John Ritter, 54, 1948–2003

Over his life, John Ritter would appear in over 100 films and series but is best known for his role as Jack Tripper on Three’s Company. He was even awarded a Primetime Emmy and a Golden Globe in 1984 for it.

On his last project, 8 Simple Rules, he fell ill. He was suffering from an injury to his aorta that got misdiagnosed as a heart attack. Despite treatment, his condition continued to worsen, and doctors tried to repair the aortic damage surgically. They couldn’t in time, and Ritter passed away on September 11, 2003. After John’s death to aortic dissection, we now have Ritter’s Rules to prevent other casualties.