'Dark Shadows' Lara Parker Sports Gray Streaks Sans Make-Up at 84 — She Lives Out of Spotlight with Husband of Over 35 Years

• Lara Parker, who played Angelique in "Dark Shadows," said she wasn't excited about the role at first, but she later came to relish her character's evil ways.
• After "Dark Shadows" ended, Parker changed careers from acting to writing and created a book series of the show.
• At 84, Parker's blonde hair now has gray streaks. She is a grandmother and is living a happy life out of the spotlight with her husband, who isn't a celebrity.

Lara Parker was born Mary Lamar Rickey in Knoxville, Tennessee. She grew up in Memphis and attended Central High School. She majored in Philosophy at Vassar College and completed the course in Southwestern at Memphis.

Parker did her Master in Speech and Drama at the University of Iowa, and while writing her thesis, she acted and played five leads at the Millbrook Playhouse in Loch Haven, Pennsylvania.

The actress then got married to Peter Parker, had two kids with him, and they lived on a farm in Wisconsin.

However, they later moved to New York as Parker felt she couldn't live on a farm forever and spent her time sitting and looking at the fields for the rest of her life.

In New York, Parker auditioned for a role in ABC's gothic-horror soap opera "Dark Shadows" and landed one. Parker was cast as Angelique, a dark witch in "Dark Shadows," which ran from 1966 to 1971.

The actress revealed that she landed her role easily. She noted that she just walked into the audition room and was given the role because she was a great fit.

Parker said the people in charge of the auditions had seen lots of dark-haired and sexy girls, "I came in looking blond and angelic and younger than my age. I think I just happened to hit them right, and everything fell into place."

Angelique was a vengeful and powerful witch. She was also a vampire and could easily time travel. The audience came to love Angelique because she put them on the edge as she orchestrated a love-hate relationship with the tormented vampire Barnabas Collins, played by Jonathan Frid.

The actress recalled that at first, she didn't like playing Angelique because the character was a bad girl, and yet she wanted to act as the heroine who would wear the pretty gowns:

"When I started, I had done a lot of summer stock, community theater, and university theater. I had always played the heroine. I was the ingénue lead over and over and over."

Parker said she played Angelique as a person to be pitied who was always crying and going after Barnabas asking to be loved. However, Frid called him aside one day and told her to stop all the crying and become the villain she was meant to be. The actress remembered:

"That made me realize I had a really good character to play who could be ruthless and strong and resilient. Nobody could mess with her, or they would be sorry."

The "Desperate Voyage" actress also soon realized the audience cherished Angelique's evil ways, and she came to love the character. At first, viewers were slow in embracing the show because ABC was also airing "Let's Make a Deal," which was more family-friendly than "Dark Shadows."

The audience eventually warmed up to "Dark Shadows" and were so much into Parker's character that they started a fan club and would send the actress mail.

The actress also revealed that she and "Dark Shadows" creator Dan Curtis were drawn to the same things, which were romantic literature, the supernatural, and stories that had more than one level:

"He loved that genre of literature, 'Dark Shadows' was really not a horror show it was a gothic romance, and it started as 'Jane Eyre' started, with a girl on a train going on to a great house."

Curtis and Parker also loved storylines with unrequited love, deep passion, jealousy, fascination, and mystery. Parker noted that everything Curtis did was crucial to him as he loved ghosts, old houses with lots of towers, secret rooms, and corridors that led into other lives or other times.

Parker had received lots of love from fans of "Dark Shadows." She said that some people approach her and tell her, "You were my idol; you know I wanted; I wanted to grow up to be just like you and have power over all the men in my life."

Fans also tell Parker that they love the way she got everything she wanted as Angelique and commend how strong she was as the character. They also ask her if she was ever interested in witchcraft outside of her character or if she studied it.

"The Chadwick Family" star told her fans that she never studied witchcraft and was only following a script, which shows how phenomenal her acting was to captivate the audience to have such wild imaginations and questions.

"Dark Shadows" run came to an end, and Parker moved to Los Angeles in 1972 to feature in primetime television. The actress guest-starred in numerous shows such as "Switch," "Kung Fu," and "The Incredible Hulk." She was in the soap-opera "Capitol."

Parker also appeared in movies such as "People Like Us," "The Lazarus Syndrome," and "Desperate Voyage" The actress was then featured in Pinter's "The Lover," an Equity Waver production.

The actress's love for the gothic, horror, and witchcraft genre stuck with her as she left acting for another field to keep "Dark Shadows" alive. Her fans followed her to her new venture.

Lara Parker Changed Careers after "Dark Shadows" Ended

After featuring in several productions when "Dark Shadows" ended, Parker was approached by an editor from Harper Collins. The editor took her to lunch and asked her if she would be willing to do a series of "Dark Shadows" novels to continue the story for her fans.

The writer then married her current husband, Jim Hawkins, a contractor and builder in 1985. The couple have one child, a daughter, Caitlin Hawkins and have been married for over 35 years.

