McCarty began appearing in musical revues in Los Angeles when she was 5 years old. As a youngster, she performed with other child actresses, including Shirley Temple and Jane Withers. Her first screen credit came in Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm. By 1934, she had appeared in approximately 75 films. Her films as an adult included The French Line (1953), All That Jazz (1979), and Somebody Killed Her Husband (1978).
