 In the 1975 documentary "Love Letter to Edie", Massey said she was raised in an orphanage and eventually was placed in a foster home.Her foster family members were cruel to her and, as a teenager, she ran away to Hollywood.In the documentary "Divine Waters" (1981), Massey explained that she was "born in New York, but raised in Denver, Colorado...I was movie crazy, so I went to California to try and get in the movies, but instead I became a barmaid."