Brooks was born in
Lincoln, Nebraska on July 13, 1922, the daughter of Paul and Fern Clark Gettman. She spent much of her childhood with her paternal grandparents who ran a hotel in
Crofton, and attended high school in
Omaha. Brooks was married twice and had four daughters. She wed her first husband, actor Donald Anthony Shay, on January 6, 1945, in Beverly Hills, California. They had a daughter, Leslie Victoria (b. 1945), and divorced in 1948. In 1950, she married Russ Vincent, an actor and, later, a successful Hollywood land developer. She had appeared with him in the 1948 film
Blonde Ice. They remained married until his death 51 years later. Brooks and Vincent had three daughters together; Dorena Marla (b. 1954), Gina L. (b. 1956) and Darla R. (b. 1960). ==Death==