JOHN RITTER WAS INDISPUTABLY ONE OF THE GOOD GUYS OF SHOW BUSINESS.

Byline: David Kronke TV Writer

John Ritter came this close to being one of Lou Grant's crack reporters, and never entering America's consciousness as the libidinous Jack Tripper, the girl-crazy fella that had the nutty good luck of rooming with two sexy women in the ABC hit sitcom ``Three's Company.'' And the way Ritter told the Daily News the story back in March, that's the fate he had sort of hoped for himself - at the time, at least.

``Grant Tinker asked me, 'How long is your contract?' '' Ritter, who died Friday at a Burbank hospital of an apparently undetectable dissection of his aorta, recalled backstage at the TV Land Awards, which he hosted in March. ``I said, 'I think it's up in three or four months.' He said, 'I've got this show with Ed Asner, ``Lou Grant,'' but it's an hour.' I said, 'I don't think that'll work.' I was sort of hoping to do that, but I ended up doing 'Three's Company' for eight years.''

``Lou Grant'' lasted four seasons and won many Emmys, but ``Three's Company'' proved more enduring, despite Ritter's own misgivings: ``I asked the writers, 'Can't we have a little (message),' and they said, 'This is just a souffle. We did all the message stuff, and now we're doing farce.' Which was fun, but you want a main course.''

Ritter's latest sitcom - ABC's well-received ``8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter,'' charting a father's comic efforts to protect his progeny from youthful variations of his own self - not only provided the actor with the substance he sought (he also performed on the acclaimed ``Hooperman'' in 1987 and ``Hearts Afire'' and ``Fish Police'' in '92), but also the mainstream hit that had eluded him since the early '80s.

When Ritter spoke with the Daily News, he ignored his handlers, who prodded him repeatedly, reminding him that the time he promised the press had long passed. Given that his wife was actress Amy Yasbeck and that he had four children, Ritter had plenty of reason to blow us off. Instead, he waved his handlers off, happy to hunker down and reminisce over his career, good times and bad.

Ritter was one of show biz's nice guys. Despite his privileged background - his father was singing cowboy ``Tex'' Ritter (who died in 1973, before John became successful) - he appreciated his stardom and understood its ephemeral nature better than most. He underscored his affection for independent films by taking roles in movies like ``Sling Blade'' and ``Tadpole.''

Ritter was one of the few people who provided ABC with good news in the past couple of years. ``8 Simple Rules'' was a rare bright spot on the network's schedule, one that ABC will be ill-equipped to replace or retool on the fly.

The actor recalled to the Daily News that ABC had first considered Loni Anderson in Suzanne Somers' role for ``Three's Company.'' ``She was the best of all the blondes who tested,'' he remembered, laughing, ``but they said, 'No one would believe that she couldn't get the rent money together.' ''

But of all the yarns he spun, the most personal - and comic - concerned Shirley Jones, who starred both in ``The Partridge Family'' and ``The Music Man,'' and was scheduled to appear in the TV Land Awards program that landed Ritter in the Daily News' lap.

``I had my first sexual awakening with Shirley Jones in 'The Music Man,' '' Ritter remembered. ``Not the most sensual film. But there was a scene where she's sipping a cherry phosphate - and the inside of her lips are bright red. And there was something about that scene that made me go, 'Woman - good; cherry phosphate - really good. Taste, lips, tongue - all good; give me Shirley Jones!'

``I'll look at her tomorrow night,'' Ritter recalled, a good-natured laugh in his voice, ``and she'll have no idea what's going through my mind. But now all readers of the Daily News will,'' he added with a gracious laugh: ``I want Mama Partridge!''

America was pretty sweet on him, too.

David Kronke, [phone]

david.kronke(at)dailynews.com

John Ritter on TV

Starting at 9 a.m. Sunday and continuing through the evening, TV Land will air several series episodes in which John Ritter guest starred, including ``Mary Tyler Moore,'' ``Starsky & Hutch,'' ``The Cosby Show,`` ``The Bob Newhart Show'' and ``The Waltons.'' TV Land also will repeat ``The TV Land Awards,'' which Ritter hosted in March.

From 9 p.m. Monday through 6 a.m. Tuesday, Nick at Nite will play a ``Three's Company'' marathon of episodes focusing on the best of Ritter's character, Jack Tripper.

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(1 -- 2) For eight successful seasons on the sitcom ``Three's Company,'' John Ritter portrayed girl-crazy bachelor Jack Tripper with co-stars Joyce DeWitt, left, and Suzanne Somers. His current show, ``Eight Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter,'' was to have its third-season premiere this month.

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John Ritter on TV (see text)