Her father was a Merchant Marine in WWII; after the war, a manager for an insurance company. Her mom worked “like a dog” trying to keep the house together. She says “they weren’t technically poor, but there was no money. One pair of shoes, one pair of pants.” A blue collar upbringing and a dad who loved a drink, in a small town in a small home cramped with eight kids and chaos. She left as soon as she could to make a name for herself and a pocket full of cash.