Her parents divorced when she was a teenager, her brother Douglas remained with their father Andrew in Canada, and she and her sister Norma moved to New York City with their mother Edith.

[2] In 1920, the sisters appeared as extras and in bit parts in productions filmed in New York, New Jersey, and Florida, but Edith moved with them to California with the intention of securing contracts with one of the studios in Hollywood.

[2][3] Shearer's appearances in productions in the eastern United States consisted of only small uncredited roles in three films, the first being as a schoolgirl in The Flapper, a silent comedy released by Selznick Pictures Corporation.

A contributing factor to Shearer's limited work in motion pictures was her persistent medical issues, most notably her long struggle with bipolar disorder, from which her father most likely also suffered.

[citation needed] Shearer died in 1985 in Los Angeles, and she was interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California.