The editor told the "Hi, Mom" actress that they would like her to write the story. Her first response was she could never write a novel. She narrated:

"I was not presumptuous enough to think I knew how to do such a thing. She said we would like to use your name because it would be an added cache. We have real writers who would take whatever you did and improve it. I was horrified by that idea."

After lunch, Parker started reading books. She confessed that she read Daphne du Maurier's "Rebecca" and used it as a model for her books. The actress wrote and sent the editor 50 pages. The editor didn't give any worrisome feedback except ask Parker to use fewer adjectives.

Parker also took a Master of Fine Art in Creative Writing from Antioch University in Los Angeles to sharpen her writing and creative skills. This drive ensured Parker carried on the "Dark Shadows" stories through her writing.

In 1998, she released her first book, "Dark Shadows," Angelique's Legacy," which explored the early life of her character.

In 2006, she released the second book in the series "Dark Shadows: The Salem Branch," and in 2012, "Dark Shadows: Wolf Moon Rising," the third book, was published.

Parker's third book creatively introduced Jacqueline, a reincarnation of Angelique, who fell in love with David, a 16-year-old heir to the Collins fortune. Jacqueline and Collins are transported to the Prohibition Era, where David uncovers profound and dark secrets about the Collins family.

"The Incredible Hulk" star has written more books in the series, such as "Dark Shadows: Heiress of Collinwood" and "Dark Shadows: Angelique's Descent." The actress's books even explored more than the Victorian era as characters have sex.

Parker's passion for writing has seen her write short stories on the show. She has also written several screenplays outside the "Dark Shadows" realm.

After earning her Master of Fine Art in Creative Writing, Parker taught at a college in Los Angeles. In 2002, New York University invited her to do a two-day workshop titled "Heart of Horror" to explore the process of horror writing.

In the summer of 2011, "Dark Shadows" stars, including Parker, Jonathan Frid, David Selby, and Kathryn Leigh Scott, were invited to England by director Tim Burton to film cameo appearances in a new "Dark Shadows" feature film.

The feature film features Johnny Depp. Parker was disappointed that they weren't given scenes in the feature film but noted that it was still an incredible pleasure to go there, "Jonathan only lived a few more months after that. Tim Burton and Johnny Depp were marvelous to us."

Reflecting back on Angelique and the "Dark Shadow" show, Parker said she was lucky to get to play a character that fit her personality to the extent that the role she played is still memorable to many people.

She added that the character opened doors for her to be able to write vampire novels that pretty much picked up from where the show ended.

The "Save the Tiger" actress now has a website, laraparker.com, where she gives DVDs of "Dark Shadows" and the movies she starred in. She also provides her autographed books and photos.

The writer also teaches acting, gives her opinion about this art, and showcases her latest works, including feature movies and short films.

However, it is not only Parker's professional life that has changed over the years, but she also experienced changes in her personal life and isn't the same person she was in "Dark Shadows."

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Lara Parker Is Now a Doting Grandmother

Parker and her first husband, Tom, an artist, divorced in 1974 after 15 years of marriage. They were blessed with two kids.

The two met in Europe, and he came back with her to Iowa, where they got married and raised their kids on a farm in Whitewater, Wisconsin. Parker's ex-husband was a teacher at a nearby university.

The writer then married her current husband, Jim Hawkins, a contractor, and builder, in 1985. The couple have one child, a daughter, Caitlin Hawkins and have been married for over 35 years.

Jim and Parker live in California with their daughter, who is a set designer and stylist for videos and commercials.

Parker's two children from her previous marriage are Rick Parker and Andy Parker. Rick is a successful record producer, while Andy is a contractor.

The actress is also now a grandmother. Her face lights up when she talks about her grandson. In her real life, Parker is loving and has no witchy traits or values like her character Angelique.

However, she has some of Angelique's positive traits, including a dedicated and unwavering great strength combined with her special brand of magical power that still captivates her old and new fans.

Fans got a glimpse into the 84-year-old's life today. She still looks flawless without makeup, and her blonde hair has gray streaks on the front.

Parker's son shared the actress's picture on Instagram in her blooming garden full of red and yellow roses. He captioned the post, "Mom and her roses."

In the post, a smiling Parker wore a green free dress with black polka dots. She had white slippers on her feet and accompanying white socks.

The actress's son also shared pictures of his mother in a boat on the open sea. Parker looked stunning as she basked in the sun. She had a vintage sweater on and dark shades. The actress looked happy and was grinning in the photo.

In another picture, Parker posed with her dog on a boat in the open sea. Her son said the dog was called "Brooke." The actress, who was in a blue buttoned-down shirt, grey trousers, dark shades, and a cap, held her dog closely.

Parker's son also shared a past picture of her mom and him. He revealed that the picture was taken in 2021. Parker and his son were lookalikes in the picture. They both had blonde hair, and the actress and his son looked great.

Parker has settled a mother, grandmother, and wife in her beautiful home in California. When asked if she will be releasing any more books in the "Dark Shadows" series, the actress said she has already proposed another book to her publishers, which she is still working on.