Grayson Hall (September 18th 1922 – August 7th 1985), born Shirley Grossman in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was an American Oscar-nominated actress (1964 - The Night of the Iguana). She joined the cast of the original Dark Shadows in the middle of 1967 as Dr Julia Hoffman and became one of the show's more prolific stars. She remained on the program until the series end in 1971, playing several character parts throughout the course of the show. Not counting lost episodes, Grayson Hall starred in a total of 472 episodes of Dark Shadows, 16 of which she played more than one character. She also went on to star in both MGMDark Shadows feature films, House of Dark Shadows and Night of Dark Shadows.
After Dark Shadows, Grayson appeared in two other popular daytime soap operas: All My Children (briefly) in 1973 and One Life To Live in 1983. Grayson was married to Sam Hall, a writer on the Dark Shadows series and screenwriter for House of Dark Shadows and Night of Dark Shadows. Grayson succumbed to cancer in New York City one month shy of her 62nd birthday (though obituaries showed her to be 59).
The character of Dr. Julia Hoffman was originally intended to be a male character. Early script drafts identified the character simply as Dr. JuliaN Hoffman. When another actor/actress backed out, producers Dan Curtis and Bob Costello offered the role to Grayson Hall with the assistance of famed casting director Michael Schurtleff. Writer Sam Hall, Grayson's husband, would join the Dark Shadows family several months later.
In a charming touch in One Life To Live, the characters played by Grayson, Nancy Barrett and Anthony George once appeared together in a scene with a comment that they recognised each other!