"Three's Company"'s producers were eager to capitalize on these spin-offs. In 1979, they had spun off "The Ropers", based on "George and Mildred", but the show ran for only one and a half seasons. Executive producers Ted Bergmann and Don Taffner attempted to adapt the "Robin's Nest" series, but without John Ritter. A pilot for a series called "Byrd's Nest" was written with the same premise as "Robin's Nest", with a young man living with his older girlfriend and her disapproving father, who owns the building in which they live. The series was planned as a spin-off from "Three's Company" and possibly a vehicle for Richard Kline, but ABC passed on the idea. As "Three's Company" entered its eighth season in September 1983, ratings took a dive in the face of stiff competition from the new NBC series "The A-Team", and ABC approved the development of a new series to be called "Three's a Crowd", starring Ritter.