She was born in Baker, Oregon and moved around a lot as a child.
In 1973, she told the press that she was single and pregnant and that she would raise the child alone. It was a bold statement for an actress to make in that era.
She graduated from high school in Southern California.
In 1958, she got her first job as a stenographer at ABC. Later, she moved to Warner Bros. where she worked as a secretary. Someone had suggested to her that she study acting and that's how she decided to become an actress.
She was in the stage production of "Roman Candle" when she was discovered by a producer, who cast her in the daytime serial General Hospital (1963).