Thursday, Nov. 9, 2006 | 7:08 a.m.
Who: Suzanne Somers
When: 8 tonight through Sunday
Where: The Orleans Showroom
Tickets: $44-$82.50; 365-7075
Suzanne Somers, the ditsy blonde from the classic TV sitcom "Three's Company," just turned 60 and isn't so ditsy anymore.
In addition to retaining her good looks, Somers has a good head on those gorgeous shoulders.
The ageless entertainer has just written a new book, "Ageless." It's one of more than a dozen she has written, including "Sexy Years," "Eat Great, Lose Weight," "Get Skinny on Fabulous Food" and her autobiography "Keeping Secrets," about growing up with an abusive alcoholic father.
For many years, Somers was a staple on the Home Shopping Network, hawking hundreds of products she developed. She has launched a new company, SUZANNE, which, like Avon, Mary Kay and Tupperware, uses an independent force of consultants to move a line of some 1,000 products she has developed over 20 years - including exercise equipment (remember ThighMaster), food, jewelry and other fashion items.
And she continues to perform.
Somers, who lived and performed in Las Vegas for nine years in the '80s, will be singing and dancing at The Orleans, tonight through Sunday - the same weekend a SUZANNE convention will recruit and train consultants at the hotel.
The native of San Bruno, Calif., made headlines when she refused conventional medical treatment for breast cancer in 2000.
She will be remembered by many for her troubles on the set of "Three's Company," which co-starred Joyce DeWitt and John Ritter and ran from 1977 to 1984 on ABC and continues in reruns. When she demanded a huge pay raise and part ownership of the show, the producers phased her out of the cast over a two-year period.
She also will be forever tied to a piece of movie trivia: She was the blonde in the Thunderbird in "American Graffiti," the 1973 film directed by George Lucas.
During a recent telephone interview, Somers discussed her past, present and future, often at such a rapid pace that it was difficult to keep up with her thoughts.
Q: When did you last perform here?
A: Fifteen years ago. It was a staple for me for so many years. But I started writing books. My 16th book, "Ageless," just came out, and I'm on the lecture circuit. I did a one-woman show on Broadway last summer. It was so exciting.
I think the first place I performed was at Caesars Palace. And I was three years at the Hilton, in the same room that is now Barry Manilow's room. I was what Joan Rivers calls a Strip slut - I played all of the showrooms.
Tell us about your Vegas years.
The TV series, "Three's Company," was No. 1 in 1980, and that allowed me to jump on the Vegas bandwagon. In 1987, I was named entertainer of the year, along with Frank Sinatra.
My first show there was a huge production show with 13 dancers and a 27-piece orchestra. I wore a Carmen Miranda fruit hat and a fluorescent skirt. I rode an elephant and came in on a train and I sang "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy." I was having a ball with every new incarnation of Las Vegas - when Vegas changed and we couldn't afford that kind of package anymore we redid the show, and I put together a band and did a smoke-and-jazz act wearing a beaded gown. I did that for about 15 years.
What else have you done since your Vegas years?
Eventually I developed an itch to do a one-woman show, which emerged out of the books I have written and all of the things that have happened to me. ("The Blonde in the Thunderbird" closed after a brief run in the summer of 2005.)
The show at The Orleans has pieces from my one-woman show and pieces of my nightclub act. It's not a Barry Manilow presents; Barry has been my best friend for 27 years. Once I started working on this show that I'm doing now, he came to my house one day and said, "Let's write everything down." And he started moving (the pieces) around and before I knew it, he put together the show for me. It was an absolute joy ride. You can't hire Barry; he just did it out of the goodness of his heart.
How has the show been received?
I've been touring the country with it. It has had an unbelievable reaction. Something about the show is touching the heart. You have to fight through the crowds to get in.
When you parted company with your TV series, you were feuding with the cast. What was your relationship with co-star John Ritter at the time of his death in 2003?
I loved John Ritter. At the end, we had reconciled. What I now realize is that when I left the show he lost his sparring partner. For a long time I couldn't realize why he was so mad at me, but that was it. There was a chemistry that we had. He was the best acting partner you could ever have. I miss him terribly.
How is your health these days?
I'm at my best right now. I have never felt better. I am hormonally balanced.
To what do you attribute your youthfulness?
Three things happened. I hit 40 and gained weight like I had never gained before. When I was younger, I could eat like a horse and it didn't affect me. Carbohydrates didn't bother me. I just started researching and found this science, the science of how to lose weight.
Then I found out about how losing hormones can affect you and researched how to put them back into your body.
And the third thing was breast cancer. Hearing the news was like getting the wind knocked out of you. It took a couple of days, but I came to grips with my own mortality. I just decided to learn how my body works: What are the tiers of hormones, and how to put them back. I didn't take conventional treatment - no chemo or chemicals or other poisons they were offering me. I took care of it by keeping my hormones balanced.
How do you keep balance in your life?
I have fun. I eat great food. I drink wine here and there. I only go out two nights a week. I get to bed early and sleep a full night.
Tell us about the show at The Orleans.
It's 90 minutes of me singing, dancing and leaping. At the end, you will feel happy.
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