Cary hosts Mrs. Roper Romp, a flamboyant fund-raiser with floral caftans and frizzy wigs

Josh Shaffer

This weekend, expect a flock of bar-hoppers dressed in floral caftans and chunky beaded necklaces flouncing around Cary under frizzy orange wigs, paying flamboyant tribute to Mrs. Roper.

This benefit for the American Cancer Society invites sitcom fans of advancing age and nostalgic taste to join them Saturday in a “Mrs. Roper Romp” in tribute to the “Three’s Company” character famous for her flaming but frustrated sex appetite.

“I have a specialty caftan,” said Melanie McCullough, the nonprofit’s marketing director. “My grandmother gave me a red beaded necklace that was fashionable for her era. I’ve never had a chance to wear it.”

With this romp, Cary joins a nationwide enthusiasm for the curly-top landlady from the 1970s sitcom “Three’s Company,” a mania with its own Facebook page where 34,000 members regularly announce Mrs. Roper-themed cruises, pub crawls and parades — some for charity, some for fun.

Mr. and Mrs. Roper of “Three’s Company” fame, portrayed by Norman Fell and Audra Lindley
Mr. and Mrs. Roper of “Three’s Company” fame, portrayed by Norman Fell and Audra Lindley

Demand for garish Roper-esque garb is heavy enough that Amazon will deliver complete costumes overnight, from wigs to oversized novelty sunglasses.

“I think we could get 50 people there,” said Richard Averitte, the ACS executive director. “As a gathering, maybe that’s not so many, but when it’s 50 people dressed like Helen Roper, that’s a sight.

“What I’m wondering is who’s going to come as Mr. Roper?”

Your ‘Three’s Company’ and Mrs. Roper primer

He concedes, though, that anyone under 40 may need a refresher course on “Three’s Company,” considered racy and daring in its late-’70s run but now comically outdated, enjoyable for kitsch purposes only.

The premise: two single women share a Santa Monica apartment with a single man, who must pretend to be gay and fool the downstairs landlord, who objects to non-married tenants. The “three” include Joyce DeWitt as a florist, Suzanne Somers as a bubblehead with a sideways ponytail and John Ritter, who took pratfalls like a man made of rubber.

Downstairs, Mrs. Roper practically sizzled with oversexed energy, but her sparkle died in every episode at the hands of her indifferent, world-weary spouse, Stanley. A shrewder customer than Mr. Roper, she saw through Ritter’s gay charade and bonded with her younger, hipper neighbors as an alternative to her shlub of a husband.

The scene at a recent Mrs. Roper Romp in Omaha, Nebraska, which drew dozens of imitators.
The scene at a recent Mrs. Roper Romp in Omaha, Nebraska, which drew dozens of imitators.

The zesty life of Mrs. Roper

A sample of their dialogue:

Mrs. Roper: But Stanley, you promised to take me out tonight. I thought were going to go out and have a good time.

Mr. Roper: How can think about having a good time when I want to go to bed?

Mrs. Roper: You’re right that was foolish of me.

Audra Lindley, the actress who created Mrs. Roper and collected a Golden Globe nomination for her performance, died from leukemia in 1997.

But she left an impression deep enough to lovingly recreate after nearly 30 years — a character who chooses zesty life over boredom, flaunting gaudiness for its own sake.

How to go to Mrs. Roper Romp in Cary

The Mrs. Roper Romp starts at 4 p.m. Saturday at The Agency Bar and Social in Cary’s Fenton development. The American Cancer Society is suggesting a donation of $10.

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