What Happened to Joan O’ Brien? Is the Actress Alive or Dead?

Joan O’ Brien is an American actress and singer. She was active mainly during the 1950s and 1960s.

Personal Life

Joan O’ Brien was born on February 14, 1936 Cambridge, Massachusetts. Yup, she was born on Valentine’s Day! Her father is David O’Brien while her mother is named Rita. Their family moved to California when Joan was just a young girl. Later, she was enrolled in dance classes when she was eight years old. For his secondary education, she graduated from Chaffey Union High School in Ontario, California.

She has been married five times and has two children.

Professional Career

Joan O’Brien is undoubtedly a talented singer. She managed to capture the attention of Cliffie Stone, an entertainer and Country Music Hall of Fame member. Stone hired her as a regular performer on his TV show titled “Hometown Jamboree” before she even graduated from high school.

In 1954, O’Brien became a regular on “The Bob Crosby Show.” She was on the show for a long time but left shortly before it was canceled in 1958.  The next year, she co-starred with Cary Grant and Tony Curtis in the movie “Operation Petticoat” where she played the character of Lt. Dolores Crandall. 

Lawrence Welk hired her as a one-week replacement for his champagne lady Alice Lon in July 1959. Afterwards, Joan performed some episodes of the TV series “Bat Masterson.” 

In 1960, O’Brien was cast as Susanna Dickinson in the film “The Alamo.” In that same year, she performed as a soloist for Buddy Bregman who is a composer at the Moulin Rouge nightclub in Los Angeles. In 1961, Joan co-starred with John Wayne in “The Comancheros” portraying the role of Melinda Marshall.

She made two guest appearances on the drama series “Perry Mason” where she played Betty Roberts in “The Case of the Singing Skirt.” In 1965, she portrayed Jill Fenwick in “The Case of the Lover’s Gamble.”

 Joan O’Brien sang with the Harry James band in 1968 when her acting career ended.

What happened to Joan O’ Brien

There have been rumors that former actress and singer Joan O’Brien has passed away. These are not true as O’Brien is still alive and kicking. 

The family says not to believe such groundless rumors and stated that Joan is living her life happily surrounded by her family.

Joan O’ Brien Marriage History

Joan O’ Brien has been married five times. His first marriage was to Billy Strange who was an American actor, singer, composer, and musician. They married in 1954 and divorced in 1956.

Her next marriage was to John Meyers. They tied the knot in 1957 and divorced three years later.

Her third husband was Harvey Allen Godorov. They were married from 1963 to 1964.

Her next husband was Dino Kotopoulis. They were married for one year from 1966 to 1967. 

Joan was later married to Lt. Col. Malcolm Bernard Campbell from 1979 until his death in 2004.

About Post Author