Laura Johnson is an American actress. She is best known for playing
Terry Hartford in the CBS primetime
soap opera
A soap opera (also called a daytime drama or soap) is a genre of a long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term ''soap opera'' originat ...
''
Falcon Crest
''Falcon Crest'' is an American prime time television soap opera created by Earl Hamner Jr. that aired for nine seasons on CBS from December 4, 1981, to May 17, 1990. The series revolves around the feuding factions of the wealthy Gioberti/Cha ...
'' from 1983 to 1986.
Career
Johnson made her film debut in the 1977 drama film ''
Opening Night'' directed by
John Cassavetes
John Nicholas Cassavetes (December 9, 1929 – February 3, 1989) was an American filmmaker and actor. He began as an actor in film and television before helping to pioneer modern American independent cinema as a writer and director, often self- ...
and starring
Gena Rowlands
Virginia Cathryn "Gena" Rowlands (; June 19, 1930 – August 14, 2024) was an American actress, whose career in film, stage, and television spanned nearly seven decades. She was a four-time Emmy, Emmy Award and two-time Golden Globe winner, and ...
. From 1979 to 1980, she had a recurring role as Betty Lou Barker in the CBS prime time soap opera ''
Dallas
Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...
''. In 1983, she was cast as
Terry Hartford in another CBS prime time soap opera, ''
Falcon Crest
''Falcon Crest'' is an American prime time television soap opera created by Earl Hamner Jr. that aired for nine seasons on CBS from December 4, 1981, to May 17, 1990. The series revolves around the feuding factions of the wealthy Gioberti/Cha ...
'' playing this role to 1986.
In 1986, she received a
''Soap Opera Digest'' Award nomination for Outstanding Villainess on a Prime Time Serial.
Johnson appeared in a number of movies, include ''
Beyond Reason'' (1985), ''
Wes Craven's Chiller'' (1985), ''Fatal Instinct'' (1992), ''
Trauma
Trauma most often refers to:
*Psychological trauma, in psychology and psychiatric medicine, refers to severe mental and emotional injury caused by distressing events
*Traumatic injury, sudden physical injury caused by an external force, which doe ...
'' (1993), ''Deadly Exposure'' (1993), ''
Four Christmases
''Four Christmases'' is a 2008 American Christmas comedy-drama film starring Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon with Robert Duvall, Jon Favreau, Mary Steenburgen, Dwight Yoakam, Tim McGraw, Kristin Chenoweth, Jon Voight, and Sissy Spacek in suppo ...
'' (2008) and ''
Fame'' (2009). From 1988 to 1989, she played one of leads in the ABC medical drama series ''
Heartbeat'' produced by
Aaron Spelling
Aaron Spelling (April 22, 1923June 23, 2006) was an American film and television producer and occasional actor. His productions included the television series ''Family'' (1976–1980), ''Charlie's Angels'' (1976–1981), ''The Love Boat'' (1977� ...
. From 1998 to 1999, she played a leading role in the syndicated television family drama ''Born Free''. Johnson also guest starred in a number of shows, include ''
Hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...
'', ''
L.A. Law
''L.A. Law'' is an American legal drama television series created by Steven Bochco and Terry Louise Fisher for NBC. It ran for eight seasons and List of L.A. Law episodes, 172 episodes from September 15, 1986, to May 19, 1994.
The series cente ...
'', ''
In the Heat of the Night'', ''
Nash Bridges
''Nash Bridges'' is an American police procedural television series created by Carlton Cuse. The show stars Don Johnson and Cheech Marin as two Inspectors with the San Francisco Police Department's Special Investigations Unit (SIU).
The seri ...
'', ''
Strong Medicine
''Strong Medicine'' is an American medical drama with a focus on feminist politics, health issues and class conflict that aired on the Lifetime network from 2000 to 2006. It was created and produced in part by Whoopi Goldberg, who made cam ...
'' and ''
Monk
A monk (; from , ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a man who is a member of a religious order and lives in a monastery. A monk usually lives his life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many reli ...
''.
Personal life
Johnson was born in
Burbank, California
Burbank is a city in the southeastern end of the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Located northwest of downtown Los Angeles, Burbank had a Census-estimated population of 102,755 as of 2023. The city was ...
. She was first married to producer David Solomon, and then to actor
Harry Hamlin
Harry Robinson Hamlin (born October 30, 1951) is an American actor, author, and entrepreneur. He is best known for his roles as Perseus in the 1981 fantasy film '' Clash of the Titans'', a role he reprised in 2007's Santa Monica Studio video ...
from 1985 to 1989.
Filmography
*''
Opening Night'' (1977) as Nancy Stein
*''
Beyond Reason'' (1977) as Leslie Valentine
*''
Dallas
Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...
'' as Betty Lou (3 episodes, 1979-1980)
*''Fly Away Home'' (1981) as Chickie
*''
Hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...
'' as Natasha Cellini (1 episode, 1985)
*''
Wes Craven's Chiller'' (1985) as Leigh Kenyon (TV movie)
*''
Falcon Crest
''Falcon Crest'' is an American prime time television soap opera created by Earl Hamner Jr. that aired for nine seasons on CBS from December 4, 1981, to May 17, 1990. The series revolves around the feuding factions of the wealthy Gioberti/Cha ...
