Emerging from a family rooted in performance, Goldoni grew up in Los Angeles after being born in New York City, studied at Los Angeles City College and danced with the Lester Horton troupe in the 1950s. She entered film as a child with uncredited parts in two 1949 productions, then gained critical notice when John Cassavetes cast her in the independent landmark Shadows (1959), earning a BAFTA nomi…
