# Joan Banks

Joan Banks (October 30, 1918 – January 18, 1998) was an American film, television, stage, and radio actress (described as "a soapbox queen"), who often appeared in dramas with her husband, Frank Lovejoy.

## Early life

Banks attended a school of Russian ballet as a little girl and excelled as a swimmer during high school. Her talent earned her a scholarship to the American Academy of Dramatic Art, and she attended Hunter College.

## Career
### Radio

Banks first appeared on radio with Walter O'Keefe in 1936, when she was 18. At that same age, she became the first "feminine stooge" for Stoopnagle and Budd on their show. Her other roles on radio programs include:
| Program | Role |
| Bringing Up Father | Nora |
| Buck Private and His Girl | "snooty" deb |
| Gangbusters | various |
| Her Honor, Nancy James | secretary |
| John's Other Wife | Roberta Lansing |
| My Friend Irma | Jane Stacy |
| The Home of the Brave | N/A |
| Nightbeat | various |
| The O'Neills | Peggy O'Neill Kayden |
| This Day Is Ours | Eleanor MacDonald |
| Valiant Lady | Joan Hargrave-Scott |
| Young Widder Brown | Camilla |

### Film

Banks began her Hollywood career with small roles in such films as Cry Danger (1951) and Washington Story (1952). She became better known in the 1950s and early 1960s for her many appearances as a supporting actress in films such as My Pal Gus.

### Television

On March 25, 1958, Banks co-starred with husband Lovejoy in an episode of his Meet McGraw program. In 1972, Banks appeared in the CBS movie Return to Peyton Place.
She made five appearances on Perry Mason, including four roles as the murderer: in 1957, she played Karen Alder in "The Case of the Negligent Nymph"; in 1958, she played Valerie Brewster in "The Case of the Fancy Figures"; in 1960, she played Mrs. Joseph Manley in "The Case of the Mythical Monkeys"; in 1961, she played Rhonda Houseman in "The Case of the Left-Handed Liar"; and in 1964, she played Nellie Conway in "The Case of the Woeful Widower". In 1958, she appeared as Clara Hood in the episode, "Fatal Memory," on the TV series "Wanted: Dead or Alive." She also made four appearances on National Velvet, two appearances on Alfred Hitchcock Presents, and single appearances on shows such as Ford Theatre, I Love Lucy, Private Secretary, Date with the Angels, The Rough Riders, Mr. Adams and Eve, The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis, Bewitched, and again two appearances on Hazel.
On October 2, 1962, Frank Lovejoy died of a heart attack in bed at the couple's New York residence. At the time, Banks and he were appearing together in a New Jersey stage production of Gore Vidal's play The Best Man, but they had been off the night he was stricken. Banks' career in radio continued after her work in television subsided, and she appeared in 33 episodes of CBS Radio Mystery Theater from 1974 to 1980.

## Personal life

Banks married fellow actor Frank Lovejoy, whom she met when both had roles on the radio soap opera This Day Is Ours. The couple had two children, Judy and Steve. She died of lung cancer on January 18, 1998.

