The Hemingway family has been in the spotlight for almost a century now. Due to the Nobel Prize win of laureate Ernest Hemingway, the lineage has had no problem gaining fame in their own field of work. However, while many family members relished fame and fortune, some preferred to stay away from the limelight and live a quiet life away from the constant invasion of privacy. Joan Hemingway is one of the family members who has chosen this route.
It was inevitable for Joan to gain a certain amount of fame kudos to her family name. Nevertheless, she consciously decided to step away from it when it started to affect her mental health. There are not many things known about Ernest Hemingway's eldest granddaughter, and she is an intriguing person. So, let us have a look at the life of Joan Hemingway.
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A Family Riddled With Mental Illness
Joan Whittlesey Hemingway was born in 1950 to Jack Hadley Nicanor Hemingway, aka Jack Hemingway, and his first wife, Byra Louise Whittlesey. She was raised in Havana, Cuba, before the family relocated to Ketchum, Idaho. Joan, nicknamed Muffet by her mother, grew up with her two younger sisters Margaux Hemingway and Mariel Hemingway.
The Hemingway family has been known to have struggled with mental illnesses, primarily depression and suicidal thoughts. The patriarch, Ernest Hemingway, too died because he took his own life in 1961. As a result, many people have been concerned with the well-being of the living family members. Not just Ernest but his granddaughter Margot took her own life with a deliberate overdose on drugs.
The multi-generational mental illness, called the "Hemingway Curse" by Mariel, has deeply affected the family. Alcoholism and drug abuse were rampant in the family. However, in hindsight, it seems as if the abuse was a coping mechanism for their mental struggles.
Having born into the illusive Hemingway family, Joan Hemingway and her sisters too suffered from various mental illness. Photo Source: Mariel's Instagram.
Joan Hemingway, too was diagnosed with manic depression. The seemingly kind and loving woman is often labeled "crazy," which somehow hinders her life. Mariel Hemingway has expressed her wishes to take over the care of her elder sister someday. This has led people to believe that Muffet may be struggling to hold her life together.
As today's society does not hold much stigma against mental health as before, Joan Hemingway's sister, Mariel, advocates for mental illnesses. In addition, the actress has written books to help others and document her own journey. Moreover, she seems to be working on making the mental health of the Hemingway family much better and lifting the "Hemingway Curse."
Sadly, Joan Hemingway's mother, Byra, passed away in 1988 due to cancer. The death of their mom is said to have profoundly impacted the two remaining sisters. Moreover, only a decade after their mom's passing, Jack Hemingway lost his life due to health complications in 2001.
We certainly wish the sisters the best and hope that their struggles with mental illnesses come to a happy end.
Joan Hemingway Net Worth And Career
Although she may not have been acting since the 1980s and preferred to have a commoner's lifestyle in contrast to her family's fame, Joan Hemingway's net worth must be an impressive amount. The nature of her occupation after her retirement from the entertainment industry is unknown.
Both of Joan Hemingway's siblings were heavily involved in the entertainment industry as models and actresses. Muffet, too, tried her hand in acting and appeared on-screen in minor roles. The aspiring actress appeared on three TV series: Champion House, The Newcomers, and Going Out.
However, she retired from acting and as a celebrity in general. Her last TV appearance was on a 2013 documentary entitled Running From Crazy, which encapsulated the struggles of the Hemingway family.
As her grandfather was a world-famous writer, Muffet did try a hand at story writing. She co-wrote the novel Rosebud which sells from $3.25 and can go up to $54.94 on Amazon. The 1975 book was later adapted into a movie.
Following in her father and grandfather's footsteps, Joan Hemingway too wrote and published few books. Image Source: Mariel Hemingway Instagram.
In addition to Rosebud, Ernest Hemingway's granddaughter, Joan has written two more books. The books are entitled The Picnic Gourmet and Dining In-Sun Valley. The books sell between $5 to $6.39 on Thriftbooks.
After she retired from the limelight, Joan Hemingway is said to have become an artist. She has exhibitions at her hometown in Idaho from time to time, showcasing her works of art. But, apart from that little titbit, not much has been revealed about the writer.
Nevertheless, Joan Hemingway's net worth must have benefitted from her early career as well as the amount she might have received as the heir of Jack Hemingway's assets.
The Private Life Of Joan Hemingway
Although the Hemingway family has been in the limelight for decades now, Joan Hemingway has always valued her privacy above everything else. Despite her short career in acting, not much is known about Ernest Hemingway's granddaughter. Moreover, Muffet has made the conscious choice to stay away from social media.
After she retired from acting, the novelist completely vanished from public sight. There have been rarely any sightings of her in public, and we do not know anything about her personal life. According to IMDb, Joan Hemingway's husband is a man named Jean DeNoyer. However, it has been speculated that the couple never had any children.
Jean DeNoyer is a French restaurateur who owns restaurants in New York, Chicago. Texas, Florida, Kentucky, Connecticut, and Los Angeles. The couple, reportedly, got married in 1976 in a somewhat glitzy wedding.
But it seems like Joan Hemingway's mental illness got in the way, and the former actress preferred solitude over her husband. Because of such differences, the couple divorced.
Joan Hemingway married French restauranteur Jean DeNoyer in 1976. Sadly, the couple later got divorced. Photo Source: Wikimedia Commons.
Moreover, it seems that Jean Hemingway's ex-husband has moved on from their divorce. The restaurateur married entrepreneur Karin Hehenberger in 2017 and the lovely pair have a daughter named Liv Denoyer. The young girl was born in 2018 via surrogate.
Keeping her life private was her conscious choice, and even Joan Hemingway's siblings tend to respect that. Although Mariel has stated that she deeply loves her sister and wishes they could meet more often, the fitness enthusiast tends to respect her privacy and never post current pictures of her sister.
Moreover, whenever Mariel misses her family, she posts throwback pictures from the last century on her Instagram account.
Although there is a widescreen of privacy covering Muffet's life, Mariel has confirmed that she is living a content life. Moreover, the former actress seems to be doing great mentally and living an altogether happy life.
We certainly hope that Joan Hemingway is doing great with her physical and mental health and living the life she deserves.
Trivia And Facts
- Seven members of Joan Hemingway's family spanning four generations have died of suicide.
- Muffet had used LSD when she was younger and struggled to deal with her addiction, according to Mariel.
