Laurette Spang was born in Buffalo, New York but raised in Ann Arbor, Michigan. She grew up as the middle child of a chemist father and housewife mother. She has an older brother, Richard and a younger sister, Marilyn. As a dramatic major in college, she made a college trip to New York where a chance encounter with a soap opera producer led to an audition the following summer (after graduation), and a place at the Williamtown summer theatre. That led to a scholarship at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York. Spotted by a Universal talent scout, she signed a contract and arrived in Hollywood in 1972.
Children, with John McCook: Jake, Becky and Molly. As mentioned in the book "Barnabas and Company: the cast of the TV classic Dark Shadows", Laurette Spang did a little match-making between two of her friends, and they eventually married. Jerry Lacy ("Dark Shadows") and Julia Duffy ("Newhart") had both worked on the soap Love of Life, but they never appeared together on that show, and barely knew each other. When Laurette visited New York to make a TV movie, she brought the two together. They began dating, and eventually married.