• Joan Lunden is an American TV host, journalist, and author
• She hosted the ABC’s TV show “Good Morning America” from 1980 to 1997
• She has written 14 books and is currently married to her second husband Jeff Konigsberg
• She is a breast cancer survivor and is active on Instagram with nearly 30,000 followers
• Her estimated net worth is over $25 million
Short Info
| Date Of Birth | September 19, 1950 |
| Spouse | Jeff Konigsberg, Michael A. Krauss |
| Fact | (1,March 2005) second set of twins were born, a girl, Kimberly Elise (6lbs. 12ozs) and a boy, Jack Andrew (7lbs. 9oz). Kimberly and Jack were delivered by the same surrogate mom, Deborah Bolig in a Cincinnati hospital. |
Contents
Who is Joan Lunden?
Joan Elise Blunden was born as in Fair Oaks, California USA on 19 September 1950 – her zodiac sign is Virgo, and she holds American nationality. She’s a TV host, journalist and author, who’s perhaps known best for having hosted the ABC’s TV show “Good Morning America” between 1980 and 1997.
Early life and education
Joan was raised in Fair Oaks by her father Dr. Erle Murray Blunden who was a surgeon and pilot, but who died in a plane crash when Joan was 13, and her mother Gladyce Lorraine (nee Somervill) who was a housewife; because Joan hasn’t mentioned having any siblings, most of her fans believe her to be an only child.
She became interested in journalism at a quite an early age, mostly because she watched the news with her parents nearly every day. Joan became even more passionate about it while attending a local high school, and she wrote for the school’s newspaper, as well as practicing creative writing.
Upon matriculating in 1968, she enrolled at California State University, Sacramento, from which she graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in liberal arts in 1972. Joan then went on to study Spanish and anthropology at Universidad de Las Americas in Mexico City, and she also taught broadcast journalism as a visiting instructor at Montclair State College.
Career as a journalist
Joan launched her career in 1974, when hired to work as a news anchor at KCRA-TV, a job for which she had to move to Sacramento, California; during her time at KCRA, she was mostly in charge of producing the noon news and hosting various TV specials.
She moved to New York City in 1975, after having been hired by the flagship TV station WABC-TV of the network ABC, and was chosen to anchor their show “Eyewitness News”; it was then that Joan changed her name, so that she wouldn’t be called ‘Blunder’. In 1976, she started hosting weekend newscasts, and in November Joan began working as a consumer reporter on the show “Good Morning America”.
She started co-hosting the show together with David Hartman in 1980, and after David retired, Joan co-hosted it with Charlie Gibson. The job made it possible for Joan to travel all around the world, and she reported from 26 countries, interviewed four presidents, covered two royal weddings and five Olympic Games. She also interviewed US Presidents Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George Bush and Bill Clinton, as well as their First Ladies.
Joan was loved by the viewers of “Good Morning America”, and amongst the reasons for this was her willingness to take various risks for the show; some of these included climbing the Mendenhall Glacier, bungee jumping off a 143 feet (45m) high bridge, and paragliding off a 2,000 feet high mountain. Joan’s final day on “Good Morning America” was 5 September 1997.
Career after “Good Morning America”
Joan hosted the show “Behind Closed Doors” for the cable network A&E between 1996 and 2001, while she also often hosted their documentary series “Biography”.
She then went on to host DirectTV’s shows “Hometown Heroes” and “America’s Invisible Children”, while’s she’s today hosting the show “Health Corner” for the basic cable channel “Lifetime”.
Joan’s books
Joan has published 14 books. Her first two “Mother’s Minutes” and “Good Morning I’m Joan Lunden” were published in 1986, and were followed by “Your Newborn Baby” in 1988. Joan authored four books in the ‘90s, including the 1994 “Joan Lunden, Workout America”, the 1997 “Joan Lunden’s Healthy Living” and the 1998 “A Bend in the Road is Not the End of the Road”.
She published “Growing Up Healthy: A Complete Guide to Childhood Nutrition, Birth Through Adolescence” in 2004, while her two most recent books have been the 2016 “It’s Never Too Late: How to Take Control of Your Health, Your Diet, Your Stress, and Reclaim Your Vitality”, and the 2020 “Why Did I Come Into This Room? A Candid Conversation about Aging”.
Breast cancer
Joan made a guest appearance in “Good Morning America” on 24 June 2014, and revealed that she had been battling breast cancer; she has beaten it, and is today spreading awareness about breast cancer.
Love life and husband
Joan has married twice, and has seven children.
She exchanged vows with Michael A. Krauss in 1978, in a large ceremony attended by many of their friends and family members; Michael if a former TV producer and radio interviewer. Joan gave birth to their daughter Jamie Beryl Krauss on 4 July 1980, and their daughters Lindsay Leigh Krauss and Sarah Emily Krauss followed in the next 10 years. Joan and Michael divorced in 1992, for unknown reasons.
On 18 April 2000, she married her second husband, the American businessman and owner of Camp Takajo Jeff Konigsberg, and they have two sets of twins who were born to a surrogate mother: Kate and Max in 2003, while Jack and Kim were born in 2005.
As of March 2022, Joan’s married to her second husband Jeff Konigsberg, with whom she has four children born to a surrogate mother, and has three children with her first husband Michael A. Krauss.
Hobbies and other interests
Joan’s highly active on Instagram, and seems to be enjoying the attention which she’s receiving from her close to 30,000 followers; she’s uploaded nearly 2,000 pictures onto the network, most of which feature her during her everyday life.
She loves to read books in her spare time, and is currently reading “The Neighborhood” by Matthew Betley, received as a gift from Matthew; it’s to be officially released in August 2022.
She’s physically highly active, practices yoga on a daily basis, while also following a strict diet.
Joan enjoys watching movies late at night – her favorite actors and actresses are Bill Murray, Scarlett Johansson and Emma Watson, while a couple of her favorite films include “The Groundhog Day”, “Lost in Translation” and the franchise “Harry Potter”.
Age, height and net worth
Joan’s age is 71. She has short blonde hair and brown eyes, her height is 5ft 3ins (1.6m) and she weighs around 120lbs (55kgs).
As of March 2022, Joan’s net worth stands at more than $25 million.
General Info
| Full Name | Joan Lunden |
| Date Of Birth | September 19, 1950 |
| Profession | Screenwriter, Author, Television presenter, TV Journalist, Actor, Newscaster |
| Education | Universidad de las Américas Puebla, California State University, Sacramento |
| Nationality | American |
Family
| Spouse | Jeff Konigsberg, Michael A. Krauss |
| Children | Jamie Krauss, Sarah Emily Krauss, Kate Elizabeth Konigsberg, Lindsay Kraus, Max Aaron Konigsberg, Kimberly Konigsberg, Jack Konigsberg |
| Parents | Gladyce Lorraine Blunden, Erle Murray Blunden |
Accomplishments
| Nominations | Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Special Class Program |
| Movies | Conspiracy Theory, What About Bob? |
| TV Shows | Good Morning America, Biography, Wickedly Perfect, Behind Closed Doors |
Social profile links
Source: IMDb, Wikipedia
