Marlene Clark, Sanford and Son Star, Dies at 85
Ganja & Hess star Marlene Clark died on the same day as her Slaughter co-star Jim Brown.
Marlene Clark, an actress and model who rose to fame in the 1970s, has passed away. Per
THR, Clark died at her home in Los Angeles on May 18, though no cause of death was immediately revealed. She was 85 years old.
Clark started her career in show business as a fashion model before finding her way in acting in the late 1960s. Some of her earliest roles include appearing in 1968's
For Love of Ivy with Sidney Poitier and Robert Downey Sr.'s 1969 film
Putney Swope. In 1973, she would take on one of her most well-known roles by starring as Ganja Meda in the horror movie
Ganja & Hess. She followed that up with a role in the iconic Bruce Lee film
Enter the Dragon, released that same year.
Clark would also appear in the 1972 movie
Slaughter, which also starred Jim Brown and Stella Stevens. Coincidentally, Clark died on the same day as Brown, who also passed away on May 18, 2023. Her other film work from the era includes roles in
The Landlord,
Night of the Cobra Woman,
Black Mamba,
The Beast Must Die,
Switchblade Sisters,
Clay Pigeon,
Beware! The Blob, and
Newman's Law.
Meanwhile, Clark also made her mark on the small screen with a memorable role in the popular sitcom
Sanford and Son. On that show, she played Janet Lawson, the fiancé of Lamont Sanford (Demond Wilson). Clark was featured in a recurring role as Janet from when she joined in the show's fifth season until it ended in 1977. The sitcom is one of the most-well known TV shows of the 1970s, bringing greater fame to Clark.
Clark was married once, wedding actor Billy Dee Williams in 1968 and serving as stepmother to his son, Corey. The marriage lasted three years before the pair divorced in 1971.