Background
Wallace was born in Kansas City, Kansas, the daughter of Maxine (née Nichols) and Robert Stanley Bowers.
Wallace was born in Kansas City, Kansas, the daughter of Maxine (née Nichols) and Robert Stanley Bowers.
She attended Wyandotte High School before attending the University of Kansas and graduating with an education degree.
She is perhaps best known for her roles in several popular films mainly in the horror genre. Her most widely seen role is a starring role as Elliott"s mother, Mary, in the Steven Spielberg film East.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982). She also played key roles in popular cult films The Hills Have Eyes (1977), The Howling (1981) and Cujo (1983).
She also appeared in The Stepford Wives in 1975 and 10 (1979).
In total, she has appeared in over 90 television shows and 100 films. She appeared in the television series Together We Stand (1986–1987) and the syndicated The New Lassie (1989–1992).
In the latter series, she appeared with her now late husband Christopher Stone, with whom she also co-starred in The Howling (1981) and Cujo (1983). She starred in Rob Zombie"s re-imagining of Halloween, as Cynthia Strode, Laurie"s adoptive mother.
In 2009, she played the role of Nancy Dooly, Vincent"s mother in The Mother of Invention.
She appeared in the horror film The Ocean, the western Between the Sand and the Sky and the horror-thriller Sebastian. The latter movie stars Daeg Faerch, Meadow Williams, Betsy Rue, Meg Foster and Greg Vaughan. She is also featured in the eighth season of The Office as the mother of Andy Bernard, in the episode "Garden Party".
She also appeared on Grimm as Monroe"s mother.
In March 2015, Wallace was cast on General Hospital as Patricia Spencer, the unseen, long-lost older sister of Luke and Bobbie Spencer.