Actor Joanna Johnson may be best known for her multi-season role as Caroline Spencer (and then her identical twin Karen) on the dishy soap The Bold and The Beautiful. Now, she’s back on the show (as Karen) with an art-imitating-life-imitating-art storyline: her character has been secretly living as a lesbian, which ties in perfectly with Johnson’s decision to come out of the closet herself!
Johnson, 50, told TV Guide that she’s married to club promoter Michelle Agnew (co-owner of Fuse Events in L.A.), with whom she has two children. On BATB, Karen is married to a great lady named Dani (played by Crystal Chappell, who stars in the lesbian-themed web soap Venice) and they are raising a young daughter.
Johnson also said that she knew she was gay in her early 20’s, around the time she started playing Caroline on The Bold and The Beautiful, but “didn’t have the nerve” to come out. “We didn’t have role models like Ellen. I’m not anywhere near as famous…but I guess it’s my turn to do my little part. It’s time to live a fully authentic life,” she told TV Guide.
In addition to acting, Johnson created the sitcom Hope & Faith, starring Kelly Ripa and Faith Ford; she’s the co-executive producer of USA’s hit series Fairly Legal, and she’s also written and co-executive produced ABC’s Make it or Break it.
