NEED TO KNOW
- Joanna Carson was Johnny Carson’s third wife
- The model has died, according to Extra, citing social media posts from friends
- She was married to Johnny from 1972 to 1985
Joanna Carson, the model and third wife of Johnny Carson, has died.
According to Extra, citing social media posts from friends, Joanna’s death was announced privately in July, and her funeral was last week.
The Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation acknowledged Joanna’s death online on Wednesday, July 30.
“Remembering ETAF’s dear friends and supporters, Joanna Carson and Wallis Annenberg, who embodied our Founder, Elizabeth Taylor’s spirit of love and support,” the post said.
PEOPLE has reached out to the Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation for comment.
Johnny met Joanna in 1971 at the 21 Club in New York, where he later recalled to PEOPLE he was “flirting like a sophomore.” Joanna was previously married to Tim Holland from 1960 to 1966 and shared a son.
At the time, Joanna was one of Manhattan’s highest-paid fashion models, and the two spent their first date celebrating Johnny’s 46th birthday. Afterward, he called her every day at 4:30 p.m. for a year.
The two would go on to marry a year later in 1972, the same year that Johnny divorced his second wife, Joanne Copeland. According to a 1978 New Yorker story, Johnny surprised everyone by announcing his marriage to Joanna while celebrating his 10th anniversary at the Tonight Show on Sept. 30, 1972.
Copeland was portrayed by Molly Ringwald in FX’s 2024 series Feud: Capote vs. The Swans. She died in 2015. Johny married his first wife, Joan “Jody” Morrill Wolcott, on Oct. 3, 1949, and the two divorced in 1963, after 14 years of marriage.
Speaking to how Joanna influenced Johnny, actress-turned-L.A. socialite Ruta Lee told PEOPLE in 1983 that “Joanna’s very accomplished at being a woman. I admire her femininity—her accommodation to men.”
Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
“It’s as if she made a study of how Josephine handled Napoleon. I don’t mean she’s manipulative. She just has a wonderfully sensitive approach to men,” she continued. Joanna and Johnny divorced in 1985.
Carson later married Alexis Maas in 1987. They remained together until his death in 2005. He was 79. Carson was also survived by his three children, whom he shared with Wolcott.
Joanna was preceded in death by her son, who died in 1994.
Read the full article here
