Stella Ritter is the only child of the actors Amy Yasbeck and John Ritter. She started to act at the age of nine, then aged 18 Stella decided to change her gender, and became Noah Lee Ritter.
Early life, education, family
Stella Ritter was born on 11 September 1998, in Burbank, California USA. Her mother is the actress Amy Yasbeck and her father was the actor John Ritter – she was only five years old when he died from aortic dissection on Stella’s birthday, six days prior his 55th birthday and a day before Amy’s 41st.
The actor had some heart problems during a rehearsal for “8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter”, was taken to a hospital, but died during a surgery. He was previously married to the actress Nancy Morgan and they had three children, so Stella has siblings, two half-brothers and a halfsister – they all have careers in entertainment.
In 2008 Stella’s widowed mother and the siblings filed law suits against the hospital he was treated in before his death, because the aortic dissection wasn’t diagnosed before.
Some of them ended with a settlement, but there was also a trial for the doctors who considered his condition a heart attack. The jury didn’t find them responsible. Stella finished high school in Santa Monica, California. Whether she has continued her education at a university is not known, because she doesn’t want to attract public attention and be in the spotlight.
Family background
Stella’s parents met in 1990, when appearing together in the movie “Problem Child”. The next year “Problem Child 2” was filmed, and had a few more projects together.
Amy and John married a year after Stella was born, in 1999. John Ritter had several award nominations, but for his role in “Three’s Company” he won Emmy and Golden Globe Awards in 1984. Both his sons from the first marriage, Jason and Tyler Ritter, are actors as well, and his daughter Carly Ritter is a singer. So, all his children continue his legacy in entertainment. Stella’s grandparents from her father’s side were movie stars too – Tex Ritter was a famous actor and country music singer, and his wife Dorothy Fay was a famous Western movies actress.
Amy Yasbeck founded “The John Ritter Foundation” just weeks after his death to raise awareness of thoracic aortic disease. The foundation is dedicated to education, research and support. In 2008 Amy was on “The Larry King Show” to explain the symptoms and treatment. In 2010 the Foundation with the Thoracic Aortic Disease Coalition released “Ritter Rules” as a help to recognize the symptoms and for prevention. Also, the John Ritter Research Program was established with the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.
In 2010 Amy wrote a book in memory of John “With Love and Laughter: John Ritter”. When Amy was asked in an interview for Access Hollywood as part of the book promotion if Stella remember her dad, she said that ‘she has great memories of John. Stella has a kind of crazy photographic memory anyway and she remembers every… she reminds me of things that he said and did.’ Asked about the book, she said: ‘I have a, you know, a John Ritter-shaped hole in my heart. Nobody can replace that.’
Career
Stella Ritter debuted on the big screen with a small role in the movie “This is My Friend” in 2007.
In 2012 she had a role in “The Namazu”, and the next year appeared as Hannah in the short movie “Hannah Lost Her Smile”. She has worked as a composer too, however, the child actor took a break from acting, especially when she decided to start gender transformation in 2016, since when she’s kept a low profile.
Gender transformation
Stella decided to change her gender when in high school, so when she turned 18, she started the process of transformation.
Stella changed her name and became Noah Lee Ritter; now the process is finished and she lives completely as a male, supported by her mother and siblings. Stella began hormone therapy, so facial hair started to grow and she looks like a man. The news came from a close family friend who was quoted as a source in the media. ‘John would definitely have approved of whatever Stella wants to. He loved her so much,’ the source explained.
Net worth
Noah Lee Ritter’s net worth as of early 2020 is believed to be around $200,000. When his father died, John’s net worth was estimated at $20 million – the family also received $14 million from settlements. Amy Yasbeck’s net worth in 2020 is around $12 million. A few years ago she sold the mansion in Beverly Hills where she lived with John for $ 6, 5 million.
Social media
After becoming Noah Ritter, all his social media accounts were set to private. One of the reasons might be protecting himself from harsh comments since the news broke in public.