JOHN RITTER'S 4 CHILDREN: ALL ABOUT JASON, CARLY, TYLER AND NOAH

Beloved comedy star John Ritter is survived by his four children

John Ritter's legacy lives on in his children.

The Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actor suddenly died on Sept. 11, 2003, at age 54 after suffering an aortic dissection. In addition to his contributions to comedy, Ritter was also a proud dad to four children. He shared sons Jason, 44, and Tyler, 39, and daughter Carly, 42, with his first wife Nancy Morgan, whom he was married to from 1977 to 1996; as well as son Noah, 25, with his wife Amy Yasbeck, whom he was married to from 1999 up until his death.

His children are all adults now, and many of them have gone on to follow in their late father's footsteps and pursue careers in entertainment. Through the years, several of the Ritter children have also been open about the impact losing their father has had on them and the legacy he left behind.

"When there's someone in your family who's a force of nature, where they come into a room and that's where the focus goes, it's bizarre when that person is gone," Ritter's eldest Jason said on the podcast Melissa River's Group Text. "There's like a black hole of energy ... and your family becomes something different but it's hard to comprehend that a life like that is over."

Keep reading for everything there is to know about John Ritter's children.

Jason Ritter, 44

Ritter's eldest child, son Jason, was born on Feb. 17, 1980, in Los Angeles.

Jason began following in his dad's footsteps at a young age, landing his first acting gig in an animated Christmas special when he was 6 years old — thanks to some help from his famous dad.

"I will say, without any hesitation, this was like a full-on nepotism hire. I will admit that. He for sure got me the job. I did try to stay away from that later," Jason later admitted during a March 2023 appearance on The Jess Cagle Show. "I got to play Little Acorn in The Real Story of O Christmas Tree, and he played my Uncle Piney."

After graduating from New York University, he began to pursue acting full-time, booking his first major role in the 2003 slasher film Freddy vs. Jason.

In a 2002 interview with Entertainment Tonight, Ritter boasted about his son, explaining, "My son is now in Vancouver. He's an actor, God help him, he's 22 and he's doing a horror movie up there." At the premiere of the movie, just a month before Ritter's passing, Jason said that his dad advised him to be himself and "try not to be nervous."

Jason went on to become an accomplished television actor. He has over 100 credits to his name, including shows like Girls, A Million Little Things and Raising Dion. He has also been nominated for two Emmy awards for his roles in Parenthood and Tales of Titans.

As for his personal life, Jason is one half of a Hollywood power couple. He has been with his now-wife, Yellowjackets star Melanie Lynskey, since 2013 and the pair share one daughter.

Although the couple is affectionate on social media, the two have kept their relationship private. They have, however, shared the screen together a number of times and continue to make cameos in each other's projects, including Yellowjackets, The Last of Us, Candy, The Intervention and We'll Never Have Paris.

Carly Ritter, 42

Carly Ritter is Ritter and Morgan's second child and only daughter. She was born on March 1, 1982, in L.A.

While both of her parents were actors, Carly pursued a career in country music, following in the footsteps of her grandfather, Country Music Hall of Fame musician Tex Ritter.

Despite having a legendary country artist in her family, Carly has said she didn't fall in love with the genre until later in life. "My dad hadn't really played that much of [country] music for us growing up," she told KCET in 2013. "Having been exposed to so much country music as a kid, when he discovered rock and roll, he just never looked back."

Carly released a self-titled debut album in 2013 through Vanguard Records. Although she hasn't released another album since, Carly still writes music and sings. In 2021, she released the song "They Don't Work Here Anymore (Ballad of a Bygone Climate)" on YouTube.

Carly is also an activist and is heavily involved with The Huntington's Disease Society of America, where she has performed numerous times for HDSA's annual Freeze HD event. She has also supported Moms Demand Action, a grassroots movement fighting gun violence.

Tyler Ritter, 39

John's third child and second son with Morgan, Tyler Ritter, was born on Jan. 31, 1985, in L.A.

Tyler is also an actor with several TV show credits, including Arrow, The McCarthys, NCIS and Young & Hungry. Over the years, Tyler has been candid about how his father inspired his acting career.

"It feels very kind of surreal because he didn't see a lot of my acting abilities," he told Entertainment Tonight in 2014. "I do feel his presence and I know somewhere he's proud of me."

He continued, "I really got to see my dad enjoy every day that he was working ... Everybody should be able to have this much fun when they go to work. He really paved that way for us and so here I am."

Before he began his acting career, Tyler graduated from the University of Pennsylvania and worked as a teacher in Argentina for three years, where he met his now-wife, Argentinian film director Leila Parma. The two married in 2007 and welcomed a son, Benjamin Parma Ritter, on June 11, 2017. He shared the news on Instagram, writing, "It's a new dawn, it's a new day, it's a new life. He's Benjamin Parma Ritter. And we're feeling good."

Benjamin was the late Ritter's first grandchild.

Noah Lee Ritter, 25

Ritter's fourth child, Noah Lee Ritter, whom he shared with his second wife Yasbeck, was born on Sept. 11, 1998. Ritter died on Noah's 5th birthday, during his first week of preschool.

Noah leads a much more private life than his older siblings. His Instagram and Twitter accounts are both private, and his Twitter bio reads: "I don't use social media anymore much, a private guy... rarely accept follow requests. have a nice day."

In May 2022, Noah did make a rare public appearance with the rest of the Ritter clan at An Evening from the Heart in L.A. to support The John Ritter Foundation for Aortic Health.

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2023-03-24T14:06:28Z dg43tfdfdgfd