# Barbara Tarbuck

Barbara Tarbuck (January 15, 1942 – December 26, 2016) was an American film, television, and stage actress from Detroit, Michigan, best known for her recurring role as Lady Jane Jacks on General Hospital.

## Life and career

Tarbuck was born in Detroit, Michigan. From the ages of 9–13, Tarbuck performed as a regular on the children's series Storyland, which aired on the Detroit AM radio station WWJ. From there, she learned acting skills from veteran actors on radio shows such as The Lone Ranger, The Shadow and The Green Hornet.
Tarbuck attended Cooley High School and Wayne State University. Upon winning the Eva Woodbridge Victor Scholarship, she finished her Bachelors in 1963. While in college, she participated in the production of Where's Charley, which toured through Europe. She also earned her master's degree in Theatre from the University of Michigan. She then went to Indiana University Bloomington to work as the lead actress in their inaugural theatre touring company season.
She began to work on her PhD and taught beginning acting. While at Indiana University, she was granted a Fulbright Scholarship to the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. She then moved to New York City to pursue her acting career in stage, film, and television productions. In her later career, alongside her acting roles, she taught acting at University of California, Los Angeles.
She married James Denis Connolly in 1980; he died in 2005. They had one child, Jennifer Lane Connolly, who is a documentary producer.
Tarbuck developed the neurodegenerative Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease and died due to complications at her Los Angeles home on December 26, 2016.

## Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1979 | Night-Flowers | Arlene | |
| 1986 | Short Circuit | Sen. Mills | |
| 1986 | Big Trouble | Helen | |
| 1990 | The Death of the Incredible Hulk | Amy Pratt | |
| 1991 | Curly Sue | Mrs. Arnold | |
| 1993 | Midnight Witness | Lucy | |
| 1995 | The Tie That Binds | Jean Bennett | |
| 2002 | The Legend of Razorback | Mirna Small | |
| 2003 | Tulse Luper Suitcases: The Moab Story | Ma Fender | |
| 2004 | Walking Tall | Connie Vaughn | |
| 2007 | Gone | Cassandra Windemere | |
| 2008 | Wednesday Again | Rose | |
| 2009 | S. Darko | Agatha | |
| 2014 | The Painting | Professor Edna | |
| 2015 | Come Simi | Lisa | (final film role) |

## Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1979 | The Waltons | Saleslady | Episode: "The Parting" |
| 1979 | The Incredible Hulk | 3rd Nurse | 2 episodes |
| 1979 | Charlie's Angels | Frau Himbeere | Episode: "Rosemary, For Remembrance" |
| 1979 | Dallas | Agnes | 3 episodes |
| 1980 | CBS Afternoon Playhouse | Marion | Episode: "Lost in Death Valley" |
| 1980 | Knots Landing | Sales clerk | Episode: "Courageous Convictions" |
| 1981 | Little House on the Prairie | Beth Tomkins | Episode: "The Lost Ones - Part 2" |
| 1982 | M*A*S*H | Maj. Judy "Parallel" Parker | Episode: "Run for the Money" |
| 1982 | Police Squad! | Mrs. Twice | Episode: "A Substantial Gift (The Broken Promise)" |
| 1982 | Newhart | Ms. Fletcher | Episode: "No Tigers at the Circus" |
| 1982–1986 | Dynasty | Dr. Holton | 2 episodes |
| 1983 | St. Elsewhere | Agnes Najinksy | Episode: "All About Eve" |
| 1983 | Cagney & Lacey | Mrs. Grady | Episode: "Hopes and Dreams" |
| 1984-1985 | Cagney & Lacey | Thelma Samuels | 2 episodes Episodes: "Matinee" and "The Clinic" |
| 1985 | The Twilight Zone | Sarita Rosenthal | Episode: "One Life, Furnished in Early Poverty" |
| 1986–1987 | Falcon Crest | Dr. Randal | 7 episodes |
| 1987 | The Golden Girls | Martha McDowell | Episode: "To Catch a Neighbor" |
| 1987 | Highway To Heaven | Marie Briggs | Episode: "A Night to Remember" |
| 1987 | Knots Landing | Mrs. Schumacher | Episode: "Missing Persons" |
| 1988 | Hunter | Judge Ruth Loomis | Episode: "Boomerang" |
| 1989 | L.A. Law | Dr. Nagel | Episode: "His Suit Is Hirsute" |
| 1989 | Moonlighting | Maddie's Classmate | Episode: "Eine Kleine Nacht Murder " |
| 1989 | 21 Jump Street | Judge Irene Pagota | Episode: "Come from the Shadows" |
| 1990 | The Outsiders | Tim's mother | Episode: "Only the Lonely" |
| 1990 | Dragnet | Martha | Episode: "Copy Cat" |
| 1990 | Santa Barbara | Sister Allegra | 9 episodes |
| 1991 | Star Trek: The Next Generation | Governor Leka Trion | Episode: "The Host" |
| 1991–1992 | Civil Wars | Judge Kaplan | 2 episodes |
| 1992 | Quantum Leap | Esther | Episode: "Roberto! - January 27, 1982" |
| 1992 | Picket Fences | Myra | Episode: "Remembering Rosemary" |
| 1996–2010 | General Hospital | Lady Jane Jacks | 41 episodes |
| 1997 | The Practice | Judge Emily Strong | Episode: "Part V" |
| 1999 | ER | Alice Presley | Episode: "Choosing Joi" |
| 2000 | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | Paige Harmon | 2 episodes |
| 2001 | Judging Amy | Dr. Cody | Episode: "Hold on Tight" |
| 2002 | Star Trek: Enterprise | Chancellor Kalev | Episode: "Shadows of P'Jem" |
| 2002 | Six Feet Under | STD Clinic Doctor | Episode: "In the Game" |
| 2003 | NYPD Blue | Barbara Colohan | 3 episodes |
| 2003 | Without a Trace | Unknown | 2 episodes |
| 2003 | Cold Case | Helen Holtz | Episode: "A Time to Hate" |
| 2004 | NCIS | Mrs. Donaldson | Episode: "UnSEALeD" |
| 2004 | Nip/Tuck | Mrs. Declan | Episode: "Naomi Ganes" |
| 2005 | Medium | Carol Waller Smith | Episode: "Time Out of Mind" |
| 2005 | CSI: NY | Vivian Claven | Episode: "Dancing with the Fishes" |
| 2007 | Journeyman | Grandmother Vasser | Episode: "Home by Another Way" |
| 2011 | Glee | Nancy Bletheim | Episode: "The Purple Piano Project" |
| 2012–2013 | American Horror Story: Asylum | Mother Superior Claudia | 5 episodes |
| 2013 | Mad Men | Hazel Tinsley | Episode: "The Doorway, Part 2" |
| 2013 | Dexter | Sussman's mother | Episode: "Every Silver Lining..." |

## Theatre

| Year | Title | Role |
| 1970 | Landscape and Silence | |
| 1978 | The Water Engine | |
| 1984 | Brighton Beach Memoirs | Kate Jerome |