Joanna Barnes

Biography

Joanna Barnes (b. 15 November 1934, Boston, Massachusetts) is an American actress and writer. Barnes moved to Los Angeles, California soon after finishing her education, and took up a contract with Columbia Pictures. She has since had roles in more than 20 films and made guest appearances on many television shows, including 77 Sunset Strip, Maverick, and Have Gun - Will Travel. Her performance in the 1958 film Auntie Mame as the snooty 'Gloria Upson' earned her a Golden Globe nomination for "New Star of the Year." She portrayed Lola in the 1959 NBC-TV detective series, 21 Beacon Street. Barnes became the 13th actress to play Jane when she appeared in Tarzan, the Ape Man (1959), opposite Denny Miller as Tarzan. Barnes worked for producer Martin Ransohoff in the 1960s, appearing in episodes of his The Beverly Hillbillies (Elly Goes to School and The Clampett Look) and was billed as special guest-star. Barnes played Peter Falk's ex-wife on the 1965–66 CBS series The Trials of O'Brien and was host of the ABC daytime talk show Dateline: Hollywood in 1967. During this period she appeared in The War Wagon, a lavish western movie starring John Wayne and Kirk Douglas, which she touted tirelessly on her show. She was also a frequent panelist in the early years of the syndicated version of What's My Line? On December 19, 1972 Barnes appeared on the Merv Griffin Show with Joan Fontaine, Zsa Zsa Gabor, and Dan Martino founder of the Dan Martino School for Men. She is also a distinguished writer and columnist. Her column, Touching Home, was carried by The Chicago Tribune and the New York News Syndicate. She has also published several novels, including The Deceivers (1970), Pastora (1980), and Silverwood (1985). On June 24 1962, she married actor Lawrence Dobkin; they had no children, but she inherited four (4) stepchildren from Dobkin's first marriage. In the original Parent Trap (1961), she played the gold-digger, Vicki Robinson, who temporarily comes between Maureen O'Hara and Brian Keith. In the latest remake, Barnes played Vicky Blake, the mother of the gold-digging girlfriend character.