## Filmography

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1950 | Stars Over Hollywood | | Season 1 Episode 5: "Some Small Nobility" |
| 1951 | Cry Danger | Alice Fletcher | |
| 1951 | Bright Victory | Janet Grayson | |
| 1952 | Rebound | | Season 1 Episode 7: "Joker's Wild" |
| 1952 | Washington Story | Mrs. Vatek | |
| 1952 | My Pal Gus | Ivy Tolliver | |
| 1953–1954 | Four Star Playhouse | Laughing Woman (uncredited) / Madeline / Celeste | 3 episodes |
| 1953–1955 | Private Secretary | Sylvia Platt | 13 episodes (Recurring role) |
| 1954 | I Love Lucy | Eleanor Harris | Season 3 Episode 17: "Fan Magazine Interview" |
| 1954 | Robert Montgomery Presents | | Season 6 Episode 3: "Two Wise Women" |
| 1954–1955 | The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show | Alice Rogers / Miss Gardner | 2 episodes |
| 1955 | The Star and the Story | Estelle | Season 1 Episode 5: "Safe Journey" |
| 1955 | Make Room for Daddy | | Season 2 Episode 21: "Danny Tries Real Estate" |
| 1955 | Stage 7 | Letty Bowman / Fran | 2 episodes |
| 1956 | Star Stage | | Season 1 Episode 21: "Screen Credit" |
| 1956 | It's a Great Life | Salesgirl | Season 2 Episode 27: "All for Amy" |
| 1956 | December Bride | Mary Lou Bigelow | Season 2 Episode 31: "Swimming Pool" |
| 1956 | The Ford Television Theatre | Hilda Pomeroy | Season 4 Episode 39: "A Part Remembered" |
| 1956 | The Charles Farrell Show | Karen Grant | Season 1 Episode 3: "Fatal Charm" |
| 1956–1957 | Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Margaret / Lee | 2 episodes |
| 1957 | Schlitz Playhouse of Stars | | Season 6 Episode 19: "One Left Over" |
| 1957 | Mister Cory | Lily | |
| 1957 | The Millionaire | Ruth Ferris | Season 4 Episode 7: "The Ruth Ferris Story" |
| 1957 | Goodyear Theatre | Cynthia Roland | Season 1 Episode 4: "Voices in the Fog" |
| 1957 | Code 3 | Bonnie Benson | Season 1 Episode 39: "The Benson Case" |
| 1957–1958 | Meet McGraw | Laura / Doris Stark | 2 episodes |
| 1957–1964 | Perry Mason | Karen Alder / Valerie Brewster / Mrs. Manley / Rhonda Houseman / Nellie Conway | 5 episodes |
| 1958 | Date with the Angels | Dottie | Season 2 Episode 18: "The Train" |
| 1958 | Mr. Adams and Eve | Lovey | Season 2 Episode 29: "The Lovey Doveys" |
| 1958 | Mike Hammer | Sandra Ryan | Season 1 Episode 19: "Music to Die By" |
| 1958 | State Trooper | Edna Linkman | Season 2 Episode 31: "Hardrock Man" |
| 1958 | Wanted: Dead or Alive | Clara Hood | Season 1 Episode 2: "Fatal Memory" |
| 1958 | Zane Grey Theatre | Melanie Fleming | Season 3 Episode 5: "Legacy of a Legend" |
| 1959 | Colonel Humphrey Flack | Deborah | Season 2 Episode 29: "Colonel Flack's New Muffler" |
| 1959 | The David Niven Show | Nora | Season 1 Episode 5: "The Twist of the Key" |
| 1959 | The Rough Riders | Norah Eddiman | Season 1 Episode 35: "The Wagon Raiders" |
| 1959 | Philip Marlowe | | Season 1 Episode 4: "Death in the Family" |
| 1960 | Richard Diamond, Private Detective | Lee Swinnerton | Season 3 Episode 34: "The Fine Art of Murder" |
| 1960 | Hawaiian Eye | Aunt 'Birdie' Birdwell | Season 1 Episode 17: "Then There Were Three" |
| 1960 | The DuPont Show with June Allyson | June | Season 1 Episode 28: "Surprise Party" |
| 1960 | The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis | Mrs. Edna Gilroy | Season 1 Episode 37: "Here Comes the Groom" |
| 1960 | Let's Make Love | Secretary | Uncredited |
| 1961 | Return to Peyton Place | Mrs. Humphries | Uncredited |
| 1961–1962 | Hazel | Francesca Kettering / Jane Edwards | 2 episodes |
| 1961–1962 | National Velvet | Mrs. Helen Hadley | 4 episodes |
| 1967 | Bewitched | Margaret Baxter | Season 4 Episode 7: "Birdies, Bogies and Baxter" |