Janet Louise Johnson was born on July 10, 1959, in Evanston, Illinois.
[4] Lansbury got her big break when she won the role of Nancy Drew in the 1970s television series The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries when Pamela Sue Martin left the show in 1978.
She starred on the evening soap opera Falcon Crest in 1989 as Cookie Nash.
Lansbury made guest appearances on several TV shows, among them Battlestar Galactica; The Fall Guy; Knight Rider; Simon & Simon, Fudge; Columbo; Swamp Thing; 240 Robert; Murder, She Wrote; and Diagnosis: Murder.
She later published two books, Elevating Child Care: A Guide to Respectful Parenting and No Bad Kids: Toddler Discipline Without Shame.