Her maternal grandmother is Jeanne Gray McDonald (aka Jean Lacy, was a pioneer in early radio and television. Her radio show, "The Woman's Voice", won her an Emmy, and her television program, "The Jeanne Gray Show," which was the first women's TV talk show in Los Angeles, garnered her the "Genii" - an award named in her honor as the first president and founder of the American Women in Radio & Television (AWRT), Southern California Chapter.