Asher was born John Mallory in Los Angeles, California, to actor Edward Mallory and actress Joyce Bulifant. He was adopted by Bulifant’s third husband, producer/director William Asher.
Edward Mallory (biological father) born Edward Ralph Martz; June 14, 1930 – April 4, 2007, was an American actor, best known for his role as Dr. Bill Horton on NBC’s soap opera Days of Our Lives, which he played from 1966 to 1980.
Mallory once was married to actress Joyce Bulifant, with whom he had one child, John Mallory Asher, and was married to Susanne Zenor at the time of his death; Zenor played Margo Horton on Days of our Lives. Mallory, a 1958 graduate of the Drama Department of Carnegie Mellon University, was an artist in residence at Frostburg State University.
Ed Mallory also taught a video and speech performance class and was well-liked. He can be seen as the Thief in The Alfred Hitchcock Hour episode “Ten Minutes From Now”.
William Milton Asher (adoptive father) born on August 8, 1921 – July 16, 2012, He was an American television and film producer, film director, and screenwriter. He was one of the most prolific early television directors, producing or directing over two dozen series.
With television in its infancy, Asher introduced the sitcom Our Miss Brooks, which was adapted from a radio show. He began directing I Love Lucy by 1952. In 1964, he produced and directed Bewitched, which starred his then-wife Elizabeth Montgomery. As a result of his early success, Asher was considered an “early wunderkind of TV-land,” and was hyperbolically credited in one magazine article with “inventing” the sitcom.
Asher was nominated for an Emmy Award four times, winning once for directing Bewitched in 1966. He was also nominated for the DGA Award in 1951 for I Love Lucy.
Joyce Collins Bulifant is an American television actress, notable for her cheerful, girlish voice with a Southern lilt. In addition to many theater appearances and a recurring role on The Mary Tyler Moore Show as Marie Slaughter, Bulifant was a frequent panelist on the television game show Chain Reaction, Match Game, and Password Plus.
Bulifant has been married five times. She married James MacArthur (November 2, 1958, until 1967; divorced) and had two children with him – Mary MacArthur and Charles MacArthur. Bulifant next married Edward Mallory (September 19, 1969 – 1974; divorced) and had one child with him, John Mallory Asher.
She then married William Asher (August 28, 1976 – 1993; divorced) and Asher adopted her son John which gave him the last name of Asher. Bulifant has a grandson, Evan Joseph Asher, from John’s marriage to Jenny McCarthy. In 2000, Bulifant briefly married Glade Bruce Hansen; the couple divorced in 2001.
She married Roger Perry in 2002 after he divorced his wife of many years, Jo Anne Worley. The couple remained wed until Perry’s death on July 12, 2018. Bulifant has for many years been actively involved with the child abuse prevention non-profit Childhelp, including serving as a Celebrity Ambassador and as a Vice-President on the National Board of Directors.
Bulifant was born on December 16, 1937, in Newport News, Virginia. She attended Solebury School in New Hope, Pennsylvania, graduating in 1955 in the same class as her first husband, James MacArthur, son of legendary actress Helen Hayes and author Charles MacArthur.
