The morning after throwing a farewell party for former roommate Eleanor, Janet Wood (Joyce DeWitt) and Chrissy Snow (Suzanne Somers) find one of the guests still snoring away in the bathtub. The sleeping stray is Jack Tripper (John Ritter), an aspiring chef who needs a new place to stay. Figuring that Jack is harmless -- and besides, he's a better cook than both girls combined -- Janet and Chrissy invite him to become their new roomie. Only one problem: landlord Stanley Roper (Norman Fell), who already suspects the girls of hanky-panky, would never tolerate a one man/two women setup. The solution? Convince Mr. Roper that the decidedly masculine Jack (who already has eyes for the voluptuous Chrissy) is really gay. This classic opening episode of Three's Company is a remake of the series' first unsold pilot -- which, in turn, had been adapted from the debut episode of Three's Company's British sitcom prototype Man About the House.

Three's Company settled into its first-season Thursday-night slot for this episode, in which Chrissy prepares for a visit from her mother (Priscilla Morrill). Figuring that mom won't look kindly upon her having a male roommate, Chrissy cooks up one of those sitcom schemes that is almost guaranteed to backfire. In the course of events, landlady Mrs. Roper (Audra Lindley) finds out that Jack (John Ritter) is not gay -- but will she tell Mr. Roper (Norman Fell)? This episode of Three's Company was a reworking of the series' unsold second pilot film, which in turn was adapted from an episode of the series' British sitcom prototype Man About the House.

Christina Hart guest stars as Karen, the niece of Stanley and Helen Roper (Norman Fell, Audra Lindley). Still convinced that his tenant Jack (John Ritter) is gay, Mr. Roper feels it is safe enough to give Jack 50 dollars and ask him to take Karen out on the town. Besides, if Jack turns out not to be gay, Roper will have an excuse to kick him out of his apartment. The fun really begins when Karen is revealed to have a unusually voracious sexual appetite. "Roper's Niece" was originally intended as the final episode of Three's Company's short first season, but ended up being shown as the third entry.

Richard Kline makes his first series appearance as silver-tongued car salesman Larry Dallas. Having been talked into accepting a puppy from Larry, Chrissy (Suzanne Somers) and Janet (Joyce DeWitt) bring their new pup home. Unfortunately, their landlord Mr. Roper (Norman Fell) hates puppies, and has imposed a strict "no pets" rule. But since Chrissy feels that the pup will help prevent her from sleepwalking, the girls have to hatch a scheme to keep the little bow-wow hidden from view. This episode is a rewrite of "No Children, No Dogs," an installment of Three's Company's British sitcom prototype Man About the House.

Jack (John Ritter) is too nervous to protest when a muscular bully puts the moves on Chrissy (Suzanne Somers). As a result, Chrissy and Janet (Joyce DeWitt) must spend the rest of the episode trying to convince Jack that he's not a coward. Paul Ainsley makes his first series appearance as Jim the Bartender. "Jack the Giant Killer" is a rewrite of "Color Me Chicken," an episode of Three's Company's British prototype Man About the House.

The roommates are having money problems, and it doesn't help at all that they've been turned down for a loan. Things get worse when the trio returns to their apartment to find that their rent money is missing. Assuming that they've been robbed, the roomies go into full panic-and-retribution mode -- little suspecting that their landlord Mr. Roper (Norman Fell) has taken the money and forgotten to leave a receipt. William Pierson makes his first appearance as Jack's cooking-school mentor Dean Travers. This final episode of Three's Company's first season was adapted from an entry of the series' British sitcom prototype Man About the House.