She was the daughter of Theresa (née Dollinger), a house cleaner, and John Schmon, a chemist.

She was of German, English, Scots-Irish, French Canadian and Welsh ancestry.

[4] When Brooke was a child, they lived in a townhouse on the Upper East Side.

[5] She acted alongside her daughter in Wanda Nevada, Endless Love, and Backstreet Dreams.

[7] On October 31, 2012, Shields died at age 79 following a long illness related to dementia.