Cousin of Betty Jane Watson. Other relatives in show business were her uncle Joseph E. Deming, a vaudevillian; and her brother Jack Stapleton, a stage actor. Her parents were Joseph E. Murray (a billboard advertising salesman) and Marie Stapleton Murray (a singer). Graduated from Wadleigh High School, NYC, 1939; attended Hunter College. Worked as a secretary before becoming an actress. Made her stage debut at the Greenwood Playhouse, Peaks Island, Maine, in the summer of 1941. Made her New York stage debut in "The Corn Is Green" (1948). Appeared on Broadway in the musicals "Damn Yankees" (1955) and "Bells Are Ringing" (1956), and later repeated her roles in the movie versions. Other Broadway roles include the original companies of "Rhinoceros" (1961) and "Funny Girl" (1964). She also played Abby Brewster in the 1986-87 revival of "Arsenic and Old Lace".