'Step by Step' Cast Reunites at 90s Con and Remembers Suzanne Somers 5 Months After Her Death (2024)

The cast of Step by Step is reflecting on their most cherished memories with their late co-star Suzanne Somers.

At 90s Con on Sunday, stars Patrick Duffy,Staci Keanan, Angela Watson,Christine Lakin, Christopher Castile,Jason Marsdenand Sasha Mitchell reunited for the first time since Somers died in October, just shy of age 77. While at the Connecticut Convention Center in Hartford, Connecticut, the actors took the opportunity to honor Somers and her legacy.

"Suzanne gave the most beautiful, thoughtful gifts and she was a person of immense style and glamour in her real life, and I will never forget [that] and I still have them. One Christmas, she gave me a pair of Prada, cashmere tights," Keanan, 48, said. "Okay, so it's Prada. You know, fancy and everything. But beyond that, she was like, 'These will keep you warm. And even if you have a long skirt, you could just wear these underneath to keep you warm.' [It was] so sweet. She will be missed."

Chiming in, Lakin, 45, began, "I think watching her as a young person, [I] would see her on television. I watched a lot of reruns growing up, so I knew Three's Company. I didn't know Dallas, sorry."

"Growing up with her and watching her as a woman, as a businesswoman, as someone who was a huge star who had a bright light, who was so gorgeous, who was also so down to Earth and someone I just really admired," she continued. "She was someone that made me think as a young female in Hollywood, you can be kind and you can be generous and you can be successful and all of those things don't have to be mutually exclusive."

"She was so sweet and loving," she added. "Her heart was so big, and we really miss her."

As for Watson, she recalled a memory the pair shared from their time on the hit sitcom. "For me, it was being able to do the mother-daughter reunion pageant where we tap dance together and sang. ... That was so amazing. Like, the highlight of my career," she said.

Marsden, 49, recalled a moment where he once got to "smooch" Somers in a blooper reel, calling her a "lovely, amazing, human being."

PEOPLE exclusively revealed the cast of the hit series, which ran from 1991 to 1998 for seven seasons, was set to reunite at the fan convention in January. The series followed the blended Foster-Lambert family navigating life together.

The reunion comes five months after Somers died in October 2023 from breast cancer just one day before her 77th birthday. She was first diagnosed in 2000.

At the time, her publicist R. Couri Hay confirmed her death to PEOPLE and shared a statement on behalf of her family. "Suzanne Somers passed away peacefully at home in the early morning hours of October 15th. She survived an aggressive form of breast cancer for over 23 years," Hay said.

"Suzanne was surrounded by her loving husband Alan, her son Bruce, and her immediate family," he statement continued. "Her family was gathered to celebrate her 77th birthday on October 16th. Instead, they will celebrate her extraordinary life, and want to thank her millions of fans and followers who loved her dearly."

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE's free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Several of the actress' Step by Step costars spoke out about losing their former co-worker and friend shortly after she died.

At the time of her death, Duffy called the Three's Company star a "dear and deep friend" and said that he would miss "the phone calls, the emails, the visits, and the meals and laughter" in a moving statement to PEOPLE.

"I am not alone in wishing I had one more face-to-face with her and [her husband]Alan, but had we had that meeting last Friday I would still be yearning for just one more today," he shared. "It is the painful beauty of our present human reality. What strength and support I can muster I send to Alan and [her son]Bruceand her family and to her I say; When the stone of your life dropped in this pond you made quite a ripple my friend. Thank you.”

Keanan also told PEOPLE that the TV icon was "universally adored on the set of Step by Step" and felt as though "to know her was to love her." She said, "As her 'TV daughter,' she was so warm and nurturing towards me. I thought she was just flawless. I will miss her, but was just lucky to have known her."

Lakin, meanwhile, posted a thoughtful tribute on Instagram. In the post, she described Somers as "the most glamorous person" she had ever met, with a "warmth and humor" that made her "real and down to earth."

"She was an icon yes, but she was also an inspiration in the early fight for equal pay in the entertainment industry," Lakin wrote "She was a 2nd mom of sorts to me in for formative years of my childhood. She had the best relationship with Patrick Duffy and the two of the them set the tone for what was an idyllic set experience."

The cast's 90s Con appearance marked their first major reunion in years, though they have been known to remain in touch over the years. In 2018, Keanan, Duffy and Lakin got back together for a chat on Lakin's Worst Ever Podcast.