Began her career as a folk singer and drummer.
On August 29, 1958, Varsi won an uncontested divorce from her husband at the time, John Dickson, after testifying that Dickson criticized her until she had a nervous breakdown and had to be hospitalized. The following March, she boarded a plane along with their son for a retreat in Vermont, having announced shortly before that she was quitting films forever. In 1960, she returned to her hometown of San Mateo and remarried the following year but did not return to acting for another six years.
Son Shawn was born in 1956.
Suffered from Lyme disease, an inflammation of the joints that can affect the heart and nervous system.
Survived by two children, Shawn Hausman and Willo Clare Hausman. Willo continues to work in the production end of filmmaking and is a director.