Ritter comedy's record viewers

Ritter played a father of unruly adolescent children

A record number of TV viewers tuned in to a US sitcom episode marking the death of its star John Ritter.

Nearly 21 million watched a poignant instalment of ABC's 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter.

The laughter track was turned off for the one-hour special of the comedy which dealt with the death of Ritter's character, family man Paul Hennessey.

Ritter, 54, collapsed and died on the set of the show in September. He had been suffering from a heart problem.

The episode opened with Hennessy's wife Cate (Katey Sagal) getting a phone call learning he had collapsed at the grocery store.

Ritter appeared at the 1984 Emmys

As the story unfolded, tears were shed, hugs exchanged and bittersweet humour shared while his family dealt with the death.

Commercially the show was a huge success, easily beating the strong ratings of the last three episodes which aired after Ritter's death at the start of the autumn season.

Some critics questioned whether the show could continue. The New York Times said its family dynamics - parents coping with the antics of three adolescent children - may seem less funny from now on.

Ritter found fame in the 1970s as Jack in Three's Company, about two women and a man sharing an apartment.

He was nominated for a total of 13 Emmy TV awards and Golden Globes during his career - winning one of each.

8 Simple Rules was ABC's most successful comedy of 2002, and won the prize for best new comedy series at the recent People's Choice Awards.