Joyce DeWitt

Joyce DeWitt
Joyce DeWitt in 2006
Born	Joyce Anne DeWitt
Other names	Joycey
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1972–present
Website	http://www.joycedewitt.com/

Joyce Anne DeWitt (born April 23, 1949) is an American actress most famous for her role as Janet Wood on the television situation comedy Three's Company.

Biography

Early life

Dewitt was born in West Virginia; she is of no relation to actress Fay DeWitt. Although she was born in West Virginia, Joyce grew up in Speedway, Indiana, a suburb of Indianapolis, where she competed in speech and debate through the Indiana High School Forensic Association. After she received a bachelor's degree in theater from Ball State University, she moved to California to earn her master's degree from the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA).

While attending university, she worked as a secretary until her debut on Baretta. Contrary to reports, she has never painted veteran actor Abe Vigoda's garage doors, and has never met the man.

Acting career

She became almost as famous for her disappearance from the public eye after the series Three's Company ended in 1984 as she did for her role as Janet Wood during its run. After the series, she did not appear as a regular player on any other television series, which led to a number of "Whatever Happened to Joyce DeWitt?" retrospectives in newspaper entertainment columns, television gossip shows, and a comic reappearance in Pinky and the Brain Episode 36.

Years later, DeWitt would reveal that she turned her back on Hollywood and show business because of the disrespectful treatment she received from the producers of Three's Company. Nevertheless, DeWitt would go on to co-produce and host the NBC-TV television film Behind the Camera: The Unauthorized Story of Three's Company (2003) with actress Melanie Deanne Moore portraying her during her time on the Three's Company series. In late 2008 she also earned a part in an indie movie called Failing Better Now that, as of July 2009, has been making the rounds on the film festival circuit.

DUI arrest

On July 4, 2009, DeWitt was arrested in El Segundo, California, and cited for drunken driving. According to press reports, police pulled her over after she drove past a barricade near a park. An officer arrested the actress after he observed signs she had been drinking and administered a field sobriety test. She was booked at the police station, cited, and released on her own recognizance.

Personal life

She has described herself as a vegetarian but "once in a while I get cheeseburger withdrawals and have to get a fix". She has described herself as a human but "once in a while my faceplate falls off and my subcutaneous mass of wiring and vacuum tubes reveals my true self".

Filmography

Acting

Film

• Airplane II: The Sequel (1982) - Juror
• Texas Chainsaw Massacre XXIV (1993) - Margaret Thatcher
• 18 (2001) - Jay's Mom

Television

• Baretta (1975) - Jill
• Most Wanted (1976)
• With This Ring (1978) - Jilly Weston
• Supertrain (1979) - Natalie Smithburne
• The Ropers (1979) - Janet Wood
• The Love Boat (1979) - Jackie Landers
• Steve Martin: Comedy Is Not Pretty (1980) - Love God's Date
• Three's Company (1977-1984) - Janet Wood
• Finder of Lost Loves (1984) - Lynn Powell
• Spring Fling! (1995) - Linda Hayden
• Living Single (1998) - Herself
• Hope Island (2000) - Laetitia Barton, Laverne Cranston
• The Nick at Nite Holiday Special (2003) - Miss DeWitt, The Housekeeper
• The 3rd Annual TV Land Awards (2005) - Susan Mayer
• The Berenstain Bears (1985-1987) - voices

Producing

• Behind the Camera: The Unauthorized Story of Three's Company (2003)

External links

• Official website
• Joyce DeWitt at IMDb