Joan van Ark was born on June 16, 1943, in New York City, New York, to parents who had no ties to Hollywood. Joan’s life would change forever when she met actress Julie Harris while performing in Denver as an adolescent. Julie pushed her to apply to the prestigious Yale Drama School, which she had already arranged a grant for.
Joan Van Ark became the Drama School’s second female student.
She [Harris] wrote to the dean and requested that we meet. “To make a long tale short, my parents drove me to New Haven, Connecticut, to meet the dean, who granted me a scholarship,” Joan explained. “That was fated to be.” Joan went on to work in the theater for a few years, but her true love was television.
The temperature is rising, Spider-Woman is back, and Days of Our Lives is back.
Joan’s roles in Temperature’s Rising, Spider-Woman, Days of Our Lives, and even one episode of Bonanza catapulted her to stardom. Yet it wasn’t until 1978 that she achieved actual celebrity, as Valene Ewing on Dallas. Then again, who doesn’t?
Joan appeared on the spin-off, Knots Landing, after the show became a huge hit. A show that was created before Dallas. The portrayal of wealthy families was at the top of the producers’ list at the time, so they chose Dallas. Joan was forced to leave Dallas to join the cast of Knots Landing.
Knots in 13 Seasons Joan Van Ark was able to land.
Joan’s husband, experienced newscaster John Marshall, was the one who persuaded her to accept the job despite the fact that she was already working on two other projects. Val Ewing’s mother was gonna be introduced on the show at some point. Julie Harris, surprise, surprise, was chosen for the part. This was the person who meant everything to her.
“I held my breath when the filmmakers told me they had finally found someone to play my mother,” she recounted in a 1984 interview with Florida Today. “Oh my God, are they going to say Phyllis Diller or Zsa Zsa Gabor, or who?” Then they said it was Julie Harris, and I nearly passed out. I couldn’t believe she’d been chosen to be my mother. “They had no idea we were friends.”
Joan Van Ark was ready for fresh adventures 327 episodes later.
Joan left the show a season before the show’s last season aired, 13 seasons and 327 episodes later. Several people blamed her departure on the show’s cancellation, but she was ready for new adventures. “I’ve loved that program more than life in the 13 years I’ve been on it,” she remarked. “[Knots Landing creator] David Jacobs has been a huge impact in my life, teaching me so much about so many topics.”
“Ted [Shackelford] is the other half of every breath I take on the show, and he’s a big part of my heart,” he says. The individuals are my family; we’ve been through marriages, deaths, and divorces together. It’s much more tough to leave than I anticipated.” Joan later played Gloria Fisher on The Young and the Restless.
Joan married her high school sweetheart, unlike many other celebrities.
Joan Marshall and John Marshall met in high school and married soon after. They have a lovely daughter named Vanessa Marshall, who is also in the entertainment industry. After 56 years of marriage, the pair is still profoundly in love and leads very private lives away from the spotlight.
Joan has a net worth of $10 million, and at the age of 78, she appears to be as stylish as ever, as seen out and about in Los Angeles. She was last seen three years ago, paying her parking meter while wearing workout clothes and a ponytail.
Other roles include Frogs (1972), My First Love (1988), The Last Dinosaur (1977), Shakedown on the Sunset Strip (1988), and Tainted Blood (1993), among many others. Joan appeared in several cameos, including the TV shows Curious George (2021) and Doom Patrol (2019).
Joan has just begun to dabble with voice acting.
Her most recent and final appearance was in the 2017 television film Psycho Wedding Crasher. Joan Van Ark, a member of The Actor’s Studio for the past five decades, has become a life member. What an icon!
