week. She should be compensated accordingly. The studios disagreed. And for several years, the industry’s doors largely closed to her.
ThighMaster and Business Reinvention
In 1990, Suzanne Somers launched ThighMaster — a spring-loaded inner thigh exercise device that she promoted through television infomercials with a directness and personal warmth that proved extraordinarily effective. The product became one of the best-selling exercise items in American retail history, generating over $300 million in lifetime sales. Her royalty arrangement meant she earned directly from every unit sold.
ThighMaster was not a fluke or a desperation move. It was Suzanne applying the same principles to business that she had always brought to performance: direct connection with the audience, personal authenticity, and an understanding that people respond to warmth and honesty more than to polish and distance. The infomercial format suited her perfectly, and the product genuinely worked for the exercise it claimed to target.
Step by Step (1991–1997)
While ThighMaster was generating its millions, Suzanne also returned to network television in Step by Step — the ABC sitcom in which she played Carol Foster Lambert, a divorced mother who marries a widowed contractor played by Patrick Duffy. The show ran for seven seasons, rehabilitating her television career and demonstrating that the industry’s judgment of her 1981 decision had been wrong.
Health, Wellness, and Books
From the mid-1990s onward, Suzanne Somers increasingly positioned herself as a health and wellness authority — publishing books on diet, ageing, hormone replacement therapy, and alternative approaches to cancer treatment that drew both devoted readership and significant medical controversy.
Her 26 published books include multiple New York Times bestsellers. Titles including Ageless (2006), Breakthrough (2008), and Bombshell (2012) sold millions of copies and established her as a significant voice in the alternative health space. She became particularly associated with bioidentical hormone replacement therapy — a treatment she credited with transforming her quality of life and energy in her 50s and 60s — and was one of the most prominent public advocates for this approach at a time when conventional medicine remained sceptical of its benefits.
Her wellness advocacy attracted criticism from mainstream medical authorities who disputed some of her specific claims, while simultaneously generating enormous loyalty from readers who found her approach resonant with their own experiences and preferences.
Cancer Battle and Later Life
Suzanne Somers was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2001. She refused conventional chemotherapy, choosing instead to combine surgery with alternative treatments and the hormone replacement protocols she had been publicly advocating. This decision was controversial; her doctors publicly stated she was making a potentially fatal mistake. She survived.
In 2023, the cancer recurred. She died at her home in Palm Springs, California, on October 15, 2023 — one day before her 77th birthday — surrounded by her family. Her husband Alan Hamel confirmed her death. The announcement came on what would have been, the following day, her birthday.
Personal Life
Suzanne Somers married her first husband Bruce Somers in 1965, divorcing in 1968. In 1970, she met Canadian television host Alan Hamel while both were working on a Canadian variety programme. They began a relationship and eventually married on November 26, 1977 — the same year Three’s Company launched.
Alan Hamel served as Suzanne’s manager throughout her career — a dual role of husband and business partner that generated both controversy (critics suggested her demands for equal pay were driven by his management) and, ultimately, remarkable results. Their 53-year partnership produced a personal and professional collaboration that sustained her through every phase of her career and her health journey.
Suzanne had one son: Bruce Somers Jr., born in 1959 before her first marriage, who was given up for adoption and later reunited with her. She also had three stepchildren from Alan Hamel’s previous relationships.
Suzanne Somers’ Net Worth in 2026 (Estate Value)
Suzanne Somers’ estimated net worth at the time of her death was $100 million, managed as of 2026 by her estate — with Alan Hamel as the primary beneficiary.
Her wealth came from multiple sources:
ThighMaster royalties — her ownership arrangement on one of America’s best-selling exercise products of the 1990s generated royalties across millions of units sold worldwide.
Book royalties — 26 published books, multiple New York Times bestsellers, with ongoing sales and digital download income.
Television residuals — Three’s Company and Step by Step continue to generate residual income through syndication and streaming licensing.
Wellness businesses — SomerSweet (her sugar alternative product), the Forever Health medical network, and various brand licensing arrangements.
Real estate — their Palm Springs home and other California properties.
Speaking fees — health and wellness conferences at which she commanded significant appearance fees throughout her later career.
Frequently Asked Questions
What was Suzanne Somers’ net worth? Suzanne Somers’ net worth at the time of her death in October 2023 was estimated at $100 million, earned through Three’s Company residuals, ThighMaster royalties, 26 published books, wellness businesses, and speaking engagements.
When did Suzanne Somers die? She died on October 15, 2023 — the eve of her 77th birthday — from breast cancer, at her home in Palm Springs, California.
Why was Suzanne Somers fired from Three’s Company? In 1981, she requested a salary increase to $150,000 per episode — equal to her male co-star John Ritter’s rate. The production refused, and she was ultimately written out of the show and fired. She later described the decision as a matter of equal pay.
What is ThighMaster? ThighMaster is a spring-loaded inner thigh exercise device that Suzanne Somers launched in 1990 and promoted through television infomercials. It became one of America’s best-selling exercise products, generating over $300 million in lifetime sales.
How many books did Suzanne Somers write? More than 26 books on health, wellness, ageing, and lifestyle. Multiple became New York Times bestsellers, and she was particularly associated with writing about bioidentical hormone replacement therapy.
Who was Suzanne Somers’ husband? Her second and final husband was Alan Hamel, a Canadian television host, whom she met in 1970 and married on November 26, 1977. He was also her long-time manager. They were together for 53 years until her death in 2023.
Summary
Suzanne Somers built a $100 million estate by refusing, at every critical juncture, to accept what other people thought her worth was. She refused the salary the network offered and was fired for it — then built ThighMaster into a $300 million business. She refused conventional cancer treatment and survived a breast cancer diagnosis in 2001. She refused the conventional medical establishment’s dismissal of her health advocacy and published 26 books that sold millions of copies. She was wrong about some things and right about others, and she was always unambiguously herself. She died on October 15, 2023, one day before her 77th birthday, at home with her husband of 46 years. The estate she left behind reflects the work of a woman who consistently valued her own contribution more accurately than the industry did.
