Joanne Gardner
| Joanne Gardner | |||||||||||||||||||
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Joanne in 1955.
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| Search for Tomorrow character | |||||||||||||||||||
| Portrayed by | Mary Stuart | ||||||||||||||||||
| Duration | 1951–86 | ||||||||||||||||||
| First appearance | September 3, 1951 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Last appearance | December 26, 1986 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Created by | Roy Winsor | ||||||||||||||||||
| Profile | |||||||||||||||||||
| Occupation | Housewife Proprietor of the Motor Haven Inn Hospital Librarian Hospital Personnel Director City Councilwoman Amateur Singer |
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| Residence | Henderson, USA | ||||||||||||||||||
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| Father | Frank Gardner |
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| Mother | Helen Gardner |
| Sisters | Eunice Gardner Wyatt (deceased) |
| Spouse | Keith Barron (1945–52) Arthur Tate (1955–66) Dr. Tony Vincente (1972–75) Martin Tourneur (1980–84) |
| Sons | Duncan Eric Tate |
| Daughters | Patti Tate |
| Stepsons | Cord Tourneur |
| Granddaughters | Sarah Whitting |
| Nieces | Suzi Martin |
Joanne "Jo" Gardner is a fictional character from the long-running soap opera Search for Tomorrow. The role was played by actress Mary Stuart for the show's entire run (1951-86). Joanne was married four times, making her full legal name Joanne Gardner Barron Tate Vincente Tourneur.
A "salt of the earth" kind of heroine, Stuart's character was the understanding best friend who would love to (and often did) commiserate with other characters about their sorrows over coffee. She frequently counseled best friends Stu and Marge Bergman. Her role shifted in the 1970s to counseling younger women on the program, when the actress who played Marge died, and Stu was given his own story.
Even when truly dismayed by actions (such as sister Eunice sleeping with her husband, or her daughter willfully marrying into a family who wanted to alienate her from her mother), she usually forgave offenders who showed true remorse. She got a reputation for being "simple-minded" by forgiving and forgetting, as other characters (Irene Barron in the early days, Aunt Cornelia Simmons, Patti's in-law Andrea Whiting, and Stephanie Wilkins later) saw her to be weak and attempted to prey upon her. In true soap opera fashion, however, it was Joanne's rivals who ate crow.
Joanne was raised in the city of Henderson somewhere in the U.S. Midwest. Her parents were Frank Gardner, an accountant, and Helen Gardner, a housewife. Helen died of heart disease in the mid-1950s. Joanne has at least one sibling, a sister named Eunice, who came to town and slept with Joanne's second husband Arthur Tate. However, Eunice reformed, apologized to Joanne, and became part of the family again.
Joanne attended Wilson Grammar School, Henderson High School and attended Henderson College (later Henderson University) for two years before marrying Keith Barron.
Joanne was whisked away from her college studies by wealthy Keith Barron, who married her and bought her a house in the town of Henderson. Shortly after, she gave birth to a daughter named Patricia (nicknamed Patti).
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