Deidre Ann Hall was born October 31, 1947 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and was raised in Lake Worth, Florida. She completed her studies at Los Angeles City College and started her acting career there. Her first appearance on television is in the soap opera The Young and the Restless. A bigger role was given to her as the superhero Electra Woman in the series Electra Woman and Dyna Girl. She also appeared in Our House in 1986. Hall was married to network executive Steve Sohmer from 1991 to 2005. They became parents through surrogacy, and the story of her childbearing was featured in the autobiographical TV-movie Never Say Never: The Deidre Hall Story, where she played herself.

Dr. Marlena Evans Black is played by Deidre Hall in the soap opera Days of Our Lives. Marlena is a psychiatrist at Bayview Sanitarium. In one instance, her jealous twin sister Samantha, impersonated her and had her institutionalized before Samantha's plot was uncovered. Marlena was married to Don Craig, a lawyer, but divorced after their child died. Her next husband was Roman Brady who was a detective. She had twins with him, Sami and Eric, but shortly after their birth, Roman was shot by Stefano DiMera. Little did she know he was not dead, instead he was kidnapped and held prisoner by Stefano. Roman appeared again.