Karen Grassle, known around the world for her iconic role as "Ma" on Little House on the Prairie, grew up in Ventura, California. Raised by hardworking parents whose relationship was undercut by the alcoholism of her father, Karen graduated from UC Berkeley and attended the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art on a Fulbright. She went on to a career in New York as well as in theatres all over the US. She cowrote and starred in the TV film Battered and is known for her advocacy on behalf of equality for women. In the last fifteen years, she has appeared in plays nationwide, as well as in three indie films. She resides in the San Francisco Bay Area and takes pleasure in her relationship with her son, Zach Radford, and spending free time in the garden. She lives in El Cerrito, CA.