'' as
Terry Hartford Ranson Channing (80 episodes, 1983–1986)
*''
L.A. Law
''L.A. Law'' is an American legal drama television series created by Steven Bochco and Terry Louise Fisher for NBC. It ran for eight seasons and List of L.A. Law episodes, 172 episodes from September 15, 1986, to May 19, 1994.
The series cente ...
'' as Nina Hollender (2 episodes, 1987)
*''Red River'' (1988) as Kate
*''
Heartbeat'' as Dr. Eve Autrey (18 episodes, 1988–1989)
*''
Nick Knight'' (1989) as Dr. Alyce Hunter
*''
Jake and the Fatman
''Jake and the Fatman'' is an American crime drama television series starring William Conrad as prosecutor J. L. (Jason Lochinvar) "Fatman" McCabe and Joe Penny as investigator Jake Styles. Created by Dean Hargrove and Joel Steiger, the ser ...
'' as Ms. Amelie Saint-John (episode "More than you know", 1990)
*''Murderous Vision'' (1991) as Elizabeth
*''
Red Shoe Diaries
''Red Shoe Diaries'' is an American erotic drama anthology series that aired on Showtime from 1992 to 1997, and was distributed by Playboy Entertainment, but as of 2025, Paramount Global Content Distribution overseas. It is a spin-off of the t ...
'' (1992) episode "Double Dare"
*''Fatal Instinct'' (1992) as Catherine Merrims
*''
Trauma
Trauma most often refers to:
*Psychological trauma, in psychology and psychiatric medicine, refers to severe mental and emotional injury caused by distressing events
*Traumatic injury, sudden physical injury caused by an external force, which doe ...
'' (1993) as Grace Harrington
*''
Paper Hearts'' (1993) as Patsy
*''Deadly Exposure'' (1993) as Rita Sullivan
*' (1993) as Wendy Hill
*''
Marked for Murder
''Marked for Murder'' is a 1945 American Western film written and directed by Elmer Clifton. The film stars Dave O'Brien, Tex Ritter and Guy Wilkerson, with Marilyn McConnell, Ed Cassidy and Henry Hall. The film was released on 8 February 19 ...
'' (1993) as Dr. Jean Horton
*''Awake to Danger'' (1995) as Renee McAdams
*''
Judge and Jury'' (1996) as Grace Silvano
*''Mr. Atlas'' (1997) as Teddie Nielsen
*''
Born Free
''Born Free'' is a 1966 British drama film starring the real-life couple Virginia McKenna and Bill Travers as Joy and George Adamson, another real-life couple, who raised Elsa the Lioness, an orphaned lion cub, to adulthood and released h ...
'' as Kate McQueen (25 episodes, 1998–1999)
*''
And the Beat Goes On'' (1999) as Georgia LaPierre
*''California Myth'' (1999) as Angie
*''
Nash Bridges
''Nash Bridges'' is an American police procedural television series created by Carlton Cuse. The show stars Don Johnson and Cheech Marin as two Inspectors with the San Francisco Police Department's Special Investigations Unit (SIU).
The seri ...
'' as Simon/Darlene Peck (1 episode, 2000)
*''
Hope Ranch'' (2002) as Sam Brooks
*''
Strong Medicine
''Strong Medicine'' is an American medical drama with a focus on feminist politics, health issues and class conflict that aired on the Lifetime network from 2000 to 2006. It was created and produced in part by Whoopi Goldberg, who made cam ...
'' as Claudia Chase (1 episode, 2002)
*''
JAG'' as Mrs. Kubin (1 episode, 2003)
*''
The Long Shot'' (2004) as Bonnie McCloud
*''The Hollywood Mom's Mystery'' (2004) as Francine Palumbo
*''
Red Eye'' (2005) as Blonde Woman
*''
Cold Case
''Cold Case'' is an American police procedural crime drama television series. It ran on CBS from September 28, 2003, to May 2, 2010. The series revolved around a fictionalized Philadelphia Police Department division that specializes in invest ...
'' as Rita Hart (1 episode, 2006)
*''
Without a Trace
''Without a Trace'' is an American police procedural drama television series created by Hank Steinberg that aired on CBS from September 26, 2002, to May 19, 2009 with the total of seven seasons and 160 episodes. The series focuses the cases of ...
'' as Kim Wolfe (1 episode, 2006)
*''
Four Christmases
''Four Christmases'' is a 2008 American Christmas comedy-drama film starring Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon with Robert Duvall, Jon Favreau, Mary Steenburgen, Dwight Yoakam, Tim McGraw, Kristin Chenoweth, Jon Voight, and Sissy Spacek in suppo ...
'' (2008) as Cheryl
*''
Fame'' (2009) as Mrs. Ellerton
*''
The Storm'' as Anne Cambridge (1 episode, 2009)
*''
Monk
A monk (; from , ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a man who is a member of a religious order and lives in a monastery. A monk usually lives his life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many reli ...
'' as Carolyn Buxton (1 episode, 2009)
*''
Mental
Mental may refer to:
* of or relating to the mind
Films
* ''Mental'' (2012 film), an Australian comedy-drama film starring Toni Collette
* ''Mental'' (2016 film), a Bangladeshi romantic-action film starring Shakib Khan
* ''Mental'', a 2008 docu ...
'' as Georgia Riede (1 episode, 2009)
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Laura
Actresses from Burbank, California
American soap opera actresses
American television actresses
Living people
American film actresses
20th-century American actresses
21st-century American actresses
Year of birth missing (living people)