Evans, the second of three daughters, was born Linda Evenstad in Hartford, Connecticut, in 1942, to Arlene (née Dart; 1917–1969) and Alba Evenstad (1904–1958), both of whom were professional dancers. "Evenstad" was the name of the small farm in Nes, Hedmark in Norway from where her paternal great-grandmother emigrated to the United States in 1884 with her young son (Evans\'s grandfather) and a couple of relatives. When Evans was six months old, the family moved from Hartford to North Hollywood. She attended Hollywood High School, where she was a sorority sister of future actress Carole Wells. Her introduction to drama came through classes that she took "as a form of therapy, to cure her of her shyness." When she started her professional career, she changed her last name to "Evans".\n', '

Evans\'s first guest-starring role was on a 1960 episode of Bachelor Father. The series starred John Forsythe, with whom she would costar 20 years later on Dynasty. After several guest roles in The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet between 1960 and 1962, and guest appearances on television series such as The Lieutenant, Wagon Train and Outlaws, Evans gained her first regular role in 1965 in The Big Valley. Playing Audra Barkley, daughter of Victoria Barkley (played by Barbara Stanwyck), Evans was credited in the series until it ended in 1969, though she was only a semi-regular cast member during the last two seasons.\n', '

On December 31, 1967, John Derek recruited his wife to operate one of his cameras after he had been commissioned by daredevil Evel Knievel to film his motorcycle jump of the fountains at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. It was Evans who captured the iconic images of Knievel\'s devastating crash as the jump failed.\n', '

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