Janet Jones
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Janet-Marie Jones (born January 10, 1961 in Bridgeton, Missouri) is an American actress, dancer, and aerobics instructor, but is best known for marrying ice hockey icon Wayne Gretzky.
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[edit] Entertainment career
She performed as a dancer in Annie (1982), Staying Alive (1983), and Snow White Live (1980), and had a bit role in The Beastmaster (1982). Her big break came in The Flamingo Kid (1984), which was followed by the film version of A Chorus Line (1985). Later in 1986, she appeared in American Anthem, co-staring gymnast Mitch Gaylord. In 1987, she appeared in a semi-nude pictorial in that March's Playboy.
Four months before her wedding, Police Academy 5 (1988) was released. Other credits include A League of Their Own (1992), and hosting an infomercial for Jackie Chan's Cable Flex. She has produced a series of workout videos called "The Firm." She and daughter Paulina are featured in the upcoming movie Alpha Dog.
[edit] Personal life
She was engaged to tennis star Vitas Gerulaitis for three years, before he broke the engagement. He later died of carbon monoxide poisoning in 1994. She also dated actors Bruce Willis and Nels Van Patten, son of Dick Van Patten.
Jones met Gretzky when he was a judge on Merv Griffin's show Dance Fever in 1984. They ran into each other at a Los Angeles Lakers game in 1987; Gretzky told Howard Stern's 22 October 1996 audience they consummated their relationship that night. On 17 July 1988 they were wed at a lavish ceremony at St. Joseph's Basilica in Edmonton broadcast live across Canada. Jones was four months pregnant with their daughter Paulina. Janet and Wayne have four other children: Ty, Trevor, Tristan, and Emma. Her mother has been their nanny since 1988.
The marriage has come under scrutiny at times. After Jones was knocked unconscious by a pane of Plexiglas during a 22 October 1997 New York Rangers-Chicago Blackhawks game, Gretzky continued to play while she was taken to the hospital. He later defended his actions by saying the officials who were tending to Janet told him there was nothing he could do. On the 15 January 1998 Rosie O'Donnell Show, he made a crack about the incident. He has also refused to publicly defend her during the on-going gambling investigation (see below).
[edit] Illegal gambling controversy
On February 7, 2006, Jones and a half-dozen NHL players were among those implicated in a New Jersey-based sports gambling ring allegedly financed by Phoenix Coyotes assistant coach Rick Tocchet. Coyotes' general manager and Gretzky's former agent, Michael Barnett, admitted to police placing a bet on Super Bowl XL with Tocchet.
Gretzky told reporters that Jones "would sit down at some point and answer questions that everybody has for her and be her own person" [1], but refused to publicly defend her: "The reality is, I'm not involved, I wasn't involved and I'm not going to be involved." Jones released a statement through the team: "At no time did I ever place a wager on my husband's behalf." Further reporting by the Newark Star-Ledger revealed on February 9, 2006, that New Jersey State Police wiretaps have Gretzky speaking about the ring. Police sources told the Star-Ledger that there is no evidence Gretzky made any bets. "I didn't bet. Didn't happen. It's not going to happen, hasn't happened; it's not something that I've done." Lawyers for the couple later announced that neither Gretzky or Jones would face criminal charges. [2]
Information came out that contradicted Gretzky's assertions that he has never gambled. In the Spring of 2000, Gretzky, Jones, their children and her mother were registered at The Ocean Club on Paradise Island, Bahamas, along with other NHL notables. Gretzky and his wife frequented the Casino, which is popular with other sports stars. [Sun Resorts Newsletter, May 2000]
On March 15, 2006, the New Jersey attorney general's office announced it will subpoena Jones to testify about the alleged ring as soon as a grand jury convenes. On May 8, Tocchet and Jones filed notices in New Jersey that they intend to sue the state for $50 million each for defamation, claiming each have lost business opportunities in the wake of the state's investigation which have sullied their reputations. [3]
