Shelley Alexis Duvall was born on July 7, 1949, in Houston, Texas, the daughter of Bobbie Ruth Crawford and Robert Richardson "Bobby" Duvall (1919-1995), a lawyer (not to be confused with actor Robert Duvall) [REF].
After leaving school, Duvall sold cosmetics at Foley's and attended South Texas Junior College, where she majored in Nutrition and Diet Therapy.