It’s interesting sometimes to learn just which actors were raised by military parents, since a lot of them likely had to endure moving from one place to the next as kids and as a result had to either find a way to make and keep friends or just keep moving along and remaining aloof from everyone else. In such instances some people would take up making up one new persona after another, which would be perfect for many actors. Priscilla Barnes was one of those who moved around on a fairly constant basis, but at the age of 17 she went out on her own and eventually found her way into acting, where she’s currently still enjoying a life in front of the camera according to her bio. To be fair she started out as a waitress and a dancer, but was noticed by Bob Hope luckily enough and was introduced to the life after working with his troupe. There are many different beginnings for many actors, but this was likely one that Priscilla could have only dreamed of since just being noticed by someone with enough influence like Bob Hope was a stroke of luck that a lot of people would admit was being in the right place at the right time.
Eventually she would make her way to the show Three’s Company, which as many would agree was her most notable role since she went on the show to replace the interim character played by Jenilee Harrison, who was there to replace Suzanne Somers, who in turn had had contract disputes with the show. In other words, Three’s Company was a mess for a while as people were wanting Chrissy back but were at least willing to be satisfied with Barnes for a while since she did manage to get laughs and was seen as a reasonable replacement. Things didn’t appear to go that smoothly though as she felt insanely uncomfortable on the show and asked to be released from her contract after a while. Priscilla did remain friends with a couple of her costars and made appearances with them throughout the years, but whatever made her uncomfortable about the show wasn’t made clear until later on. As Hannah E. of Articles Valley stated, Priscilla went on to say that the bosses were extremely demanding and that if things weren’t just the way they wanted them then it became kind of a tense situation. Unfortunately back in the day when the show was popular it was common for such complaints to be made and to be seen as edicts that made working conditions pretty tough. Priscilla lasted as long as she could, but eventually she checked out and went on her way.
Thankfully her ability to find work wasn’t hampered by her departure from the popular show, but while she’s guest-starred in a slew of notable movies and TV shows it’s easy to think that she never attained the same level of fame that Three’s Company afforded her. The drawback of staying however would have been that she might have still been seen as expendable since John Ritter was the undisputed star of the show and there was even a show planned after the initial Three’s Company was over and done with, and upon finding this out the rest of the cast was understandably shocked and in some cases a little bitter. It’s likely for the best that Priscilla got out when she did, as she managed to go on to enjoy a career that has given her a net worth that’s not the most impressive in the world but has definitely set her up to enjoy a very comfortable lifestyle that she can enjoy as the years continue to roll by. Now in her 60s, Priscilla isn’t really depended on for sex appeal as much as she used to be, though she’s still a very talented actress that has a lot to look back on and likely laugh or look at with something akin to pride and fond memories. A lot of us that do remember her will likely keep going back to Three’s Company since it was a great show while it lasted and was something that we can remember from our youth that featured a few different actors that were notable and very memorable in their own ways.
To date she’s still doing her thing and has aged fairly well as she’s still a very appealing woman that has managed to show up in a lot of different spots in pop culture, allowing her to keep a presence in show business and to remain more or less in the public eye. How much longer she’ll stay in the business is hard to say since some folks plan to keep acting until they’re no longer able to do so. But it’s usually those folks that we want to keep around the longest.Suzanne Somers
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