Recognize her? Better sit before you learn her true identity…

She was born on June 16th, 1943 in New York City, New York. Joan van Ark was born in New York. Her mother and father did not have any connections to the film industry.

Julie Harris, an actress, was the person Joan met while she was a teenager performing in Denver, and their lives would never be the same after that.

Julie encouraged her to attend Yale Drama School, which is widely considered as one of the best drama schools in the world, and to use a scholarship that she had also established.
As a result, Joan Van Ark became the second woman in the history of the Drama School to enrol there.

She (Harris) sent a letter to the dean, requesting that he visit me in person. “To make a long story short,” Joan remembered, “my parents was the ones who drove me to New Haven, Connecticut, to meet the dean, who provided me with a scholarship.”” It was written in the stars.” Later on, Joan went on to have a few years of experience performing in the theatre, but her true interest was in the field of television.
Because of her performances in Temperature’s Rising, Spider-Woman, Days of Our Lives, and even one episode of Bonanza, Joan enjoyed a great deal of fame and success in the entertainment industry. However, it was in 1978 when she played the character of Valene Ewing on Dallas that she first gained a significant amount of recognition. Ultimately, she was cast in the most significant part she has ever played in her career.

Joan made an appearance on the show’s spin-off, Knots Landing, which was actually written before Dallas. This was due to the fact that the show was considered to be so successful. For the first time, the producers decided to go with Dallas because it was the most suitable option for depicting wealthy houses during that period of time. Following that, Joan was compelled to perform the same role in Dallas rather than joining the cast of Knots Landing’s production.

It was Joan’s husband, the well-known newsreader John Marshall, who was the one who ultimately persuaded her to accept the role despite the fact that she was already contributing to two other projects. There was a time when Val Ewing’s mother was supposed to make her first appearance on television. Julie Harris was selected for the role, which would come as a complete surprise. This individual was the one that meant the most to her out of everyone in the entire globe.

During an interview with Florida Today in 1984, she recounted that she had “held my breath” when the producers informed her that they had finally found someone to play the role of her mother. “Oh my God, I thought to myself, are they going to say Phyllis Diller or Zsa Zsa Gabor, or who is it going to be?” A moment later, they informed me that it was Julie Harris, and I immediately jumped through the roof. The fact that they had chosen her to be my mother was incomprehensible to me. It was completely unknown to them that we were buddies.
After 13 seasons and 327 episodes, Joan quit the show one season before the show’s last season was broadcast on television. Although she was aware that many people blamed her departure on the fact that the show had been cancelled, she was eager to embark on new experiences. What she had to say was, “I have loved more than life the thirteen years that I have had on that show.” “[Knots Landing creator] David Jacobs is a significant figure in my life and has imparted a great deal of knowledge to me regarding a wide range of topics.”

When it comes to the show, Ted (Shackelford) is the other half of every breath I take, and on a personal level, he holds a significant portion of my heart. We have gone through marriages, deaths, and divorces together as a family. The people are my family. My initial assumption was that it would be easier to leave, but no. After after, Joan made an appearance on The Young and the Restless playing the role of Gloria Fisher.
The first time John Marshall met Joan was while they were both in high school, and the couple shortly got married. They are the proud parents of a beautiful girl who goes by the name of Vanessa Marshall and is currently employed in the entertainment sector. The couple has been married for 56 years, and despite the fact that they are still deeply in love with one another, they live incredibly secluded lives away from the public eye.
Despite the fact that she is 78 years old, Joan has amassed a net worth of $10 million and continues to look as stunning as she did when she was seen out and about in Los Angeles. The last time anyone saw her was three years ago, and she was only seen paying for parking at a metre while wearing exercise clothes and a ponytail.

During her most recent and final appearance on screen, she had a co-starring role in the television film Psycho Wedding Crasher, which was released in 2017.

For the past half-century, Joan Van Ark has been employed in the film industry. Recently, she became a life member of The Actor’s Studio. Oh, what a symbol!