Dowling was born in Detroit, Michigan,[1] but grew up in New York City with siblings Robert, Richard, and Constance (who also became an actress).

[1] Back in the United States, she returned to film in Running Target (1956)[1] and appeared in the 1977 production The Car.

She appeared in such television shows as One Step Beyond, Have Gun – Will Travel, Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer, Cheyenne, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Science Fiction Theater, Adam 12, Bonanza, Perry Mason, Daktari,The Andy Griffith Show and, late in her career, Kojak, Barnaby Jones, The Incredible Hulk, and The Dukes of Hazzard.

[8] Her other Broadway credits include Panama Hattie (1942), Banjo Eyes (1942), Beat the Band (1942), and New Faces of 1943 (1943).

[13] Dowling died at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, California, on June 18, 2004, at age 81.