Joan van Ark was born on June 16, 1943, in New York City, New York. Her parents were not connected to the film industry.
When Joan was a teenager acting in Denver, she met actress Julie Harris, and their lives would never be the same.
Julie pushed her to go to the highly regarded Yale Drama School and gain admission using a scholarship she had also set up.
This made Joan Van Ark the second-ever woman to enroll at the Drama School
She [Harris] wrote to the dean and asked him to meet me. “Long story short, my parents drove me to New Haven, Connecticut, to meet the dean, who gave me a scholarship,” Joan recalled.” It was meant to be.” Joan went on to perform in the theatre for a few years, but her real passion was in Television.
Temperature’s Rising, Spider-Woman, and Days of Our Lives
Joan achieved enormous renown as a result of her roles in Temperature’s Rising, Spider-Woman, Days of Our Lives, and even one Bonanza episode. But her role as Valene Ewing on Dallas in 1978 was where she first achieved great popularity. She ended up playing the most important role she has ever had.
Because of how popular the show was, Joan appeared on its spin-off, Knots Landing. a program that was actually written prior to Dallas. Dallas was initially chosen by the producers because it was the best option for portraying affluent households at the time. Joan was then forced to play the same part in Dallas instead of joining the Knots Landing cast.
13 Seasons of Knots Landing ensued for Joan Van Ark
The person who actually convinced Joan to accept the part while already working on two other projects was her husband, renowned newscaster John Marshall. There was a moment when Val Ewing’s mother was scheduled to make her television debut. Surprise, surprise—Julie Harris was chosen for the position. The person who mattered the most to her in all the world was this.
“When the producers told me they had finally last someone to play my mother, I held my breath,” she recalled in a 1984 interview with Florida Today. “I thought, ‘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 went right through the roof. I couldn’t believe they had picked her to be my mother. They didn’t even know we were friends.”
327 Episodes later, Joan Van Ark was ready for new ventures
13 Seasons and 327 episodes later, Joan left a season before the show saw its final season air. She knew many blamed her leaving on the cancellation of the show, but she was ready for new adventures. “I have loved more than life the 13 years I’ve had on that show,” she said. “[Knots Landing creator] David Jacobs is a great influence on my life, has taught me so much about so many things.”
“Ted [Shackelford] is the other half of every breath I take on the show, and personally, he’s a large part of my heart. The people are my family–we have shared marriages, deaths, and divorces. It’s far more difficult to leave than I thought.” Joan thereafter appeared on The Young and The Restless as Gloria Fisher.
In high school, John Marshall first met Joan, and the two quickly got married. They have a lovely daughter named Vanessa Marshall who works in the entertainment industry at the moment. After 56 years of marriage, the pair is still very much in love and leads extremely private lives away from the spotlight.
78 years old with a net worth of $10 million
At 78 years old, Joan has amassed a $10 million net worth and is still as gorgeous as ever when seen out and about in Los Angeles. She was last seen three years ago and was just seen paying for parking at a meter while wearing workout clothes and a ponytail.
She co-starred in the 2017 television film Psycho Wedding Crasher, which was her most recent and final appearance on screen.
Joan Van Ark, who has worked in the film industry for the past 50 years, has joined The Actor’s Studio as a life member. What an icon!
The Taste of Love: A Father’s Tribute
The kitchen, once a haven of warmth and laughter, now echoed with the clatter of pots and pans. John, a man more accustomed to spreadsheets than soufflés, stood amidst the chaos, his brow furrowed in concentration. Pancake batter, a lumpy, greenish-grey concoction, clung stubbornly to the sides of the bowl. His wife, Sarah, would have laughed, her eyes twinkling.
He missed her laughter. He missed her easy grace in the kitchen, the way she hummed along to the radio while whipping up culinary magic. He missed the way she’d kiss his cheek and say, “Don’t worry, darling, I’ve got this.” Now, he was adrift in a sea of burnt toast and forgotten recipes, his kitchen a battlefield rather than a haven.
His daughter, Lily, a bright-eyed girl of eight, watched him with a mixture of amusement and concern. “Dad,” she’d say, her voice gentle, “It’s okay if it’s not perfect.” But her words, meant to comfort, only served to deepen his sense of inadequacy. He longed to recreate the magic of Sarah’s cooking, to fill the void left by her absence with the comforting aroma of home-cooked meals.
One morning, determined to surprise Lily, John decided to try his hand at heart-shaped pancakes. He watched countless online tutorials, meticulously measuring ingredients, and even invested in a heart-shaped pan. The batter, this time, was a pale golden color, smooth and even. He poured it carefully into the pan, his heart pounding with a mixture of hope and trepidation.
Lily, ever the curious observer, watched him with wide eyes. “What are you making, Daddy?” she asked, her voice filled with excitement.
“Something special,” he replied, his voice a little hoarse.
As the pancakes cooked, a wave of memories washed over him. He remembered Sarah’s laughter, her playful banter with Lily, the warmth that radiated from their kitchen. He remembered the way Lily would eagerly devour Sarah’s pancakes, her face smeared with syrup.
Finally, he flipped the pancakes, his breath catching in his throat. They were golden brown and perfectly heart-shaped. He carefully transferred them to plates, adding a generous dollop of butter and a drizzle of maple syrup.
Lily’s eyes widened as she saw the pancakes. “Wow, Daddy!” she exclaimed, her voice filled with awe. “They look just like Mommy used to make!”
John’s heart swelled. He watched as Lily took a bite, her eyes closing in delight. “It tastes like the ones Mom made!” she declared, her voice filled with happiness.
Tears welled up in John’s eyes. He knew it wasn’t perfect, that the edges were a little burnt and the syrup a bit messy. But in that moment, it didn’t matter. He had made Lily smile. He had brought a little bit of Sarah back into their lives, one delicious pancake at a time.
From that day on, John continued to cook, his kitchen slowly transforming from a battlefield into a sanctuary. He learned new recipes, experimented with flavors, and even found himself enjoying the process. He knew he would never fully replace Sarah, but he could learn to cook with love, with memory, and with the hope of creating new memories with his daughter. And that, he realized, was a gift in itself.
Leave a Reply