Joosten was born in Chicago. Her first career was as a psychiatric nurse at Michael Reese Hospital in Chicago, living in nearby Lake Forest, Illinois, where she married a psychiatrist and raised two sons. Following her 1980 divorce, she began acting in community theater in 1982, at age 42.
Hostage
As Louise
Bedtime Stories
As Mrs. Dixon
Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel
As Aunt Jackie
Wedding Crashers
As Chazz's Mom
Hellraiser: Inferno
As Mother
Breaking Dawn
As Neighbor
Phoenix
As Esther
Rails & Ties
As Mrs. Brown
The TV Set
As Lois
Best Men
As Edie
Kiss Toledo Goodbye
As Wheelchair Lady
Mega Python vs. Gatoroid
As Angie
Wish Wizard
As Mrs. Inkwell
Grandview, U.S.A.
As Mrs. Clark
The Making of a Hollywood Madam
As Mrs. Oshatz
Red Roses and Petrol
Secret Santa
As Winifred
Combustion
As Miss Knight
The Stranger Beside Me
As Judge
The Package
As Waitress
Jane Doe: Ties That Bind
As Cara Goodman
Wasabi Tuna
As Erma
Annul Victory
As Self
Cheaper by the Dozen 2
As Theatre Patron
Titus
Less than Perfect
As Old Lady
Arliss
Boston Common
As Mrs. Schuster
Seinfeld
As Betsy
Grey's Anatomy
As Stephanie Drake
Reba
The Closer
As Nurse Townsend
Ally McBeal
As Sister Alice
Home Improvement
As Thelma McCready
Joan of Arcadia
The Division
Providence
As Miss O'Meara
Monk
As Neysa Gordon
My Name Is Earl
As Donny's Mom
Spin City
As Sister Agnes
Las Vegas
Everwood
As Mrs. Hammerhill
Even Stevens
Roseanne
Love, Inc.
Thanks
Frasier
As Vera
Dharma & Greg
As Claire
Family Matters
As Grocery Checker
The X-Files
As Agent Edie Boal
Becker
As Mrs. Goldsmith
Scrubs
As Mrs. Tanner
Will & Grace
As Felicia
Just Shoot Me!
As Mrs. Pierce
Gilmore Girls
As Maisy Fortner
ER
As Lois
The Greg Behrendt Show
Brooklyn South
As Mrs. Mariah Westbrook
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
As Genevive Holt
The West Wing
As Dolores Landingham
Curb Your Enthusiasm
As Jenny
Hope & Faith
As Funeral Guest
The Mentalist
As Gloria Williams
Desperate Housewives
As Karen McCluskey
3rd Rock from the Sun
As Cafeteria Lady
Father of the Pride
As (voice)
Harry's Law
As Maisie Joyce
Murphy Brown
As Secretary #83
Profiler
As Morganna Styles
The Bonnie Hunt Show
As Self
NYPD Blue
As Mrs. Prows
The Drew Carey Show
As Ruth
The Suite Life of Zack & Cody
As Marilyn
Men Behaving Badly
As Saleswoman
Life with Bonnie
As Phyllis
The King of Queens
As Maureen
Strong Medicine
As Mrs. Nolan
Malcolm in the Middle
As Claire