- She once dropped Bob Hope onto his head while performing with him during his 1955 USO show in Iceland.
- Auditioned for Federico Fellini for his film Casanova (1976), where she was to overpower Donald Sutherland in a wrestling match, which Joan found easy to do. However, the director and star both thought it would be embarrassing if such a normal sized woman was to defeat the burly Sutherland, so the role instead went to Sandra Elaine Allen, who at that time was the world's tallest woman at 7'7".
- She was a professional strongwoman who could tear telephone books in half, bend iron bars etc.
- She appeared in two films directed by Vernon Sewell: Johnny You're Wanted (1956) and Burke & Hare (1972).
- In 2007 she wrote her autobiography, Coming on Strong, which had an introduction by her friend, the comedian Roy Hudd.
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