Born in Salisbury, Maryland, USA, following high school, Linda studied for two years at Washington College in Chestertown, Maryland, before moving on to acting studies in New York. In New York, she attended acting workshops given by Lee Strasberg. Her first parts where small parts in TV series, with her biggest break coming with her role in The Terminator (1984). Most known to the public at large from her part in the TV series "Beauty and the Beast" (1987) (before Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), at least).