Joan Harris
Portrayed by	Christina Hendricks
First appearance	Smoke Gets In Your Eyes
Final appearance	Recurring
Details
Gender	Female
DOB	February 24, 1931[1]
Employer	Sterling Cooper
Occupation	Office Manager
Relations
Husband	Greg Harris
Romantic Partners	Roger Sterling Paul Kinsey
Parent(s)	Gail Holloway - Mother
Child(ren)	Kevin Harris

Joan P. Harris (née Holloway) was the office manager at Sterling Cooper advertising agency. She was born on February 24, 1931.^[2]

Contents 1 Early Life 2 Sterling Cooper 3 Married Life 4 A New Company 5 One Year Later 6 References 7 Comments

Early LifeEdit

Little is mentioned of Joan's early life. Her roommate Carol, whom Joan knew from college, had expressed a sexual interest in Joan, although Joan ignored her romantic overtures. Joan also has a husband who appears in a few episodes and seems to have a fairly tumultuous relationship with Joan. The basis for many of their quarrels is money and Joan's husband's disappointments as an unsuccessful surgeon. In an attempt to follow his dream of being a surgeon, Joan's husband enlisted in the army, a step that has become a matter of conflict for the married couple.

Sterling CooperEdit

In the mid-50s, Joan and Roger Sterling first became romantically involved, albeit secretly. Roger enters Heller's, a specialty shop dealing in fur coats to buy Joan a fur coat, sold to him by Don Draper. Roger snidely comments on an advertisement, after Don proudly tells him that it is one of his own. Roger hands Don a card, but rejects Don's inquiry about giving him a call. When Roger opens the box up for Joan in a hotel room, he realizes that Don has included a portfolio, and exclaims that Don was "out of line" for including it, though Joan seems more open to the gesture.^[3]

Joan was the office manager of the Sterling Cooper Advertising Agency where her primary responsibility was to manage the girls in the secretarial and steno pool. She often reminded the male staff of their duties to their clients. She is often looked upon for advice and help from many of the girls as well.

Joan has had an intimate relationship with Sterling Cooper copywriter Paul Kinsey. Though nothing much of that relationship is mentioned it is assumed that it ended badly. Joan and Kinsey get into verbal fights, one of which ended with Kinsey posting her driver's license on a bulletin board. Joan ultimatley got revenge as she took the privilege of informing Kinsey that he would not go on a business trip to Los Angeles with Don.

Joan is given additional responsibilities, including helping Harry Crane read scripts to determine ad placement. Joan excels at this job and begins to feel professional ambition associated with it. She soon realizes this position is short-lived as she is asked to train a replacement. She seems to re-settle into the traditional role of a husband-seeking office "girl".

Married LifeEdit

Joan gets engaged to Greg Harris, a physician at St. Luke's Hospital, early 1962. The marriage is first mentioned in the New Girl. Jane later tells Joan that the two will be very happy together. Later, Joan takes Greg to the office to introduce him to coworkers.

When Greg meets Roger, he suspects that there is something more between the two then meets the eye. She tells him it is because she has worked with Roger for nine years. They later enter Don's office where Greg asks Joan to "pretend I'm your boss" and forces himself upon her despite her protest that "this isn't fun." He pins her to the floor, saying, "This is what you want, right?", and rapes her.^[4]

She marries Greg on Christmas later that year and leaves the company shortly thereafter on the assumption that Greg would be getting a promotion which would mean she would no longer need to work.

Months later, after being married, Joan and Greg tidy up their apartment for a Saturday night dinner party. At the party, the conversation turns to the hospital and a mishap that occurred while Greg was performing surgery. To deflect attention from himself, Greg encourages Joan to play her accordion for the guests.^[5]

After his attempts at becoming a surgeon failed, Joan coaches Greg for a psychiatry residency interview. Greg returns home and sulks to Joan because his interview went poorly. Referring to his surgery career, he says that she doesn't know what it's like "to want something your whole life" and not get it. Joan bashes his head with a vase. Later, Greg returns with flowers and a surprise announcement that he has joined the army.^[6]

Pete Campbell runs into her working at Bonwit Teller when Greg does not receive a promotion at the hospital.

Joan later places a call to Roger Sterling's office after hours, asking him to help her find another office manager's job.

A New CompanyEdit

When rumors of the purchase of parent company of Sterling Cooper reach Don Draper, he pushes the senior partners to attempt a purchase of the company. After presenting an offer, they realize it's a lost cause, until they hit upon an idea. Pryce, the representative from PPL with authority over everyone at Sterling Cooper, agrees to fire the senior partners, thereby severing their contracts (including the no-compete clauses in their contracts).

They secretly round up a list of clients loyal to them, steal important documentation that will smooth the transition and select Pete Campbell, Peggy Olson, and Harry Crane as the first employees. Joan knows her way around the office and is brought in to help with the 'acquisition' of items from the Sterling Cooper offices and becomes an employee of the new Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce.^[7]

One Year LaterEdit

While making Greg fresh squeezed orange juice, Joan sliced open her finger. She insisted that they go to the hospital, but Greg was able to stitch her finger. After he finished successfully stitching her finger, she looked at him and began to cry.^[8]

In the summer of 1965, Greg was preparing for basic training. Joan was upset, even after Greg tried to console her. He suggested that she try to spend time with her friends at work, unaware that she did not get along with many people in the office. He held her close when she began to cry.^[9] She cried because she did not relate well with most of the employees at SCDP. She did not feel she is appreciated or respected, whether it is because employees will not clean up after themselves when asked^[10] or because they have been known to insult her to her face in front of a crowd of people and draw lewd pictures of her giving fellatio to Lane. She was angry when Peggy fired Joey Baird for being insulting when he refused to apologize to her.

While Joan's husband was at basic training, Roger took Joan out for dinner. While commenting on the condition of the neighborhood they were walking through, they were both robbed at gunpoint. Roger acted quickly, lowering his head and handing all their possessions over to the robber. After the robber ran off, the two caught their breath and in a moment of passion, they began to kiss.^[11] She later had to to help move the body of Miss Blankenship, who had passed away at Don's secretary's desk, with the help of Pete while Don stalled a meeting from adjourning.

Seven weeks later she and Roger visited Dr. Howlett to discuss aborting the baby. Joan knew she could not go to her regular doctor. Dr. Howlett was appalled by Roger's behavior, but gave Joan information of a doctor out of town to see. She traveled by train to get there and arrived at the office. In the abortion doctor's waiting room, a woman asked Joan how old her daughter was, before she hesitantly told her that the daughter was fifteen. At the office, Joan tells Roger that they "avoided a tragedy."^[12]

At the end of "Tomorrowland" Joan was seen updating Greg about her preganancy, implying that she did not go through with the abortion. In the episode, she stated she was seven weeks into the pregancy.

ReferencesEdit